FM with odd engine?

[Boyd]

Which model of Fairbanks Morse locomotive had an engine in it that had 2 pistons per cylinder and the pistons faced each other?

[tomikawaTT]

Probably all of them.  The F-M opposed-piston engine was the company's major product, sold for all kinds of marine and fixed power plant applications (including WWII submarines and the base power plant at Osan, Korea in the late '50s.)  Putting them in locomotive carbodies was something of a sideline.

The Fairbanks-Morse opposed-piston engine was two stroke, had vertical cylinders, crankshafts top and bottom connected by a bevel-geared vertical shaft and 'aspirated' through ports uncovered by the pistons at the outward ends of their strokes ("Look, Ma, no valves!")  The injectors were at the centers of the cylinders, in the volume where the piston heads didn't quite meet.

Chuck

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

The OP engine is also the reason that FM's endcab switchers had a tall hood.  I also believe that the OP was a two-cycle engine with Roots blowers.  None in railroad service were turbocharged.

[samfp1943]

 http://www.railroadingonline.net/fairbanksmorse/1950.shtml

Here is a link to a site about the F-M "Train Master"  one model of locomotive that used an O-P  Enginer arangement. 12 cylinders @ 850 rpm to generate 2400 HP. The trainmaster could run in ranges from 65 mph to 80 mph.  Its traction motors doubled as a dynamic braking system.

This link is a little bit better in its view of the O-P Engine-- Used in many Navy ships during WWII and later.

http://www.railroadingonline.net/fairbanksmorse/1960.shtml

And just for good measure! Here's an O-P( PRETTY GOOD SOUND!), F-M Switcher working for the MILW Road!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruQqXtDdKTc

[tdmidget]

 One thing wrong here. Seems that most of you refer to the F-M engine in the past tense. It is still produced and is the auxiliary power for nuclear submarines.

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

The links raise a question:  Is FM still selling more OP engines or more Colt-Pielstick engines, which appear to be conventional V designs?

[Tugboat Tony]

 

 When i delt with Fairbansk morse a few years ago it seemed like almost all of the stationary engines were the OP's and almost all of the marine engines were the Pielsticks or MANs.  I would guess a pretty equal split between them.

[creepycrank]

The main selling point of the 2 stroke OP Fairbanks Morse (and EMD too), is that they are fast start units capable of starting from a dead stop and reaching synchronous speed and slamming the breaker closed on 100% load in under 10 seconds. With the exception of the Coast Guard High Endurance Cutters the OP engine seems to be at its best at high loads and a steady state. There seems to be renewed interest in the OP formula in smaller engines such as cars, trucks and even small aircraft engines running on jet A. I think that what hurt them in the marine market was the price of parts and the fact that to change a liner you have to remove the top crankshaft. The Coast Guard has a lot of labor in the engine room trying to keep their hands out their pockets so at last something something for them to do.

[nfmisso]

Check out the movie "Down Periscope" with Kelsey Grammer for a running FM OP.

[richg1998]

My old ship, The USS MIlls DER383, ex DE383 Edsall class built in 1943 had FM diesels with direct gear reduction drive which meant 7 knots minimum speed in calm seas on one screw while still running one one engine. No reverse gear, The FM's are capable of quick shut down and reversing the prime mover for reversing the ship's direction. On picket duty on the DEW Line we ran on one screw much of the time.

While anchored in the Caribbean in 1962, I have seen a worn piston or two dumped over the side while the new piston was being installed.

Rich

[Kootenay Central]

Good locomotives in several ways, but, not necessarily loved.

Thank You.

 

[Leo_Ames]

For any of you that live around the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, FM's line of OP engines have been a popular powerplant in many Canadian freighters. Many of their traditional lake freighters built in the 1960s and early 70s used Fairbanks Morse Opposed Piston engines, usually four of them and sometimes a pair of auxillary Caterpillars.

Algoma Central's Algorail, Algoway, and the out of service Agawa Canyon all use four FM engines. Vangaurd Shipping's J.W. Shelley (The former Algocen) also uses 4 FM engines for it's main propulsion. Voyageur Marine's Maritime Trader (The former Paterson boat Mantadoc and later the Teakglen) also has such a powerplant.

 And there were many others in the past. Examples retired and sent to the scrapyard over the past decade include the Canadian Venture, Manitoulin, Quedoc, Saguenay, and Vandoc. And there were others sent to the scrapyard in earlier years in the 80s and 90s. And Algoma Central's Roy A. Jodrey also had such a powerplant (She was a sistership to the three Algoma freighters I mentioned in the first paragraph, she sunk in the St. Lawrence River off Alexandria Bay NY in the early 70s).

FM's engines were never used on the American side to the best of my knowledge besides in perhaps some tugs. Shipbuilding along the lakes for American fleets was dormant during most of the 60s when diesels gained in popularity (American fleets had large numbers of modern vessels built in the 20s-40s and had bought large numbers of vessels during the early postwar years so there was no need for additional ships during that decade). So American fleets went from using steam turbines throughout the 50s in new orders to more modern diesel powerplants then FM's engines when they started ordering vessels again in the 70s, missing out on the 10 years or so where they were popular powerplants.

 Thanks to the Canadian survivors, you don't have to go far even in 2010 around the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River to hear the sound of Fairbanks Morse's line of OP engines.

[Kootenay Central]

The last two paragraphs in the following  may be of interest?

 http://www.dieselduck.ca/machine/01%20prime%20movers/fairbanks_morse/fairbanks_morse.htm

Thank You.