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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Mookie [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by dharmon Mook, GPs and SDs are both EMDs (GMs) GP is General Purpose and I believe that SD is Special or Specific Duty if I remember correctly [/quote] Dan - I think it is Special ?, but the fog is starting to lift a little. I see both here in the yards and keep wondering what the difference was and the history on them. Moo [/quote] Yes, the original designation was Special Duty, but today the roles are reversed - the SD's have become general purpose locomotives while the few new GP's that are produced nowadays by the manufacturer in Boise, Idaho (they keep changing their name so I can't remember which one is the current one, ask Ed) in cooperation with GM, actually have "special" duties (ask Ed!). I think the last "real" GP's built were GP60's, and that was years ago. I was wondering why they named the first GP model the GP7, and then I realized that GP7s were built at the same time as the F7s (with the same prime mover?), and I can see no other reason for that designation. Does anyone have any info on that detail? I think the same goes for GP9/F9? Can this logic be applied to (at least some models of) E units? Later they got even more mysterious with their designations - maybe only the GP18 and GP20 stood for 1800 and 2000 horsepower prime movers, while the GP30's name was a "sales gimmick" - I remember that from a book I read - it was advertised as a new model with 30 improvements over the previous one, which was I think the GP20. Hope the marbles (my marbles) remember it right? Best regards, Oliver.
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