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Re: Someone please explain shifting gears in a diesel
Author: OPRRMS
Date: 12-16-2010 - 14:45
SP5103 Wrote:
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>snip<
> I know SP first used the FMs out of Texas for
> freight service; was this to avoid Kalifornia's
> taxes? If they always had the "freight" gearing
> and steam boilers, it makes you wonder if SP
> didn't intend them to be commuter power from the
> beginning.
No, I don't think so. They were originally purchased as dual-service units for the old Rio Grande Division, with El Paso as their maintenence base. Back then, it was common for SP to purchase blocks of units for a specific localtion. I've seen several photos of them working passenger extras out of El Paso, but I've never run across any pics of them on any of the "name" trains. WAF, have you seen any? My understanding of it is that desert sand ingested with the engine air quickly became a problem that resulted in higher than acceptable maintenence. Prior to purchase, at least one of the demonstrators had been tested in peninsula commute service with favorable results, and apparently two of the other units also spent some time on the commutes. The units stayed on the Rio Grande Division for about 2 or 2 1/2 years before all were permanently reassigned to the commute pool. It was after that that their electrical systems were modified to provide the fast acceleration the units became known for on the commutes, but as far as I know their gear ratio was never changed.
As an aside, there is some evidence that 4802-4816 were originally from a cancelled NYC order that FM offerred SP after construction on the units had already begun.
-------------------------------------------------------
>snip<
> I know SP first used the FMs out of Texas for
> freight service; was this to avoid Kalifornia's
> taxes? If they always had the "freight" gearing
> and steam boilers, it makes you wonder if SP
> didn't intend them to be commuter power from the
> beginning.
No, I don't think so. They were originally purchased as dual-service units for the old Rio Grande Division, with El Paso as their maintenence base. Back then, it was common for SP to purchase blocks of units for a specific localtion. I've seen several photos of them working passenger extras out of El Paso, but I've never run across any pics of them on any of the "name" trains. WAF, have you seen any? My understanding of it is that desert sand ingested with the engine air quickly became a problem that resulted in higher than acceptable maintenence. Prior to purchase, at least one of the demonstrators had been tested in peninsula commute service with favorable results, and apparently two of the other units also spent some time on the commutes. The units stayed on the Rio Grande Division for about 2 or 2 1/2 years before all were permanently reassigned to the commute pool. It was after that that their electrical systems were modified to provide the fast acceleration the units became known for on the commutes, but as far as I know their gear ratio was never changed.
As an aside, there is some evidence that 4802-4816 were originally from a cancelled NYC order that FM offerred SP after construction on the units had already begun.
