In the June 2009 issue of Model Railroader, the article on improving the Amtrak F40PH was incorrect on something… Amtrak had the fuel tanks behind the battery boxes and air tanks for saftey reasons in case of head-on collisions. Anyone else caught this?
Joshua
Not always. http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1239598
I believe that there was a change of position of the fuel tank between several of the locomotive orders.
Wow, I’m so used to the fuel tank in the back, that picture made the F40 look werid. Thanks, I never knew they ordered some Phase III schemes with that.
Joshua
I’m not expert on this topic, but I think that paint scheme did not necessarily have anything to do with when the locomotive was ordered. Engines get repainted, so the loco in that photo may have been delivered with an earlier paint job.
There was an article in MR about these engines that I think mentioned the fuel tank position change. Unfortunately I don’t remember which issue that was, other than it was not recent.
April 1987. That’s where I got the idea from.
Joshua
Hi Joshua,
It all depends on when the locomotive was built. F40PH units built in 1976 have the the battery boxes and air reservoirs ahead of the fuel tank, while those built in 1977 and later have the fuel tank ahead and the battery boxes and reservoirs behind. See Greg McDonnell’s Field Guide to Modern Diesel Locomotives, page 182. It’s apparently more of a weight distribution than a safety question.
So long,
Andy