B unit hostling

Was looking at some pictures the other day and got to thinking about "B units".

Did any B units have controls to permit movement, say in a yard, without the need of a cab unit to control?

I know the question is pretty simple but I've never heard one way or the other.

"Dee"

SLC, UT

 

CB&Q (Some RR?) had an E-type B unit for switching at an intermediate point to add passenger sections. I believe it was a passenger train with shared power.

Many B units have horns and lights pointed toward the rear, but I don't think that means there are controls in that unit. The horns/lights I have seen (pictures of) are on the rear bulkhead, not the roof.

 

I believe it was the Haysi (?) RR, owned by a coal company with a connection to the Clinchfield, used a former CRR B-unit as their plant switcher at a coal mine in Tennessee. Seem to remember that it had a rather large window where the engineer sat.

 

Can you really call it a B-unit anymore once it's designed to operate independently?

The AB6. It wasn't a shared power situation, but two sections of the same train. The Rock Island wanted the complete Rocky Mountain Rocket to have a streamlined A-B-A power set. One section of the train when it split took the leading E6A. The other, longer section would be left with a B-A power set. To be able to split or combine without turning the engines (since, as far as I know, the split point of Limon, Colorado had no turntable or wye) the B-unit had to be able to lead.

http://algomacentral.railfan.net/images/Oldies/RI_751.jpg An AB6 in its later days in commuter service. I guess this was the last boxcab diesel!

 

I do not recall what issue it was, but someone wrote to MR about the very same thing years ago and they posted a pic of the control stand. I think all B units had controls so they could be moved around. Seems strange to have a loco without controls even if it looks funny.

 

The RI AB6 was used to pull a section of the Rocky Mountain Rocket from Limon to Colorado Springs. The balance of the train moved on to Denver. On the eastbound trip, the train was reassembled with everything in the correct order, all the coaches, sleepers, etc. It was part of the MR Operations book to show you can switch with passenger trains.

I forget the sequence where Amtrak broke up the CZ/DW/Pioneer into 3 sections at SLC. I don't recall if Amtrak was busy enough to have it's own switcher, or if it borrowed a unit from D&RGW or UP.

The C&NW rebuilt many of their E B's into full EA's.

 

Rock Island converted the AB-6s to use on commuter trains in Chicago. I've got a photo of one on my Railimages album.
Amtrak had a switcher stationed in Salt Lake City for a while but I believe the road engines helped with the switching too.
Mikado

 

Most FTBs had hostler controls, but some didn't.

I know GP60Bs don't have hostler controls, though I believe the older EMD hood Bs did. Note that the GP7B, GP9B, GP30B and SD24B all have a porthole where the cab would be, but the GP60B doesn't. I'll assume that, since they have no portholes, the BN and Santa Fe rebuilt hood units don't have hostler controls.

 

This is a bit off-thread, but it got me wondering.......Montana Rail Link (and I'm sure others) has some remote control cabooses they use in the yards. The caboose allows an engine to be controlled remotely as if it was MUed to another engine with the caboose serving as the lead engine. Could a B unit be hooked to one of these cabooses and function as a yard switcher?

 

Here's a picture of the train after being split, with the AB6 in the lead.


Dan

 

Thanks

Thanks to everyone for the posts on B units. I live in Utah and we don't have any B-units here so I was curious. Well I take that back. UP #26, one of only two surviving Gas Turbines rests at the Ogden Union Station. I've been through the unit only once but since the units were rarely separated I don't recall controls ever being installed. The hosting power came from the A-unit and when powered down, the turbine B-unit was more or less dead weight.

I also recall hearing how Rio Grande (D&RGW) turned some of their diesels into booster units by removing the controls out of the cabs. I don't remember which models they did this to but if someone knows, please advise.

Thanks,

"Dee"

 

All "B" units have controls inside so they can be moved. You just open the door on the side and look outside as you move. You can also be guided by a "pilot" when moving a "B" unit

 

They did that to most, if not all, of their GP35s. IIRC, it wasn't a complete stripping - mainly removal of things like seats, arm rests, sunshades, and radios, in order to discourage their use as leaders. SP did the same thing in the late 80s-early 90s; some of their SD45T-2s became "B" units in a similar manner, as a cost-cutting move.