OldPoleBurner Wrote:
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> I've never been particularly fond of "roster
> shots", but I've actually enjoyed these of the
> Alco Centuries. They really are distinctive and
> handsome locomotives. Too bad Alco went out of
> business. I often wonder what led to that - any
> ideas out there.
>
> Anyhow Steve, keep 'em coming!

I'm sure an internet search would come up with a lot more, but what I remember from reading about Alco's demise was that it mostly had to do with their partner, General Electric, becoming their competitor. GE was a much bigger company, and frankly, like EMD (General Motors) a company that both sold locomotives and shipped huge amounts by rail.

As much as I personally loved Alcos (in every case, I think they came up with the better looking locomotives, except maybe for the DL-109 versus the first E units), I don't believe that they were ever seen as being as mechanically sound or reliable as EMDs. With GE now a competitor to keep GM in check, I don't think the railroads had the incentive to buy from Alco anymore either (as they may have done in the late 1950s, to ensure that there were at least two major companies producing the product).

I have heard from some that the poor reliability of the 244 engine doomed Alco a good 15 years before they went out of business, even though the 251 engine was vastly more reliable. They were seen as an inferior product and changing perceptions is hard.

As this is all off the top of my head, I'll probably get flamed for it... but this was my basic understanding.

CF