KSmitty wrote:Thanks much for the info.
A follow up or 2, if I may...Since you say they were stored for backup power in Alliance NE, and the picture is from Galesburg IL, are they going to meet the torch?
As backup power, what modification is required, and does it disable the units from providing any tractive power if they were put on a train?
Thanks again.
I believe there is a modification that is done to the main generator to basically output its power instead through the high voltage electrical cabinet and to the traction motors and instead put it out through a large cable going to a building (in a nutshell!). If its a loco going back into revenue service eventually, im sure the modification can be undone, or made so its a kind of switch, but if its retired power, with no real chance of running again, a "quick and dirty" mod im sure could be done without having to worry about making it be able to go back to providing traction power for itself.
NJT has a few spots on the system where there are stub tracks and plugs just for that reason, basically to keep the signals and a few buildings running on a line in the event of a really long power failure. There are also a few Geeps that were modified to be able to be plugged in for this reason.
In a major ice storm in 1998, a CN loco was run down a street, yes a road street, to provide power to a town. this pic is of it going back on to rails.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=346295
Also, sometimes when a loco is bought and scrapped, its prime mover and generator are taken out and overhauled and rebuilt into generators for hospitals, sky scrapers, etc etc etc. I recall reading somewhere that the SP SD45 tunnel motors were a favorite for firms that did this work as the V20 in the SD45 provided more power than a V16 in an SD40.
