D&RGW SD40-2

[ATSF3814]

Ok before anyone tries to point it out, I know D&RGW never owned any SD40-2s. But this paint job just looks too good on this locomotive and I had to do it.




To keep this as authentic as possible, I used static road numbers so you'll get 15 in the pack. 10 regular D&RGW and 5 with UP patches.

Have fun!

[Importz2k1]

Good job man, looks awesome and I'll make a spot for it in my garage when it comes out. Thanks for your hard work!

[GreatNortherner]

Thanks a lot for repainting these, they look excellent and are a much welcome addition - prototypical or not. They'll look great on the Joint Line!

Cheers,
Michael

[Redferne]

I love anything D&RGW.... good job!

[PapaXpress]

Ok before anyone tries to point it out, I know D&RGW never owned any SD40-2s...

We forgive you.

[imnew]

Look great !

[_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha]

Rio Grande had Tunnel Motors, right? Always black with soot from pulling the long coal trains through long tunnels high up in the Colorado/Utah mountains.
There was a RW2 tunnel motor advertised but I have not been able to find it.
for the Castle Rock which is loosely based on DRGW we could use some of that road's iconic motive power.
Would you care to repaint the SP SD40-2T in Rio Grande colours? Had they more han one scheme during their life span with DRGW? What became of them under SP and later UP ownership? These variations will be welcome also if it is not too much to ask.

[_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha]

Now that is one dirty unit! Still looks great to me, however. Would love to have a DRGW SD45 too.

Engines this black with soot, was that because of thin air, high up in the mountains? How high actually?
Or was it because of stale and hot air inside those long single track tunnels causing not only cooling problems but also oxigen deficiency, leading to incomplete combustion and hence all that soot and grime?

Do present day AC units with "electronic" fuel injection suffer from the same problems operating at altitude? Those SD40/45 were essentially "all mechanical" in their fuel injection/engine governor parts, right?

[arizonachris]

The SP SD40-2T's are in the Donner Pass route. Don't think they were sold seperate.

There are quite a few You Tube videos of older diesels coming out of a tunnel and blowing black exhaust, even newer ones. Combination of all the things you mentioned. High altitude means thin air, less oxygen. An MU lashup means a hot, oxygen starved tunnel. Cooling, yes, lack of cool air and airflow over the radiators. Even a modern computer controlled fuel injection system has limits as to what it can do to a fuel/ air mixture and still make power. I'm not even sure how many new engines have EFI.

[_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha]

When is was bad for the engine's "health" just imagine how it must be for a crew riding a mid train helper, pusher or caboose.

Not to mention how bad it must have been during the steam era. I am currently reading in on the C&O Alleghany Division and even in the much shorter Lewis and Big Bend tunnels crews suffered badly from heat and foul air. C&O installed forced ventilaton, much like PRR did in Gallitzin Tunnel on the HSC. Imagine how it must have been in those high altitude tunnels of 5 miles or more in length.

Modern Diesels have pressurized cabs with air filtration? Otherwise crews might still suffocate/asphixiate when they get stalled insde a tunnel and have to drop back through their own exhaust. Modern units have more power but also more things that can break, fewer are lashed up so if one fails you are in trouble right away.

Overhere in the Netherlands we have only articficial tunnels, some of which go under water and have upwards slopes a both ends. A stalled train also rolls back to the deep center, but smoke can escape along the ceiling. Mountain tunnels usually have a hump in the middle of their profile, so that trains and water run towards the ends but smoke and heat gets trapped unless there are vertical ventilation shafts through the mountain. Our land tunnels are not deep, more level but quite long, up to 15 km, they have escape shafts and stairs every 500 meters. I know that all electric and Diesel locomotives used in freight service have breathing kits on board for emergency use by the driver in case of gas or smoke alarm inside tunnels. Passenger trains have not and should never stall inside a tunnel, no doubt the rules say so but I don't know about overrunning red absolute block signals with ATC in use. Yet we don't have emergency brake pulls in the passenger compartments that can be overruled by the driver so he can bring his train out of immediate danger in case of fire. We only have to wait for disaster to happen not to mention the threat of terrorism. Companies operating Chunnel, TGV and ICE know better, their passenger emergency pulls only signal an emergency and allow the driver to maintain full control instead of dumping the air and possiblly stalling the train in the worst spot possible.
All tunnels are automatically monitored 24/7 and false alarms are quite common unfortunately. With the current trend towards more and ever longer tunnels, both road and rail, safety is paramount. Just count all the people perished inside tunnels all over Europe the last couple of years. A gruesome toll has been paid for our mobility.

[arizonachris]

Yeah, modern diesels have sealed cabs with air conditioning, maybe even oxygen. In the steam era on Donner, SP invented the cab forward to keep the crew out of the smoke. I'm not sure if the tunnels on Donner have forced ventilation, probably not.

[_o_OOOO_oo-Kanawha]

Cab forwards, forgot about those.

I believe Cascade Tunnel on the old GN had rolling doors and forced ventilation, both the clear the air and to prevent snow drifting in and formation of icicles during winter.
No mountain tunnel is ever watertight and you'd be amazed how much water leaks in through seemingly inpenetrable rock.
Didn't Milwaukee Road electrify its Cascade crossing for just the same reason, stiff grades and long tunnels? If I remember correctly, GN also was electrified for a small section and it had huge streamlined electrics that later went to the Virginian, IIRC. One of the chassis/hulks was later used by GE to build an experimental coal fired gas turbine for the UP.

My Southwestern US railroading geograhy is a little rusty. What are the names of those tunnels on the former DRGW? Moffat Tunnel is a familiar name.

PS: I hate those long tunnels on any railroad, I'd rather look out of the window and watch the countryside glide past.

[Csxgp38-2]

I don't know of any long tunnels here in NC, the roads here decided to go over, not through (Saluda).

[Chessie8638]

Tennessee Pass. Elevation 10,240 feet. Highest mainline in America until rail-banked by Union Pacific. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5IXKDnHedY

"Tunnel District" 23 tunnels in 7 miles (there or there about) On the Moffet Line. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1BcEeU7LeU

You can see why they were dirty.

The SD40T-2 and 45T-2 (The 'Grande never had the SD45T-2's) where the perfect locomotive. Air intakes low down as not to suck in the hot exhaust from the other locomotives.

As for modern locomotives up until the rebuilding of Mullan Tunnel on the MRL (Montana Rail Link) helper crews had to have SCUBA tanks and masks in the locomotives. You can see why here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-ECBxoJqYE