An old hero returns...........

[NW 1218]

Saturday night, we caught word that on Sunday, the NTSB ordered a re-enactment of an incident that occured at the Metra Milwaukee North Line station Mayfair. They also ordered that the same type of unit that was pushing the train be present. Well, an old 600 or F40C was the unit that was on the rear. No one knows which. However, Metra dug up it's finest for this! Metra F40C 614 was beckond from her sleep. Saturday night, she layed over in the Fox Lake yard. She was put to the test. Her fuel pump was primed for two minutes, they turned her over twice, engaged the HEP, disengaged the HEP, and went from idle to run 8 while checking something in the engine room. This was with the HEP off. She sounds much different with the HEP off, rather than when she has it on. Here are the shots from Saturday night.

http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/9475/1022551xw3.jpg
http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/7296/1022559jn7.jpg
http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/8928/1022562oj5.jpg

[Highball116]

Great shots! I've never seen one of those engines in person, but they do impress me. Are there many (or any) of them still in service? I hope that a handful are preserved somehow. What exactly did "the incident" entail?

- Toby

[NW 1218]

Hey Toby. None remain in everyday service. However, Metra still maintains two of the fifteen it used to have, those being 611 and 614. 600-609, 612, and 613 were sold to Helm Leasing (HLCX) for $90,000 a piece. 610 was sold to National Railway Equipment (NREX) and now rests at NRE's Dixmoor, IL storage shops. Some of the HLCX units can be found in the greater St. Louis area. Not sure where, but there have been accounts.

The incident was the same as the rest. Someone wanted to commit suicide and layed down on the mainline. I believe that was it. Either that or someone went to walk through the crosswalk and got nailed. Nothing new here. Was kind of weird, though. This happend two years ago, and just now, the NTSB wants to "investigate" the incident. Whatever.........

[Highball116]

The judicial pipeline does get clogged pretty easily. As for the engines, I didn't even realize there were that few of them to start with. Even more interesting, their design seems less than ideal for the interests of a leasing company. Would they salvage them for other equipment, or can I suppose that one of them will roll through my locality one day? Har. ;-)

- Toby

[CRQ5508]

While they're not F40Cs, Montana Raillink still rosters a bunch of FP45s, that you can count on one hand. Best looking (and sounding) cowl locomotives out there (ok besides first generation EMDs and Alco PAs)

[NW 1218]

I think you meant F45s........

The F40Cs were bought by Helm but never run for one reason. No toilet in the units. Here, we just have toilets in the coaches. Just go when you're switching ends.

[zartok-35]

>I think you meant F45s........

Yeah. The BNSF got all of the ol' Santa Fe FP45s. Then they got rid o' thoes in 1997 and 1999. If they weren't shot to a museum, they wound up on the WC...and who knows what ol' Chicken$#!t Harrison did with them after that...

BTW...Nice shots! I like that unit.

[NW 1218]

Scrapped them all..........

[wctransfer]

Like a retard I might add!

Great shots though John! Not a fan of Metra, but that is one sharp lookin engine!

Alec

[wctransfer]

"If they weren't shot to a museum, they wound up on the WC"

Actually, the WC got them through 94-95. 6650-6651,6653-6656. And ofcourse the only FP45, 6652.

Alec

[CRQ5508]

yeah they were F45s. weren't these ex BN F45s? I know they had a handful off F45s before BNSF waddled in and erased two of the best railroads off the earth. Goodbye to the Big Green Giant. and adios to the Warbonnet. Anyways, these F45s are still around, teamed up with other 45 series locomotives and MRLs new SD70ACes.

[NW 1218]

Yes, the WC ones were all BN F45s. However, like I said, all of them were scrapped by CN after they took over.