Hi Guys, Can someone tell me what the nose appendage is on this NW2? It looks like it could be an aerial of some sort. AT&SF 2411 cheers Alister
I thought it was a homing device so the pidgins would know where the unit was and they could locate it to roost...come nightfall Grin! Seriously, I would of thought they'd put the antenna on the roof of the cab. Not on the nose. I know, a hood ornament so the driver would know, where the center of the road is. No denying.... it's there.
Hi Rick, Maybe it's on the nose because of its height - it appears to be only a little taller than the stacks. If it were on the roof of the cab it might limit the loco's travel because of overhead hazards. Just a guess. I agree though, it does look a bit strange where it is.
Phil, If memory serves me correctly this was Santa Fe's first go at having two way radios in the switchers. Prior to this they had work assignments, written work orders...flimisies and worked off of hand signs. If you look at pictures of PA's, some F Units, the geeps and cabooses this same antenna shows up. I would guess this was Santa Fe's first experiment. It must have worked out well as the Santa Fe moved forward, equipping most of their equipment with the radios. I believe these were the early Motorola Units. Not much better then CB radios (or so I was told by my family of rails) but better then.... not having a way to communicate. Here's another view of the #2408, that R.I.Straw shared.
Thanks for the additional info Rick. I decided to paint up an NW2 in Black White Zebra stripes and thought I'd better make it realistic. Not sure how I'm going to accomplish the antenna yet but I'll get it done:tb-biggrin:
