Spray paint code

[U-Haul]

What do the letters on the fuel tanks mean? I always thought E.M.T meant emergency medical technician.
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=173382
Viewer discretion is advised.

[GOLDEN-ARM]

Endless Musings from Terry??? How about EMPTY, meaning the tanks are drained, on locos being stored, or sold?

[BlackDog]

That pic hurts.

So long big girls, it was a pleasure working with you.

[Komachi]

GOLDEN-ARM responded...

"How about EMPTY...?"


EMpTy... or EM-T, read as Em-tee. Makes sense.

Kinda.

Sorta.

Not really.

Just one of those "industry shortcuts" (not a slam against the guys out there doing the job, just an observation) that you'll find in many other fields. Also, saves money on spraypaint by ommitting the "p" and the "y" .


BlackDog,

I take it you've had the pleasure of operating the SD45s? What are your impressions of the units? Good, bad, indifferent?

[BlackDog]

BlackDog,

I take it you've had the pleasure of operating the SD45s? What are your impressions of the units? Good, bad, indifferent?

I am a hogger on the CN's former WC, ran them many a time. I liked them a lot though some of the circumstances were not so great.I guess I recognized they were dinosaurs and appreciated them for that. They rode pretty smooth, pulled well, and got the stuffing kicked out of them towards the end. I didn't think too much of the F45's even though the cab was roomier.

[lock4244]

BlackDog, what do you think of the power CN is using on the WC now? Better or worse? I'll go out on a limb that your probably not impressed with the 5400 and 5500 class SD50F and SD60F units (not many pro's seem to like them).

[BlackDog]

BlackDog, what do you think of the power CN is using on the WC now? Better or worse? I'll go out on a limb that your probably not impressed with the 5400 and 5500 class SD50F and SD60F units (not many pro's seem to like them).

Around here I have yet to find someone who likes them though the 5600's are decent pullers. Just as long as the are the trailing unit.

The CN seems to really be skimping on maintenance and TLC. Those units and the 2400's look like absolute rats: filthy, tattered and torn, cobbled together. For some reason the labels for the switches (Gen Field, lights, etc.) are really worn and unreadable, unlike the 5500's, not really sure why. Those GCFX battleships (and the ones lettered WC and GTW aren't much to look at but they can pull. Punch it up on their computers under a hard pull and they are putting out up to 3300 horses. Been catching quite a few IC units, SD and GP 40's. Kinda nice with the air conditioning, though I know I won't see them in July when we need them.

I cringe when I see the pics of the 45's in the deadline because to me it signifies the end of an era. Railroading on the old WC used to be fun, if a bit unorthodox at times. Then Burkhardt got distracted overseas and McCarron mounted a coup that overthrew the king and then things really went to hell, which eventually assumed the form of the CN.

[Otto Vondrak]

I don't know what the spray paint means, but did anyone notice the orange IC hack in that photo??

-otto-

[jg greenwood]

BlackDog, what do you think of the power CN is using on the WC now? Better or worse? I'll go out on a limb that your probably not impressed with the 5400 and 5500 class SD50F and SD60F units (not many pro's seem to like them).

Around here I have yet to find someone who likes them though the 5600's are decent pullers. Just as long as the are the trailing unit.

The CN seems to really be skimping on maintenance and TLC. Those units and the 2400's look like absolute rats: filthy, tattered and torn, cobbled together. For some reason the labels for the switches (Gen Field, lights, etc.) are really worn and unreadable, unlike the 5500's, not really sure why. Those GCFX battleships (and the ones lettered WC and GTW aren't much to look at but they can pull. Punch it up on their computers under a hard pull and they are putting out up to 3300 horses. Been catching quite a few IC units, SD and GP 40's. Kinda nice with the air conditioning, though I know I won't see them in July when we need them.

I cringe when I see the pics of the 45's in the deadline because to me it signifies the end of an era. Railroading on the old WC used to be fun, if a bit unorthodox at times. Then Burkhardt got distracted overseas and McCarron mounted a coup that overthrew the king and then things really went to hell, which eventually assumed the form of the CN.

L,
Skimping on maintenance and ignoring the right-of-way is just another method of guaranteeing the CN maintains the best operating ratio in the industry.

[emd_SD_60]

I don't know what the spray paint means, but did anyone notice the orange IC hack in that photo??

-otto-

it along with the Geep are going to a railroad park in the Chicago subdivision of Homewood.

[lock4244]

Thanks for the reply, BlackDog. Always love insight from a pro. Past weekend railfanning, I caught two SD50F's spewing thick, black smoke each time the hogger gave'em some throttle... they looked like Alco's, not GM's. 5442 and 5443 (on different trains) were the offending units (the guy with 5442 trailing seemed to be going extra easy on the throttle). I think that's a sign of a bad turbo, but I'm no expert (by far). I like those units from a railfans perspective, but because they are unique... I don't have the "pleasure" of working on them.

No surprise that the power is going to hell. Some guys who work at the diesel shop at MacMillian Yard (Toronto) have said that once upon a time when a unit got an overhaul, it actually got a complete overhaul. Now, changing a grounded generator or a power assembly change-out is an overhaul! I guess changing a blown headlamp is a partial re-wiring