Hi all, I've been into model railroading, though not seriously, for as long as I can remember. I'm contemplating building my first "real" layout and I'm trying to decide what to model. I'm more concerned about time periods than Rail line names. Could somebody help me out understanding the different eras of evolution of motive power (actually, rolling stock would be great too)? I am interested in both steam and deisel. A general description of conventionally accepted time periods would be great. Photos or links would help me out a lot (I'm a visual person). I hear talk of "early deisel," "first generation," and "modern deisel" but I don't know what it means yet. I tried searching this site, but it's a hard topic to search. All help is appreciated. If it makes any difference, I'm primarily interested in N scale. Thanks Clem Look forward to future newbie questions like "What could make my railroad exist" and "What's an easment?"
<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Clem Sparks: I'm more concerned about time periods than Rail line names.<hr></blockquote> I'm sure you'll get some good help here Clem. But, living in Missouri, you should be modeling the Frisco. Welcome aboard. Charlie [ 05 December 2001: Message edited by: E-8 ]</p>
That's a tall order! Here's a real simple start at an answer. Steam era: From the beginning of railraoding until the 1950's when steam all but disappeared. Steam engines required a lot of attention, like water every 100 miles, coal every few hundred, and railroads had enormous facilities to provide water and coal, plus roundhouses for the daily maintenance required. All of these facilities comprised part of the railroad "landscape" during that period. Steam locomotive technology advanced to the point where some were actually more powerful than today's most powerful diesels. First generation diesels, with the exception of road switchers, were mainly "carbody" units, like Alco's FA and PA units, EMD's E and F units, and there were others like Fairbanks-Morse, Baldwin, and Lima. All of the former steam builders were in the race early, then some merged, and formed companies like Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton, etc. Not very long into diesel development the cab units fell out of favor and the ones that look like today's started appearing. GP and SD (General Purpose?--help me here diesel guys, I'm a steamer, remember?) Seems as though four axle units were for freight and six axle for passenger. That's not true today, though. Of course, as with all internal combustion engines, the trend was for ever increasing horsepower. I don't know what a GP-7 developed, probably about 2000, and that has gone on and on to todays 6000 HP units. In the modern era there have been only two serious builders in competition, GE and EMD. Phew, for someone who knows nothing about diesels I sure have rambled. Now everyone else has somewhere to start and they can correct my errors and give you the real scoop! [ 05 December 2001: Message edited by: fitz ]</p>
>>>> GP and SD (General Purpose?--help me here diesel guys, I'm a steamer, remember?) Seems as though four axle units were for freight and six axle for passenger. <<<< GP was like the Jeep, General Purpose. The SD, Special Duty, was designed to spread its weight out over lighter rail. The 6 axle passenger units spread their weight out also but they weren't designated SD as they were passenger units. SD was an EMD freight designation. Hope I got this right. Roger Roger Hensley – rhensley_anderson@juno.com == http://madisonrails.railfan.net/ == == Railroads of Madison County (Indiana) ==
Hmm, where to start. Early diesel (if you want to call it that) started in 1939, with the EMC (EMD) FT as the premier road unit. I think these are also considered First Generation diesels, and they last for a long time. I believe the second Generation starts with the SD40-2. Typically, anything from the 38 on up is considered second generation, and the "dash" series for GE (-7, -8, -9). And finally for modern diesels, that would probably start with either the -9 followed by the ACs for GE, and maybe the 70/70MAC for EMD. I don't know many more dates, I know the 40 line was introduced around 1970 for EMD. I would think anything post 1990 or so would be "modern".
I'll throw a couple cents worth in too... The GP-7 developed 1500hp with the 567B engine (same prime mover that was used in the F-7). The GP-9 developed 1750hp with the 567C engine. Now, these could have been retro-fitted later to have higher HP ratings (bigger pistons, etc.). Seems like I heard someone tell me the GP-38 developed 2000hp, but don't quote me on that. On the 4 vs. 6 axle issue - Commonly, the middle axle in the trucks was not powered, where as today, all axles are powered. For the most variety, the steam-diesel transition period is good. You get the most road names (before everyone starts merging), and the ability to run late steam and first generation diesels (GP-7, GP-9, F-7, FP-7, E units, Baldwin Sharks, Alco RS-1, RS-2, RS-3, RS-11, PAs, FAs, FM Trainmasters). Gotta stop now and mop up the drool....
Well....this is certainly a debatable topic! Generally, 1st generation units are considered to include early hood units like the EMD GP7/9, and cab diesels like FT's and F/E units. 2nd Generation is tricky, but some would say it started for EMD with units like the GP30 and GP35, which introduced new body styling and features like a pressurized carbody and centralized air filtration; the GP35 is also noteworthy since it introduced the "spartan" cab and carbody design that would last up into the nineties. The concurrent GE U-series could also be considered 2nd generation. These units were also touted as being replacement units by their makers. The idea was to trade in your old and tired GP7/9's and cab units for new, higher hp units that could do the same amount of work with fewer units per train. EMD's 40-series, introduced in 1966, had a lot of electrical and engine improvements over the previous 35-line, but not so much as to be considered a new generation. Ditto for the EMD Dash-2 line, introduced in 1972 and produced up until 1986 (a final order for SD40-2F's for CP Rail, IIRC). The Dash-2's, as well as competitor GE's Dash-7 line, had numerous improvements (mostly electrical) over their respective previous lines, and are generally considered to be fairly modern, with the majority of these units still in service (although Dash-7's are fading...GE's sometimes have shorter lifespans than EMD's on some roads). A 3rd generation could be argued for EMD's 60-series and GE's Dash-8 line, which introduced microprocessor controls in production locomotives. Whether or not we're in a 4th Generation is open to debate, but the advent of AC traction with EMD's SD70MAC and GE's AC4400 can be looked at as a major development. Just my 2 cents worth....this is an interesting topic! [ 07 December 2001: Message edited by: Mankind ]</p>
Oh yah, forgot that the original poster requested pics to go with the explanations. Here are some pic links from the Espee Modeler's Homepage: EMD F7A http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/bob_dengler_4/bob_dengler_sp-f7a-6392b.jpg EMD GP9 http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/don_jewell/don_jewell_sp-gp9-5738.jpg EMD GP30 http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/bob_dengler_4/sp-gps/bob_dengler_sp-gp30-5010a.jpg EMD GP35 http://espee.railfan.net/picindex/gp35_photos/6672_sp-gp35-bob_dengler.jpg GE U25B http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/stan_rothwell/srsp6730.jpg EMD GP60 http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/paul_ellis/paul_ellis_sp-gp60-9730.jpg GE B40-8 http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/rob_sarberenyi/rs_ssw8074.jpg GE C44-9W http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/paul_ellis/paul_ellis_sp-c44-9w-8183.jpg GE AC4400 http://espee.railfan.net/jpgs/paul_ellis/paul_ellis_sp-ac4400-0122.jpg [ 07 December 2001: Message edited by: Mankind ]</p>
