I have learned that former Amtrak F40PH #342 and #351 have been scrapped. Still trying to figure out how to raise money to preserve another one but currently my cafepress store has yielded little success. [:(]
[:(] no no no! This is really really sad. Speaking of sadness, I saw a rusty Amtrak F40 PH at the end of a train last May. It might be the last time I see a F40 PH helping a Amtrak Surfliner!
Ham549,
I wanted to take the time to offer you personal encouragement. I am a life member of Britain’s Deltic Preservation Society (www.thedps.co.uk), and can add some considerable background experience to your efforts.
First, I want to post an essay of mine that Trains Magazine ran sometime in 2000 as I recall (my computer says I finished this in the final days of 1999), under the title “An F40PH Preservation Society?”:
Will anyone preserve an F40PH?
The F40PH must rival the GP7/9 as the locomotive type combining the largest impact on American railroading with the largest disinterest by the American railfan community. As a nationwide locomotive, it appears and sounds the same from Bakersfield to Boston, adding a comfortable consistency and predictable monotone to American train-watching. By comparison with its predecessors, the EMD E8/E9/FP7 and the Alco PA, the F40PH is an unglamorous breadbox on wheels, and its high-rev whine, accentuated at standstill by its need to provide HEP, can be described as irritating.
For years, the F40PH has taken a whipping as a “been there, done that” locomotive. Many railfans in recent years have been loath to raise their cameras to photograph an F40-and-Amfleet/Superliner train; after all, the Pennsylvanian of 1982 looked like the Carolinian of 1985, which looked like the Loop of 1987. Even the recent installations of ditch lights to the front corners have done little to raise the enthusiasm of railfans for this friendly, cheerful little plugger. It will probably take either the complete disappearance of Amtrak or a couple more years of the esthetic catastrophes of Genesis units paired with express boxcars, mismatched passenger cars, and RoadRailers now ignominiously running as named trains before enthusiasts recognize
Thanks for your response. I am pretty shore I have a home for it at the museum I am part of but nothing is “official” yet. I would like to have it as a stationary display that we could fire up on certain occasions that way it won’t where out as fast and people would get to go inside the engine room and cab when it is not being used. I also have talked with Chris to get some help.
No need to ‘perserve’ them, just sell them to a short line.
Several are already in museums…
Tennessee Central Railway Museum has two, 258 and 375.
California State Railroad Museum has one, 281.
North Carolina Transportation Museum has one, 307.
thats four preserved…and there was a guy who bought one on his own…privately owned. I cant seem to find any info on it…anyone remember that one?
ah! found it…owned by Chris Fussel, stored at Albany, Oregon. http://www.trainweb.org/mccann/photos.htm (oh god…please dont repaint it in daylight colors! [tdn])
thats 5 preserved.
Scot
If you go to msn maps and look at the site, you can use bird’s eye view. You can rotate around and the F40PH is visible. Yes it is now in Daylight colors.
huh…well I guess its not so bad:
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=213093&nseq=0
looks very nice actually…but why? why buy a historic locomotive and then NOT restore it in historic colors? Doyle must have rubbed off on him![;)] “Because it’s mine and I want it that way.” [;)] (a reference to: http://www.nkp190.com/ )
oh well, a Daylight F40PH is better than a scrapped F40PH…
Scot
Probably so it matches the coach(es) behind?
Actually Daylight colors throughout the entire Amtrak system would look quite nice I think.
Al - in - Stockton
I dunno. I like the DRGW colors that we get on our F40s (sorry about that non-F40 lead unit![;)]).
LNERR4472,
Your post is very well thought out and realistic. For me, the one paragraph that stood out is this one:
quote - For years, the F40PH has taken a whipping as a “been there, done that” locomotive. Many railfans in recent years have been loath to raise their cameras to photograph an F40-and-Amfleet/Superliner train; after all, the Pennsylvanian of 1982 looked like the Carolinian of 1985, which looked like the Loop of 1987. Even the recent installations of ditch lights to the front corners have done little to raise the enthusiasm of railfans for this friendly, cheerful little plugger. It will probably take either the complete disappearance of Amtrak or a couple more years of the esthetic catastrophes of Genesis units paired with express boxcars, mismatched passenger cars, and RoadRailers now ignominiously running as named trains before enthusiasts recognize the vital role played by the F40PH. - end quote
Yes, I would like to see more F40s saved, however, I remember being around when the F40 came unto the scene. Ham, I don’t know your age but many of us that were railfanning back in the 1970s absolutely did not like the appearance of the F40s at all! Comments in my railfan/hobbyshop circles included: “Cheescake looking!”, “Stubby!”, “Chunky little box!”, “What kind of a nose is that?!” “GP40 in a box!”…
The last time I looked, Metra, Caltrain and VIA were all operating sizable fleets of F40PH/F40PH-2’s. I doubt that any of them are going to retired any time soon.
Ham,
If you haven’t seen it yet, you may enjoy this. This takes place in my neck of the woods. Includes cab ride footage from one of the ex-Amtrak F40s.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvHdw9YCsJo
[8D]
Two F40’s on No. 14 could whip that train across the Coast Line like nobody’s business! Give me a pair of F40’s with Tommy De La Rosa at the throttle and I’ll show you barely a blur through Morgan Hill.
I fired occasionally for Tommy many years ago when he would put the whip to a pair of F40’s only to slow to the mandated 70 mph for the talking detector near Morgan Hill, then after it gave its radio readout, he would put the whip to them again! Seemed as if we were never late into San Jose.
Yep. Save a few.
Grand Canyon RR has at least four F40s, two in daily use, along with their Alco FA units and steam locomotives.
I hope they all get scrapped, I hate Amtrak [:-^]
I think its pretty much safe to say that F40’s alone killed any interest I ever had in standard gauge trains
you need to get out more! [:-^]
Scot
I look at a blunt nosed Genesis, and I get nostalgic for the ol’ F40s.
I like the FP59s but the Gennies just look like a badly brisqued B unit.[:O]
At least the F40 looked like a locomotive.The new units look more like spaceships than anything that belongs on a railroad.[tdn]