Reading FP-7 Horns Stolen

It has been reported that the horns have been stolen from Readng FP-7's 902 and 903 while they were being stored following their recent successful fan trips in Bucks and Montgomery Counties, Pennsylvania. This seems to be a disturbingly regular occurence, story can be found here: http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b3_ ... 4821.story

Any assistance in their recovery would surely be appreciated by RCT&HS as well as the trip sponsors.

glennk, thank you for the news flash concerning this theft. I regret the heartache this causes for the DP-1s'/FP-7As' owners. What pathetic lowlife would do such a thing? That person, even if he or she likes trains, is no railfan. They are a common criminal.

Should anyone have information, please contact the authorities! Thanks for your vigilance.

I rode that fastline from Bridgeport to 69th st almost every weekday for 2 years in highschool until one of my pals got a car. It was also a means of transit on family outings and later personal travel. I always loved that bullet shape.

I think the horns that were on the FPs were not the original type..... I think the original horns were Nathan K-5s, if someone can verify or correct me. Also, it seems that the reflective engine numbers were never put back under the headlights......

Dave:

The original horns were M5's, all bells facing forward. No doubt scrounged when they were withdrawn from SEPTA service. The reflective numbers were "appropriated" when Conrail came into being. Someone trided to sell them on ebay a few years ago, but withdrew them when a large stink was raised. Haven't seen them since. Woiuld have been nice to have been donated, but NOoooo.

I always wondered why the Reading had only one set of horns on the FP-7s. I remember watching them start up on passenger trains at Bound Brook. They would rev up extremely high before they started moving ever so slowly. I was going through some of the Form 19 Train Orders that I have and I found a Clearance Form A issued at PD Tower in Port Reading for number 902. I thought it might have been an official passenger run of some type because I remember seeing at least one passenger train on the Brnch in the mid 1950's. It was not an excursion train. However, I checked the date and time and found that Extra 902 West left Port Reading early on a Sunday morning in 1962. It must have been one of the few times that a class DP-1 was used on a freight. In 1962, Port Reading trains came from Abrams Yard with the motive power being sent from Bridgeport Engine Terminal.

I find it interesting that everyone refers to the original FP horns as 5 chime. In my younger days (1950s), I recall the FPs being equipped with a single note, low tone horn similar to today's truck horns. I'll check tonight but I believe the Reading Produced movie "Safety at the crossroads" has the FPs with this horn. I rode behind the FPs many times, from the Rambles over the catawissa branch to regular service to Philly and once when the FPs were assigned to the Lebanon Valley Sunday School's "Hershey Excursion" train that ran every year on the first Saturday in August. I also rode behind them once when the crusader was used for a special excursion to Pine Grove.

Every picture I've ever seen of the FP-7s, including one of the aforementioned Crusader trip to Pine Grove and the inaugural run from Reading Termninal to Jersey City, show a single set of 5 chime horns. The FT's and F7 freight locos had the standard pair of single chime horns with the fireman's side horn facing to the rear.

This is a quote from Steve Gilbert on the horn on the Reading FP-7's.

" The Reading FP-7s had Nathan M-5 horns while in original service on the Reading.
I know of several people who have M-5's who will likely make them available sometime when they run again...
but they will be taken off the engines at the end of the trip(s). "

And here is a picture supporting the information.

Len.