GP40WH

[gp40marc69]

If anybody has ever been to Baltimore and seen MARC trains, you'll know we have GP40WH-2.s Well, I found out the head end cab area was originally a F45 cab. Also, I love the sound of the 645E engine. I'm just wondering, can a freight engine be converted to a passenger engine like the SD70?

[Railpac]

A while back I heard about Alaska RR possibly ordering dual service SD70MACs rated at 4300 hp and equipped with HEP for passenger ops. I haven't heard anything on this in a while. Any updates?

[prt1607j]

if jesse james can convert a 81 peterbuilt into a trike sure.. actually it owuld be easy.. just swap out the traction motors for ones with a smaller gear ... easy to do

[jbozeman]

Yes it can be done by changing the gear ratio and several of the control modules that monitor and control the load ramp up rate, horsepower, current limits, etc. Adding a HEP unit to the back would be possible, but it would make it very tight in and around the air compressor. Three phase AC cabling would have to be run from end to end along with the associated receptacles. As for air brakes, they should work fine since most 26L systems already have the "passenger" feature on the selector valve.

[Phil Hom]

This topic has been discussed in an Yahoo Group "Loco Notes"

[Trackbolt]

I may be wrong but I believe that the main reason so many E-units were retired after the Class A's cut back their passenger service is that they were no suitable for freight service especially if there were severe grades. They apparantly were too difficult to re-gear and the A1A trucks could be slippery starting a heavy freight. Maybe the Santa Fe figured this out early judging from their limited use of A1A E's and PA's and the reliance of the venerable F-7 for frieght and passenger service.
I wish Marc never retired the ex B&O F-7s rebuilt by Morrison-Knudsen in the early 80's. I believe they were built with GP-38 645 prime movers and had standard GP-38 control stands. I believe they still have a couple of the Cab Control units still in service. They are the ones with no prime mover or traction motors only a Cummins generator set for HEP.

Trackbolt

[Justin B]

I don’t think it was a that they were hard to re-gear, but rather even with the lowest possible gearing E units still had an absurdly high min. continuous speed, making them generally unsuitable for freight.

Ratio -- Min Cont. -- Top Speed
52/25 -- 37 MPH -- 117 MPH
55/22 -- 31 MPH -- 98 MPH
56/21 -- 29 MPH -- 92 MPH
57/20 -- 27 MPH -- 85 MPH

Some railroads used E units for freight. I know EL did, perhaps more. They put their E's on fast, light van trains that would not drag the units down into their short time ratings.

[Trackbolt]

You hit it. I remember seeing E's on fast trailer trains on the EL southern tier in 1969.

Trackbolt

[Lehigh Valley Railroad]

See..... They should have stuck with the A's........ and J's.... and Y's....

[bar358]

The Bangor & Aroostook regeared their two E-7's back in the day and used them on road jobs for a few years before being traded in on new GP-38's.

[brunswickrailfan]

The AKRR is ordering (i cant recall exactly) 16 new locomotves with HEP equiment. The only reason it's feasable in their case is tht Cruize traffic and their 40 car double-decker passenger trains! Quite an operation!

Those GP40WH-2's are cobbled together man..whoa! What with an F45 nose, SD45 grille section, GP40 long hood and engine AND a CAT HEP to boot! Same goes with the GP39H-2's too !(GP40 with a de-turboed 645E3 i believe)

[genesis11980]

They lool like a backwards version of NJT's GP40FH-2's. These units feature a standard GP 40 nose and cab, however, their rear section features a full-width cowl fashioned out of F45 cowls. They ended looking like a cross between an F40 and a GP40. They were created by MK.

[RK]

Hi there, :D

The Alaska Railroad has ordered 8 SD70MACs. They were tacked on to the CSX order. They are rated at 4,300 horsepower and will be numbered 4317-4324. Someone at another forum posted pics. of the unpainted 4317. They will have HEP installed at a later date. 4 are suppose to be delivered in April and 4 in May. The ARR will have HEP installed sometime after Sept. when the pass. season slows down.

The ARR doesn't have 40 double decker cars trains. They run 2 train sets, with about 11 or 12 double decker cars on each train set. Another train runs with about 2 double decker cars. The ARR has out for bid for 2 more Double Decker cars. Those cars aren't expected until 2005. The ARR owns 2 or 3 Double Deckers of its own and the rest are owned by the Cruise companies.

[DutchRailnut]

The AAR SD70's will have HEP from factory.
the HEP is provided by a Inverter, not a seperate hep.
the units will have 3 inverters No 1 truck , No 2 truck , HEP.

[RK]

Hi there,:D


I heard the parts are on back order and software for the HEP was to be install in Sept. We'll find out in about a month, I guess. The pass. crews will need to be trained on the equipment. They'll probably be the first ones to use them. The ARR also has the BNSF SD70MAC Training Simulator install in Anchorage. I'm not sure why they need it. All the crews are trained on MACs. I don't think they have any new crews that need to be trained, but they might.