GP40s with new three axel trucks...

[edblysard]

I know...GPs have two, not three....

Five flats hit the yard yesterday...one loaded with SSW 7250, and four others that I didnt get the numbers from...all older SSW GP40s in the 7200 series...but with brand new three axel trucks under them instead of the original two...not much room left under there!

The wheels looked to be broad gauge..wider that US standard...

So, anyone know where they are headed?

I couldnt find the shippers invoice, and didnt have the chance to climb up on them and look at the shipping invoice.

Ed

[CSXrules4eva]

Six axle GP40s hummm. . .thats interesting. I guess whoever owns them wants them to be road service and not yard service. I guess it must be a shortline or a regional railroad that owns them. I do wonder what the 3axle trucks look like under the frame, it must be a little crowded down there.

[CHIPSTRAINS]

SOUNDS LIKE A JOB FOR ONE OF THE U.P. GUYS TO FIND OUT. THEY'VE SOLD THEM TO SOMEONE, WHO HAS PLENTY OF "BIG BUCKS" TOMODIFY THEM. THEY EVIDENTLY NEED A "SHORT" SIX-AXLE,OTHERWISE THEY COULD PICK UP ANY NUMBER OF GOOD S D -40'S. V. M. V. IN PADUCAH, COULD'VE DONE THE MOD., BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF "BOISE"[swg] CHIP

[edblysard]

Well,
Considering these guys were inbound to the Port of Houston, are at the PTRA today, and are headed to Texas Terminals for loading on a ship...I figure they are bound for South America,,,Brazil and Argentina buy a lot of older locos...
I know Brazil has dual gauge tracks in a lot of places, and these trucks had wider gauge wheelsets than US..

I was just wondering if any of the old heads knew right off the top of their head....

Ed

[Junctionfan]

Wouldn't that transform it into a SD40? Definately sounds "Special Duty" to me.

[Overmod]

Ed -- what KIND of six-wheel trucks are they? (i.e. steering or non-steering)?

If there's any way to get a gauge on them -- do it! It would help, for instance, to narrow (no pun intended) the field down to, say, the Russian 5' gauge...

Connections to Iraq rail system via Russia, with dependable power?

[edblysard]

Non steering...Rockwell castings, I did see the emblem/logo under the heavy coat of black paint....
If they are still there tomorrow, I will meausre them.

We ship lots of older locos out to South America...for a long while, it was old GE C-30s...then a bunch of EMD SD40-2s... even sent them a few Rio Grande SD40-2Ts....

At least 50 GE to Brazil over the last year to year and a half...

I will check tomorrow!

Ed

[mustanggt]

QUOTE: USA
Non steering...Rockwell castings, I did see the emblem/logo under the heavy coat of black paint....
If they are still there tomorrow, I will meausre them.

We ship lots of older locos out to South America...for a long while, it was old GE C-30s...then a bunch of EMD SD40-2s... even sent them a few Rio Grande SD40-2Ts....

At least 50 GE to Brazil over the last year to year and a half...

Could be going to the Panama canal railway? I know they use a wider gauge.

[ericsp]

I have no idea where they are going to. However, according to the SP roster I have, those are GP40-2s, built in 1984. They were leased to Cotton Belt.

[edblysard]

Eric,
Yes, they are GP40s or 40-2s....just have "new" SD type trucks...cramed in there too...less than a hands width from hitting the pilot plates!

So, where are they going?

Ed

[Anonymous]

Panama Canal railway is no longer broad gauge. KCS standard-gauged it.

[ericsp]

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

Eric,
Yes, they are GP40s or 40-2s....just have "new" SD type trucks...cramed in there too...less than a hands width from hitting the pilot plates!

So, where are they going?

Ed

I was not saying you thought that they were GP40s when they are SD40s. I was saying they were -2s.

[DSchmitt]

Are all axels powered or are they idlers to spread the weight so the locos can be used on light track[?]

[CShaveRR]

Ed, can you get numbers off the flat cars? That might help, too.

[daveklepper]

That wasmy question. Do these locomotives now have six motors, or is the central axle an idler.

[edblysard]

Eric,
Gottcha...your right, they are -2s.
At first blush, it looked like all three axels are powered, again, if they are still there and I get near them, I will check.
Carl, I will pull the number off one of the cars, if I get the chance.

Ed

[M636C]

Ed,

There are three ex CSX GP40s fitted with 5'6" gauge trucks in Argentina working main line trains from a mine to a port on the old Central Argentine line. These were fitted with GE 752 motors, four only, on the outer axles of standard EMD export Flexicoil trucks. These had a special design of bolster on the truck that allowed the truck to use the existing GP40 pivot. This didn't allow a centre motor, but allowed the unit to use the existing trucks without increasing the height of the unit. In Argentina, the broad gauge clearances are only slightly less than , say, the Eastern USA.

There is a need for new motive power in Argentina, and in other South American countries, Brazil and Chile in particular. All these countries use broad gauge. In Chile, they are using the ex Milwaukee SDL39s, because they need the lighter locomotive weight. This is also the case in Argentina. The Buenos Aires & Pacific still uses the original rail, 100lb/yd, good for 100 years ago, but not up to using SD40-2s ballasted to 200 tons and above.

These units could be going to any of these countries, and because I am familiar with Argentina, I hope it is there they are going!

You say the trucks are very close to the pilot beams. Do these units still have conventional steps at the ends, or have the steps been removed to allow the trucks to pivot?

Peter

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

There are also some ex-CSX GP38/40's (I'm not sure which) that were rebuilt with 3-axle trucks for service in Chile.

[edblysard]

Ok...
Carl,
Flat car is KRL 70901

Unit on flat is 7272, from Los Angeles.
Last one left in the yard...

Eric and Peter...forgot to look, but did get photos, from the photos, the center axel is powered.

Got a few of the sideframes. and a few of the whole thing.
In the photos, you can see the gauge is broader than ours...

Anyone want the photos, email me at
[e-mail]

I dont share addresses with anyone, so as a friend say..."no worries"...

Ed

[martin.knoepfel]

Brazil bought several US-engines and transformed them with more axles. I guess, 4 to 6 or 6 to 8 axles. Some weeks ago, there has been a discussion about this topic, with pictures posted

[martin.knoepfel]

Iraq has a railroad connection to Turkey, via Syria. It is standard-gauge. Iraq has no border with Russia, and Iran runs on standard-gauge. Broad-gauge-engines wouldn't make sense in Iraq.

[edblysard]

Martin,
Your quite right, a friend of mine in Brazil sends me photos of them all the time...
we (PTRA)ship them out old GEs, EMDs...and because of the light rail they have, they home build trucks and install four, 4 axel trucks under a lot of them..
Funniest thing to see a big old GE -9 riding around on four trucks with 8 axles!

Even more funny is that they have narrow gauge track, and dual gauge tracks also, and some of these things get narrow gauge trucks to boot....
they look like they should just fall over the first curve they hit...

Ed

QUOTE: Originally posted by martin.knoepfel

Brazil bought several US-engines and transformed them with more axles. I guess, 4 to 6 or 6 to 8 axles. Some weeks ago, there has been a discussion about this topic, with pictures posted

[AlcoRS11Nut]

I couldnt find the shippers invoice, and didnt have the chance to climb up on them and look at the shipping invoice.

Ed


Better not do that..........you could get busted

[adrianspeeder]

QUOTE: Originally posted by AlcoRS11Nut


I couldnt find the shippers invoice, and didnt have the chance to climb up on them and look at the shipping invoice.

Ed


Better not do that..........you could get busted

He works for railroad....

Adrianspeeder

[edblysard]

Matt,
Thanks, I appreicate your concern...
But I work there, so its OK for me to ride the cars!
But you might read the thread I just started about the dork who read this thread yesterday or this morning, and decided he had a "right" to tresspass...

Thanks again, though...

Stay Frosty,
Ed

[UPTRAIN]

Send me them pix on over.

[edblysard]

Sent them to the last email address I had for you...
Ed

[UPTRAIN]

I wish so many old units weren't "effed" up with the extended frames and added axles...they just look plain UGLY!

[UPTRAIN]

OH MY LORD...THOSE LOOK AWFUL!!! I saw SSW 7274 in town in January...SSW 9647 was in the yard at the same time....I figured those were NREX...remember those old engines we saw that we though were Mexican...the old EMD G-12's...those were Korean National Railway's from NRC-Mount Vernon, IL. That thing has a third generation blower housing and you can tell they trimmed the fuel tank a bit...sad to see that old unit go...I bet some old Cotton Belt people would roll over in their graves to see what some of those old SSW units are becoming.

[ericsp]

The locomotives look good, the trucks are hideous.