Which way does this thing go?

[Tedshere]

   I've got a GP-40 and can't figure out if the cab should be forward or aft. Performance wise it doesn't seem to make any difference. Just wondering which is correct.
    Thanks,
    Ted

[jward]

most gp40s were set up to run cab forward.

[ACY]

What RR is it, a few railroads ran them in the opposite direction.

[jward]

not gp40s they didn't. the only exceptions to the rule are those like n&w's which had dual control stands, and were thus bidirectional. i believe those were all high hood configurations like the bachmann "gp50"

[ACY]

not gp40s they didn't. the only exceptions to the rule are those like n&w's which had dual control stands, and were thus bidirectional. i believe those were all high hood configurations like the bachmann "gp50"

I know I have seen some photos of GPs running with the opposite direction forward and they were N&W or NS. If there were any GP-40's I am not sure either, you never know there could have been. A few roads ran long hood forward/cab backward to protect the crew, while most preferred cab forward for better visibility.

[armchairmodeller]

I am a stranger in these parts, but my recent observations tend to suggest that although the locomotives run equally well in either direction, the preferred method seems to be with cab leading. This is probably as it gives a clearer view for the driver rather than having to look past the length of the loco. When two or more are coupled together, double-heading in English, consist in North American, they tend to be "push me pull you" formation so that which ever direction they are running the cab leads.

I have tried and failed  to attach some photos of some GP9s which I hoped would illustrate the point but I cannot get my pictures to attach.

As a substitute have a look at Canadian Pacific Railway Locomotive Roster and Photo Archives where they have picture of various classes of locos to refer to.

Armchair

[jward]

on ns, many of the n&w low hoods were set up to run long hood forward, this practice continued under ns until the early 1990s. eventually, ns became involved in a class action lawsuit claiming train crews were subjected to breathing soot and getting black lung like coal miners due to long hood forward operations. the ge c39-8 model was among those specifically mentioned in the lawsuit, those were notorious for shooting flames out the stack.

a few other lines had dual control stands, one on each side of the cab. n&w's duals were high hood units, most if not all of the others with low hoods had the windshield built out a few extra inches instead of being even with the cab doors. examples are the reading sd45s, conrail gp38s 7660-7674, 7815-7824, 7904-7907.....

[jward]

armchair,

on first generation diesels like the gp9 and rs3, it was left up to the individual railroad which direction was front. it was mostly a matter of which side of the cab you placed the control stand. as an example, on chessie system, c&o gp9s were short hood front, b&o's were long hood front. the emblem was applied to whichever end was considered front.

with the low hood units, short hood lead was standard, any other configuration was an extra cost option. running a locomotive with the control stand set up for short hood lead in the other direction meant the engineer had to be sitting in an awkward position looking over his shoulder. engineers who had to run a main line train this way complained loudly.

as for consisting locomotives, they do run in either direction. there is a switch in the cab where you can set up which direction they go. while many lines liked to run their locomotives back to back. some liked to run them head to tail. the reason for that is as simple as the reason for running them back to back. if all locomotives are pointing forward, then any one of them can be leader. it's easy to add or drop units enroute, of even shuffle your consist if the leader has trouble. believe me, this happens more often than you'd think.

remember, although consists are often set up in the yard, they can be set up by any qualified engineer, at any location. it's really a simple process for somebody who runs them for a living.

[Tedshere]

What RR is it, a few railroads ran them in the opposite direction.

Thanks for all the info. Don't guess it makes much of a difference now, but mine is Union Pacific. I'll probably go with cab forward.
    Ted

[armchairmodeller]

Thanks Jward. As I am English, living in England the American/Canadian ways of doing things are a mystery to me, so thanks for the info. Most mainline British diesels are "double ended" so they can work in either direction. They have a No.1 end and a No.2 end driving cab. Only the smaller shunting engines ( yard switchers?) tend to have a single cab.

Some earlier diesels had a shape reminicent of the US locos. Have a look at BR "Claytons" which often worked in tandem as they were not powerfull enough alone. Having said that our trains are nowhere near as heavy and lengthy as yours.

Armchair

[Doneldon]

Ted-

Diesel locomotives operate equally well with either end first. There is an "official" front end, marked by a small "F" painted on the designated end. However, all of that goes out the window when you have consists. Some railroads and engineers will have all of the "F" ends facing forward to facilitate drop offs; others will have the last loco running "F" end last so the consist doesn't need to be turned or switched to reverse direction.

It was more common to see long hoods forward in the earlier days of diesels. I suppose it seemed like where they sat in a steam engine cab. However, engineers soon discovered that they could see much better if they ran short end first. Of course, then they had concerns about being right up front in collisions. These days almost all of the locomotives you see leading a train are short cab forward. The decks and anticlimbers provide a good deal of safety to engine crews. Plus, they're way up high compared to street traffic so they tend to be safely above any crashes.
                                                                                                                                      -- D

[Jim Banner]

An old friend who went from engineer on steamers to engineer on diesels told me why he hated diesels so much.  His answer was that for safety reasons, early diesels were run long hood forward so that any collisions with brainless animals such as cows or vehicle drivers would not kill the crew.  But the unpressurized car bodies of the day let plenty of diesel exhaust get into the cab, causing many engineers, him included, to go home sick every day.  Eventually the manufacturers went to pressurized car bodies to keep the fumes out and installed collision posts at the fronts of short hoods to protect the crews when running short hood forward.  Unfortunately for my friend, this did not happen until about the time he retired, leaving him diesel phobic for the rest of his life.

This also explains why, when a diesel locomotive collides with anything smaller than another diesel locomotive, the diesel locomotive always wins.  It would be like you driving around town in your car with a cement truck welded to your front bumper, except that you would still lose if you took on a locomotive.

Jim

[Tedshere]

  It would be like you driving around town in your car with a cement truck welded to your front bumper,

Jim
[/quote]

  Hey Jim,
   Many is the day I wished for a cement truck option, while driving around Detroit.
    Ted

[Doneldon]

Ted-

My fantasy is to have a '53 Chrysler which was built out of quarter-inch steel salvaged from WWII aircraft carriers. I'd drive it around just bash people who did stupid stuff. It's true that I'd have to get the Chrysler repainted from time to time, but I'm pretty sure that today's tinny vehicles would come off second best after a correctional bash from my tank.


Jim-

This also explains why, when a diesel locomotive collides with anything smaller than another diesel locomotive, the diesel locomotive always wins.

I agree for the most part, but not quite always. My Dad was in a train wreck near Galveston once when a bull charged the Texas Chief which was trying to make up lost time and was therefore going all ahead flank emergency. (Only certain trains had this speed notch.) The bull did die, but it flew into a switch stand, threw the switch and put the whole train on the ground. Two locos rolled down an embankment, several passenger cars overturned and there were a lot of injuries, some of them serious. The diner rolled but stopped upright. I have official Santa Fe photos of the wreck and the diner's insides. The kitchen looked like ours about the time we call everyone to the Thanksgiving table.
                                                                            -- D

[armchairmodeller]

The diner rolled but stopped upright.                                                                             -- D

[/quote]

I trust that the soup service had been completed and tidied away.