| Posted by cnw4007 on March 27, 2015 | |
Wonder why they had tunnel issues when there are also long tunnels in Europe ? I can definitely understand the engine issues, the Europeans where shocked that we don't put our loco's away in sheds at night !!!
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Cool!! A rare photo of a rare breed. Thanks for sharing it and your backstory.
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So seemingly "recent" yet so long, long ago! Not a very attractive locomotive, though I suppose there was appeal in horsepower ratings. 3450 was indeed a step up from locomotives like the EMD GP30 (at 2250 HP), Alco's RSD-15 (2400 HP) and GE's U25B (2500 HP).
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That settles it - I don't even need to check out the other photos on RPN today, as this one does the trick.
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Those things were ugly but fascinating.
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These units were a bold gesture from D&RGW and SP. The Rio Grande really didn't have the resources to properly maintain these units. Although Southern Pacific did give KM another shot, (in addition to three ALCO DH643s) the hydraulic experiments ended soon afterward. Without other carriers (or builders) getting involved during a time when funds for experimentation in motive power were scarce, this effort wasn't going to pay off quickly enough to be worth trying on a larger scale.
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While there are long tunnels in Europe, they often aren't as numerous on a single line as they were on the Rio Grande, or on as severe of grades. And no one, save for the Australians, some South American countries and recently, the Chinese, operate freight trains as long or as heavy as in North America. A freight train weighing 8000 tons is a large train in most of Europe, but would be considered a modest weight train, especially on coal hauling Rio Grande. Most mainline freights in Germany will seldom see gradients over 1.5%, and rarely, if ever, for the length that the Rio Grande covered at 3% plus. These locomotives just weren't designed for hauling 12k ton trains up 2%(+) grades for mile after mile like the Rio Grande had hoped. The SD40/SD45 was only 3 years away and would drastically change the locomotive scene.
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The Krauss-Maffei or K-M is a creation only its mother or builder could love. It is UGLY! Don't get me wrong, I love ugly. Two of my favorites are the BL2 & CF7. I have learned to love these "monsters". Given enough time, and enough built, I might be able to love the K-M as well.
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Krauss-Maffei redeemed themselves aesthetically with the hood versions purchased by SP [imho]. And like Bill said, these machines were designed by meticulous German engineers that seem to have a preference for finesse over brute force. Also, their design philosophy was incubated in a country where railroads are supported by taxpayers, not stockholders.
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