FM H-12-44

The FM H-12-44 was a yard switcher produced by Fairbanks-Morse from May, 1950–March, 1961. The units featured a 1,200-horsepower (890 kW), six-cylinder opposed piston engine prime mover, and were configured in a B-B wheel arrangement mounted atop a pair of two-axle AAR Type-A switcher trucks, with all axles powered and geared for a top speed of 60 miles per hour (97 km/h).

FM H-12-44
SP #2380 backs the Del Monte into San Jose in April 1971, a week before the Amtrak takeover.
Type and origin
Power typeDiesel-electric
BuilderFairbanks-Morse
ModelH-12-44
Build dateMay 1950 – March 1961
Total produced336
Specifications
Configuration:
  AARB-B
Gauge4 ft 8 12 in (1,435 mm)
TrucksAAR type A
Wheel diameter40 in (1,016 mm)
Minimum curve29.50 (194 ft (59.13 m) radius)
Wheelbase33 ft 6 in (10.21 m)
Length48 ft 10 in (14.88 m)
Width10 ft 4 in (3.15 m)
Height14 ft 6 58 in (4.44 m)
Loco weight240,000 lb (108.9 t)
Prime moverFM 38D-8 1/8
Engine typeOpposed piston Two-stroke diesel
AspirationRoots blower
Displacement6,222 cu in (101.96 l)
GeneratorFM DGZJ
Traction motors(4) FM DRZH
Cylinders6 (Opposed piston)
Cylinder size8.125 in × 10 in (206 mm × 254 mm)
Loco brakeStraight air
Train brakesAir
Performance figures
Maximum speed60 mph (97 km/h)
Power output1,200 hp (895 kW)
Tractive effort40,440 lbf (179.9 kN))
Career
LocaleNorth America
DispositionMost scrapped, sixteen examples preserved

A total of 303 units were built for American railroads, 30 were manufactured (between August 1951 to June 1956) by the Canadian Locomotive Company for use in Canada, and 1 unit was exported to Mexico. Initially, H-12-44s were visually indistinguishable from their predecessor model, the FM H-10-44. However, beginning in September, 1952 the Raymond Loewy design elements were removed as a cost-saving measure: cab lines were squared-off, the slanted-nose styling was discontinued, and the roof visor was eliminated. The following year, the fairing over the battery box was removed and louvers added to reduce the possibility of battery explosions. None of the units were produced between May and October 1956, after which time the carbodies were shortened by some three feet and outfitted with a deeper side skirt.

Sixteen intact examples of the H-12-44 are known to survive today, all of which are owned by railroad museums or historical societies.

One FM H-12-44TS, Santa Fe 543, now resides at the Illinois Railway Museum.

Units produced by Fairbanks-Morse (19501961)

RailroadQuantityRoad numbersNotes
Fairbanks-Morse (demonstrator)
1
76
to Yankeetown Dock Corporation 1
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
59
503–540, 544–564
3 custom built H12-44TS locomotives 541-543. 543 survives today
Ayrshire Collieries Corporation
1
1
to Thunderbird Collieries 1;
to Yankeetown Dock 3
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
17
196–197, 310–319, 9722–9726
310–319 renumbered 9710–9719,
196–197 renumbered 9720–9721
Canadian National Railway
30
1630–1659
built by Canadian Locomotive Company
Central of Georgia Railway
4
315–318
Chicago and North Western Railway
9
1071–1072, 1110–1116
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad ("Milwaukee Road")
48
1826–1847, 2309–2325
Renumbered 700–710, 715–744, 750–756 (not in order)
Columbia and Cowlitz Railway
1
D-2
Renumbered #700)
Ferrocarril de Chihuahua al Pacífico
1
70
Indianapolis Union Railway
3
19–21
Kentucky and Indiana Terminal Railroad
7
60–66
Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad ("Soo Line")
5
315–319
Minnesota Western Railway
1
10
to Minneapolis, Northfield and Southern Railway 10
New York Central Railroad
27
9111–9137
New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad ("Nickel Plate Road")
22
134–155
to Norfolk and Western Railway 2134–2155
Pennsylvania Railroad
16
8708–8723
to Penn Central 8327–8342
Sandersville Railroad
1
100
Renumbered 10
St. Louis-San Francisco Railway ("Frisco")
4
282–285
Southern Pacific Company
43
1486–1491, 1529–1574, 1577–1596
Southern Pacific (Texas and New Orleans Railroad)
2
119–120
to Southern Pacific 1575–1576; renumbered 2373–2374
Tennessee Valley Authority
1
22
United States Army
20
1843–1862
U.S. Steel, Morrisville, Pennsylvania
8
GE9–GE16
Wabash Railroad
3
384–386
to Norfolk and Western 3384–3386
White River Lumber Company (Weyerhaeuser Timber Company)  
1
WTC 1
WTC 1
to Pacific Transportation Services 121 then transferred to Northwest Railway Museum where it is preserved in running condition
Yankeetown Dock Corporation
1
2
Total336

Preservation

Several examples of the H-12-44 model have been preserved around the US and Canada.

References

  • "Fairbanks-Morse 38D8 Diesel Locomotive". PSRM Diesel Locomotives. Archived from the original on October 25, 2014. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
  • "A Fairbanks-Morse locomotive is being saved". Archived from the original on August 30, 2006. Retrieved June 18, 2006.
  • Dorin, Patrick C. (1972). Chicago and North Western Power. Burbank, California: Superior Publishing. p. 154. ISBN 0-87564-715-4.
  • Pinkepank, Jerry A. (1973). The Second Diesel Spotter's Guide. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing. ISBN 978-0-89024-026-7.
  • Kirkland, John F. (November 1985). The Diesel Builders Volume 1: Fairbanks-Morse and Lima-Hamilton. Interurban Press. ISBN 0-916374-69-6.
Specific
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.