• Non-FP7/9/FL9 F-units in passenger service

  • Discussion of Electro-Motive locomotive products and technology, past and present. Official web site can be found here: http://www.emdiesels.com/.
Discussion of Electro-Motive locomotive products and technology, past and present. Official web site can be found here: http://www.emdiesels.com/.

Moderator: GOLDEN-ARM

  by USRailFan
 
Other than Northern Pacific, Santa Fe and Western Pacific, which other railroads used F-units in passenger service (disregarding the FP7/9s and FL9s)? Did all these F-units have the steamheat-equipment in the B-unit like on Santa Fe?
  by rdganthracite
 
The Reading used FT AB sets for passenger service during the summer when steam heat was not needed. They did not have steam generators.
  by Typewriters
 
The New York Central had two A-B-A sets of F-3's which were classed as dual-service, fitted with a higher gear ratio than all of the other NYC F-units and which were all fitted (all four A units and both B units) with steam generators. Unlike all of the other NYC F-units these six units did not have dynamic brakes.

-Will Davis
  by MEC407
 
Maine Central had a pair of F3A/F3B sets that were equipped for passenger service. The A units and B units both had steam generators.

Boston & Maine had F units ranging from FT to F7 and I'm sure some of them were used in passenger service but I don't know the specifics.
  by Don
 
D&RGW used F's in pass. service ranging from ( if my memory is right), F3's to F9's. IIRC, they also used some PA b units as heater cars.
Don
  by Tom coughlin
 
The Bangor & Aroostook had two F3A's with Steam Generators (506? and 507). Didn't the Western Pacific have passenger equipped F3A's and B's to power the Calf. Zephyr before FP-7's arrived. I believe the WP also had a couple of boiler equipped F7B's
  by westr
 
Great Northern used F-units on the Empire Builder and other trains after being unsatisfied with the E7s.
Spokane, Portland & Seattle supplemented their single E7 with F-units.
Union Pacific and Chicago, Burlington & Quincy had F3 sets for passenger service.
Denver & Rio Grande Western had generator-equipped FTs, F3s, F7s & F9s for passenger service. Some of the F9s were in regular passenger sevice on the Rio Grande Zephyr into the 1980s.
Southern Pacific had generator-equipped B-units for use with black-widow FP7s. I think freight Fs were also used with the generator-equipped B-units on some night trains, secondary trains and mail trains.
Burlington Northern and Amtrak had hand-me-down passenger Fs.
  by Typewriters
 
Further info:

Found a shot in an old Don Ball book of a Southern Railway set with boilers that could be either F-2 or F-3, and Dave has a manual indicating at least that Southern 6700-6701 (F-2A) had boilers, and 800 gallon water capacity.

Gulf, Mobile & Ohio had nine F-3A and three F-3B units with steam generators.

Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific F-2A units 38-49 had steam generators, 70 MPH gear ratio and 600 gallon boiler water capacity.

Erie had seven A-B-A sets of F-3 units (800 A,B,C thru 806 A,B,C) with boilers and dynamic brakes. A units had 800 gallon water capacity and B units had 2000 gallon water capacity. Geared for 89 MPH.

CB&Q had three A-B-A sets of F-3 units (9960 A,B,C thru 9962 A,B,C) with boilers; A units had 600 gallon water capacity and B units had 1800 gallon water capacity. Geared for 102 MPH.

These are not all-inclusive for each railroad necessarily; this info is from railroad-specific operator manuals in Dave's collection with the exception of the GM&O info which is from a book.

-Will Davis