AEM7 Disposition (and other motors - HHP8)

its the biggest waste of time and money? Amtrak already has cab cars they dont want to put money into.

Alright, Matt, I think youve zombified enough dead horses. Approach, do you know which Remans have been retired?

ACeInTheHole wrote:Alright, Matt, I think youve zombified enough dead horses. Approach, do you know which Remans have been retired?

There are six remans decommissioned. I'd answer your question but it is quite clear you aren't talking to me.

ACeInTheHole wrote:I know 901, 943 and 936 are gone.. Whatre the other two ThirdRail?

Oh...you actually did ask awhile ago and I missed it. Along with what you listed above, you may now include the 905, the 948 and as of two days ago, the 918.

The 948 went under because leaks were causing problems and they decided not to fix it.

This is my beef with that wacky IG report that said Amtrak ordered too many engines and they should have considered rebuilding the existing fleet. These units are old and hard run. Even the baby batch is almost 30 years old. Welds start to becoming compromised, rust develops, etc. How many more years were really feasible for this fleet? I doubt they could make it another twenty years.

Not to say the ACS fleet will make it that long either.

I'm sure the person who claims that the "existing fleet" should have been rebuilt has no clue to the actual condition of the units. Aside from the insides rattling to death, some of the meatballs still impress me considering the mileage and pounding they take.

Some of these meatballs are fantastic. No leaks, no air leaks, can hold a conversation. And some are the equal of driving a Willys Jeep with the windshield down across the windyest flatland you could find at 125mph.

ThirdRail7 wrote:

ACeInTheHole wrote:I know 901, 943 and 936 are gone.. Whatre the other two ThirdRail?

Oh...you actually did ask awhile ago and I missed it. Along with what you listed above, you may now include the 905, the 948 and as of two days ago, the 918.

The 948 went under because leaks were causing problems and they decided not to fix it.

This is my beef with that wacky IG report that said Amtrak ordered too many engines and they should have considered rebuilding the existing fleet. These units are old and hard run. Even the baby batch is almost 30 years old. Welds start to becoming compromised, rust develops, etc. How many more years were really feasible for this fleet? I doubt they could make it another twenty years.

Not to say the ACS fleet will make it that long either.

No worries ThirdRail, happens. Hmm, that was quick on 948s part, it was running not long ago, surprising its gone. 905, that was my favorite. 918 I never really noticed much. I guess time moves on.

Yes, im in agreement with you on whether to have rebuilt or replaced the things.. NJT did the same thing, kicked out the 44s when they were nearing overhaul time in favor of the 46s. To throw an additional wrench in it, you have the condition disparity between DCs and ACs, in the hypothetical rebuild scenario, the DCs were never rebuilt whereas the ACs were. Two different sets of parts piles and rebuild schematics, and then you still have the problem of the HHP8s being crap, and mismatched parts piles. The Sprinters consolidate the messy logistics with 70 new, identical locomotives, for a set price, no fuss. Yes, theyve had extensive teething.. But.. The worst HHPs were still pieces of crap with 15 years to get them right, could you imagine having to do it all again on a rebuilt one? Im not knocking 651, 654 or 655 with that one, those put in a class performance once the troublemakers were filtered out.

I am surprised 905 lasted this long. that was the voodoo motor. Needed a Ouija board just to make it work again anytime it got shopped.

And not one of those HHP-8s mentioned there is not on my shiz list. Esp the 651. I would love to be the commander of and fire the first bullet of the firing squad on that engine. Hell, give me a rocket launcher!

Hmm. The last Hippos did seem to clean it up when they started dropping. Perhaps it was the classic now that theyre being watched as in if they fail severely (like 661 blowing the HEP on 178.. I remember that distinctly because I ended up catching it in its last day of service) they will be stored.

And, 905, I know this sounds really buffish, but, you can't argue with the horn on that thing. I remember once, i was all set to click the shutter for a pic of it on Dock, my camera had selected 1/250th shutter, so, you really had to flinch to induce motion blur. But, right when i hit the shutter is right when the engineer hit the horn.. I deleted it, but you could see every which way I moved when I jumped from the noise in that shot. I hear its brakes sucked, and some who ran it say it was slow, others say it was fastest of the Toasters, ive heard it was rarely shopped, i heard it was worn out.. For my own curiousity, how does the 905 compare to another warhorse, like the 920? Was it any good when it worked?

ThirdRail7 wrote:This is my beef with that wacky OIG report that said Amtrak ordered too many engines and they should have considered rebuilding the existing fleet. These units are old and hard run.

Even in 2007, NJT was toying around with giving an overhaul to the ALP44s. The AC AEM7s has one rebuild already and made some 15 years since.

R36 Combine Coach wrote:

ThirdRail7 wrote:This is my beef with that wacky OIG report that said Amtrak ordered too many engines and they should have considered rebuilding the existing fleet. These units are old and hard run.

Even in 2007, NJT was toying around with giving an overhaul to the ALP44s. The AC AEM7s has one rebuild already and made some 15 years since.

The ALP-44s are young - some from back around 1990/1991 but some as recently as 1997. Their retirement seemed like a waste of taxpayer dollars to me, though I can certainly think of more egregious wastes. But are the frames and trucks just not worth much relative to the propulsion system components? Would it not be worth putting modern innards into the 44s or the HHPs? Apparently the answer is no, though as a taxpayer I think it's fair to ask if both NJT and Amtrak are being too cavalier about throwing away young equipment.

I heard something to the effect of thats it for 925.. Can you confirm ThirdRail?

rebuilding a locomotive is fine as long as you realize your not really saving anything.
take unit apart and removing everything, then repairing any holes rust etc including mounting holes etc will cost you 1/3 of your overhaul before you start any actual rebuilding.

ACeInTheHole wrote:I heard something to the effect of thats it for 925.. Can you confirm ThirdRail?

Still holding on the 908 and 925. Nothing is confirmed as of yet.

I had the 934 the other night, was a nice change from the normal ACS despite me being "almost" sold on the new units!