I built the Strombecker kit of this locomotive. I don't remember much other than I thought it was beautiful compared to black New York Central steamers.
The Colorado Springs section of the Rocky Mountain Rocket. An EMC AB6 is on the head end of the train at the Colorado Springs depot. This model of locomotive was built so that the train could be separated and rejoined in Limon, Colorado with the Denver Section of the train, putting a normal E6 on the point between there and Chicago. The train was discontinued in 1966.
Am I wrong in thinking "on the point" means coupled directly to the front of the train? Because these power-baggage units operated all the way to Chicago, as a booster east of Limon. If I'm remembering that terminology correctly, east of Limon it was on the point and the normal E-6A (which handled the Denver section, separate from the Colorado Springs section west of Limon on the UP) was in the lead.
Which makes sense. Why can't I remember what that other term is? Am I getting old? Maybe on the point refers to all locomotives in the lead (as opposed to pushers) and I just misunderstood the term.
Great photo, r_i_straw! A friend of mine is kitbashing an AB6 in N Scale. It looks great, and now I may have to do one myself.
Love it @acptulsa! Such a prehistoric beast of a locomotive. I looked it up in my copy of Louis Marre's Rock Island Diesel Locomotives 1930-1980 (c. 1982) and found that it was an Alco-GE project, the Rock Island's first diesel, delivered in 1930. It spent its life at Chicago's LaSalle Street Station, before being retired in 1950. The diesel engine charged batteries and the traction motors drew from the batteries, 126-1/2 Tons of batteries in fact. The Ingersoll-Rand 6-Cyl. diesel engine made 300 HP and ran at a constant speed to drive the generator.
I also thank you. I had assumed it was a later version of the first GE/Ingersol Rand product, CNJ #1000.
It is. It uses the same prime mover, for example. The battery trick was a response to the big Ingersoll-Rand diesel's lack of power at 300. ALCo built the carbodies and trucks for early units like Jersey Central 1000, but by the time 10000 came out GE was building those itself, and ALCo had been invited out.
