Worst and Best looking Locomotives of all time

[dharmon]

QUOTE: Originally posted by railroad65

Don't forget the BQ23-7 of the Family System Lines as one of the worst looking. By the way were any of them saved or all scrapped???

oooooh ..I forgot about those......coyote ugly........CSX was using them as B units for awhile with the glass plated over.

Rumor has it crews were only allowed to look at those with mirrors, lest they be turned to stone......

[railroad65]

Don't forget the BQ23-7 of the Family System Lines as one of the worst looking. By the way were any of them saved or all scrapped???

[jkeaton]

Best looking steamer - a toss-up between Canadian Pacific's Jubilees and Nigel Gresley's Mallard class in Britain.

Worst looking steam - the poor maligned 0-6-0 that Irish State Railways tried to convert to burn peat. (Sorry I don't have a link to hand for this poor beast. - imagine a fairly standard British outline 0-6-0 festooned in large diameter pipes to blow peat into its firebox.)

Best looking diesel - Tie between MLW's FPA4 and the Alco PA, though the original Zephyr/Minuteman is definitely in the running.

Worst looking diesel - nearly any of Plymouth's industrial 'critters' - but especially the early ones. So homely, they make the BL2 and the Ingalls S-4 look like streamliners.

[gabe]

QUOTE: Originally posted by dharmon

The BL2 is pretty homely......but there are some others ....

the Ingalls 4-S
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/tr_gmo1900.jpg

this thing...
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/rl_up20.jpg

and of course the KM diesel-hydraulics
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/sp9002.jpg
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/tr_sp9016.jpg

Ladies and gentlemen, I was hoping this would be a close contest. But the undisputed heavyweight champion of worst looking locomotives has just unequivocally been posted (the first listing).

If I am ever important enough to have a funeral train, I hope they pull me in that thing. Death would not be enough to overcome my urge to get out and walk.

Gabe

[mustanggt]

best- GE P42
worst: Metra's last order of F40PHs, with the slanted windshield

[Anonymous]

I like classic old locomotives, and my choice of best looking locomotive is Maria #6
at the MCRR at Mt Pleasant, Iowa . Maria is an awesome machine under steam!
http://www.mcrr.org/new_page_1.htm or my own picture at:
http://k0bkl.org/midwest.htm

[dharmon]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CSSHEGEWISCH

Best Looking: Diesel - GP9 with d/b
Electric - CSS&SB Little Joe
Steam - MILW Class A 4-4-2 (original Hiawatha power)

Worst Looking: Diesel - GE Genesis locomotives
Electric - MILW Bi-Polar
Steam - D&H 1403 (the triple-expansion 4-8-0)

MILW Bi-polars...

Didn't Milwaukee Road name these locomotives..

E1 Trainfinder22
E2 Kissmycaboose
E3 Detective_cinderdick

etc.....

[Anonymous]

Best RS3

Worst LWT-12

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

Best Looking: Diesel - GP9 with d/b
Electric - CSS&SB Little Joe
Steam - MILW Class A 4-4-2 (original Hiawatha power)

Worst Looking: Diesel - GE Genesis locomotives
Electric - MILW Bi-Polar
Steam - D&H 1403 (the triple-expansion 4-8-0)

[dharmon]

The BL2 is pretty homely......but there are some others ....

the Ingalls 4-S
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/tr_gmo1900.jpg

this thing...
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/rl_up20.jpg

and of course the KM diesel-hydraulics
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/sp9002.jpg
http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/tr_sp9016.jpg

[adrianspeeder]

Well this will be an obvious opinion thread because every one is different.

I like the GP-30 low nose. The GP-30 high nose however, that just looks odd.

Adrianspeeder

[n2mopac]

Personally I think the best looking diesel's were the GP7/GP9 and the Alco RS11. These locomotives just looked like workhorses from day one.

My personal least favorite are the current Amtrak Genesis P42's. They are just plain ugly, and they run through my town 4 times a day.

Ron

[rrnut282]

Until I can think of anything else, I will concur with your selection of the BL2 in diesels. For steam it's hard to find anything uglier than the camel-backs (steam version of a center-cab locomotive). As far as best looking, it's hard to narrow it down.

[Anonymous]

Best:
Royal Hudson 4-6-4 in Canadian Pacific Colours

Worst:
SD70ACe in any color.

[gabe]

Just curious as to what you guys (and gals) think is the worst and best looking locomotives of all time:

My top six worst locomotives from most ugly to least (not to be confused with venerable):

1) BL-2
2) The Atlantic and Hudson version of Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha (I know I don't know how to spell)
3) GP-30
4) Any Baldwin Diesel
5) The box that Amtrak's current diesels come in that they apparently forgot to take off.
6) NYC Mohawk version of its Hudson (Its regular Hudsons were beautiful though)

My top seven best looking locomotives of all time from most attractive to least:

1) PRR's T-1
2) N&W J Class
3) NYC Niagara
4) SD-9 (I know I am unusual on this one)
5) RS-3
6) F-3
7) Any Berkshire

Anyone else what to join me in this sophomoric exercise and give me your list?

Gabe