Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

Buckethead · Professional Asshole

Ask Uke...Part Duex

The Krink · The Forum Celestial Advisor

If you watch the video in Hi Def and pause the video at exactly 1:43 you can see the side of the rear Hi-AD truck on 6601 as it goes by and definately see the two extra brake cylinders.

ES44C4's will have standard 87:16 gear ratio, 75 mph top speed, better reliabilty and fuel effiency of a AC locomotive, reduced cost and maintenance over life time of unit, the four powered axles is equal to six axle DC. They will be used in same service as six axle DC service, intermodal, grain, manifests in pairs, threesomes, and foursomes. The units have an advanced traction control sytem to manage the traction levels on each axle. Barstow and Commerce California based if tests proove the C4 design works.

yes, BNSF will be taking delivery of 25 ES44C4's or ES44AC-C4's, model designation not yet confirmed. They will essentially be ES44AC's, but rather than having 6 traction motors will have only 4 traction motors, giving the units an A1A-A1A wheel arrangement. The idea is that the unit with 4 AC traction motors will be able to produce a similar amount of tractive effort as a normal DC traction ES44DC with 6 traction motors. These units will be numbered #6600-6624.
These units will be in addition to 322 DC traction ES44DC's (not ES44AC's as listed by someone else), delivery of which just started this week. This particular order starts with the 7200 series.

-- Edited by The Krink on Tuesday 14th of April 2009 01:20:10 AM

The Krink · The Forum Celestial Advisor

The A-1-A truck design is older than the shit on the back of
your legs. Near as I can tell Fairbanks Morse came up with the
A-1-A truck design for their "C-Liners" passenger units back in
1945. ALCO used the A-1-A truck design for their "DL" passenger
locos in 1940. Baldwin's "Sharknose" loco used the A-1-A trucks
in 1948. Baldwin also produced DRS-6-6-15 road switcher about
the same time. ALCO produced several road switcher models using
the A-1-A trucks, RSC-2, RSC-3, RSC-13, RSC-24, in the late 1950's.
EMD produced the GMD-1 (for Canada) in 1958, a road switcher for
branchline service. It will be real interesting to see how successful
GE's latest revival of a lost concept will work out.

-- Edited by The Krink on Wednesday 15th of April 2009 12:06:26 AM

Troll · 500 - Internal Server Error

Dear Uke:

What does Part Duex mean?

signed: Perplexed in Paris (Texas)

Freddie Krueger · Unstable & Irrational

Hey Uke, where does all the white go when snow melts?

Buckethead · Professional Asshole

What does it take to get a serious answer around here...

Troll · 500 - Internal Server Error

Buckethead wrote:

What does it take to get a serious answer around here...

Please standby.....downloading a serious answer.

-- Edited by Troll on Tuesday 14th of April 2009 12:56:07 PM

mntman · Upgraded Condition

Had them come through Interbay a couple weeks ago.. Had Yuke come down and look at them and yak with the tech's.. They had a car with the units and were recordinding every thing the yhings were doing and later they were going too analize the data and tweek the software for better performance and tractive effort,, Basically they have a 4 motor unit with 6 axels.. When the computers notice a loss of traction on the motors it compresses the journal springs on the center wheels appling more weight to the motors thus increasing tractive effort. It has what is essentially two brake clyinders on each side of the truck for 2 and 5 axels that work basically a lever system that compress the springs thus removing the wieght from those wheels.. 4400 hp motor with 4 AC motors and a still in the works computer control system...

Uke · Cured

Yeah, what mntman said. The 'extra' axles are supporting weight of the locos. The loss of adhesion/tractive-effort, will use air ta compress the brake cyls. and wind up the wheels at #2 and #5, and use all the 4400 ponies at FOUR motors.

While Krink's right on, ALCO, F-M, and EMD used an 'idler' in their passenger units, PAs, Erie Builts, and E-units...those axles/wheels were NOT retractable. They added stability, and ride control for the longer framed units. And a tad of smoothness for the head-end crews.

Snippy · Force Majeure

As much as Snippy hates GEunk, that's a pretty ingenious low-tech way to control tractive effort. Always liked the wheel creep of SuperSeries, seemingly the only guy who did. Must have been crap

Snippy wrote this after he calmed down from watching the wholesale slaughter of the Horn Rule! Ten seconds of horn! Attempted murder!

Troll · 500 - Internal Server Error

Hold on Bucket......almost done

Calvin · Upgraded Condition?

The Krink wrote:
The A-1-A truck design is older than the shit on the back of
your legs. Near as I can tell Fairbanks Morse came up with the
A-1-A truck design for their "C-Liners" passenger units back in
1945. ALCO used the A-1-A truck design for their "DL" passenger
locos in 1940. Baldwin's "Sharknose" loco used the A-1-A trucks
in 1948. Baldwin also produced DRS-6-6-15 road switcher about
the same time. ALCO produced several road switcher models using
the A-1-A trucks, RSC-2, RSC-3, RSC-13, RSC-24, in the late 1950's.
EMD produced the GMD-1 (for Canada) in 1958, a road switcher for
branchline service. It will be real interesting to see how successful
GE's latest revival of a lost concept will work out.

Like everyone else said..

The main reason these trucks were designed in the past was to allow weight transfer over 2 more axles so that the heavier unit could traverse lighter track structures.
This new manisfestation is interesting.
On the new 6 axle GE 4400 hp AC locomotives, when a fault is found and a traction motor is cut out, the locomotive continues on with the other 5 traction motors still generating 4400 HP. I've had a unit with 2 axels cut out that still pulled like it had all 6. Altho it did require sand on a steep hill to quell the wheelslip.

That pretty much calls 2 motors in a 6 axle Locomotive redundant.
What GE is doing is building a locomotive that can have a sort of "Traction Control", (much like some of the luxury automobiles have) system that will make these locomotives more responsive.
Used ta be 4 axle engines on hot freight, 6 axle engines on drag freight. With the horsepower, weight, gearing and wheel sizes involved, (Fixed..not variable) , all you could change was the addition of sand, and a wheelslip system to optomize the tractive effort of each type locomotive.

GE is breaking new ground with this weight transfer concept. Saving maintenance costs of 2 additional motors is a bonus.

No wonder GM sold off EMD. Looks like they are going the way of the Alcos, Baldwins, and FM's. You get a piece of shit SD70AC on wet rail and it sounds like a Fire Truck is trying to pass you, much less lunging and hopping and jumping so much "The Boss" starts yelling something about having to carry steel...

-- Edited by Calvin on Wednesday 15th of April 2009 08:06:43 AM

Buckethead · Professional Asshole

Troll wrote:

Hold on Bucket......almost done

I often wipe my ass with your text messages!

-- Edited by Buckethead on Wednesday 15th of April 2009 01:50:47 PM

Troll · 500 - Internal Server Error

Buckethead wrote:

Troll wrote:

Hold on Bucket......almost done

I often wipe my ass with your text messages!

-- Edited by Buckethead on Wednesday 15th of April 2009 01:50:47 PM

I going to you.

Troll · 500 - Internal Server Error

Buckethead wrote:

Troll wrote:

Hold on Bucket......almost done

I often wipe my ass with your text messages!

-- Edited by Buckethead on Wednesday 15th of April 2009 01:50:47 PM

Does your cell phone smell funky?

Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

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Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

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