Didn't Amtrak effectivly ban GEs from operating under wire after the ACES fiasco in Morrisville, where a turbo fire or some other malfunction (never heard a final verdict-) melted a good deal of wire on the NEC? I'm not sure how to get in and out of Washington Union Station without operating under wire.

What a Class 1 can do when it has thousands of second generation EMD's on hand versus a group like the Greenbrier that has no locomotives on hand isn't a fair comparison. Are C39's the best locomotives out there? No. Are C39's the best bang for the Greenbrier's buck? Most likely, yes.

Last I checked a few years ago, the second generation EMD's were going for $250k and that was before NS and UP started rebuilding them. That is a ton of money for a start up operation that is going to be rebuilding an entire train as well. I would almost be that the Greenbrier purchased all three of these locomotives for less than the price of 1 second generation EMD. The GE's will provide the best ROI for this group, IMHO.

If CSX doesn't relax their policy in 2 or 3 years and the train is still running then I would expect Greenbrier to invest in better diesels.

Considering that Amtrak rosters almost exclusively GE diesel passenger power by now....... and that Amtrak diesels still operate over the Corridor and Harrisburg-Philly last I saw......... Oh, and Metro-North has GE locos........

Maybe it was just NJTRO's GEs that got banned. I really don't pay too much attention to Amtrak-

Another question about the GEs...why are they being sent to New Hope and Ivyland for "repairs"? Are they GE guru's that will be able to transform wornout surplus "junk" choo choos into modern mainline passenger haulers?

T7

NH&I in the past HAS operated many older GE's--I rode behind an ex-CR U30B in the 1985 time frame, and there have been at least three C30-7's operated by the railroad and even painted in NH&I colors. However, what with Rowland's open relationship with the NH&I as an occasional engineer, I strongly suspect it's much more a case of "who you know" than any specific GE Dash 8 expertise. Currently, as I recall, they have ex-PRR GP30 2198 and ex-PRR SW1 9423.....

I've heard it said that switching from one make of diesel to another (EMD to GE, Baldwin to GE, Alco to EMD, etc.) is less a mechanical or mental change than a philosophical or even religious change. I'm sure those going from PC to Mac or vice versa can relate.

Gads!!! We're really confused.......we own one each Alco, EMD, and Baldwin.........

NH&I current diesel roster is an SD40-2 (5577) GP30 (2198) and a GE C30-7 (7087). BTW foamer fact, the 7087 was the only one of the 3 C30-7s to ever be repainted into NH&I colors. The SW1 hasn't been on the property for years, I wish it were though, I bet it'd be fun to run.

Those General Electric U-30-Bs (originally NYC) had printed circuit boards with components, not integrated circuits, like in locomotive radios of a few years earlier. The boards were sent by McHugh Bros. to an outside radio shop for repairs.

These 6-motor GE's have been selling for somewhere in the neighborhood of 100-110K. Inexpensive, relatively modern horsepower.

Perhaps the reason that the Class One's are retiring them has to do with the change in emission standards as of 1/1/10. The required upgrade may have been judged to be too expensive given the age of these units.

By comparison, the upgrade to comparable EMD units just isn't as involved.

BTW, an operation that only runs a handful of locomotives is exempt from this upgrade. An in-kind overhaul will suffice.

NH 0401

At the end of their stay at NS they were relagated to ballast train duty. Reliablity was never above 80% on these choo choos and it was lower in the last few years.

Amtrak will be the final word on these engines. The engines will have to meet their standards before they can be used. Time will tell.

T7

Well, for once, I sort of agree. It did take an almost religious awakening to convert to a real computer (Mac), but I now understand why once you go Mac, you never go back...

"WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — The company that wants to build and operate a luxury train to the famed Greenbrier Resort will open a restoration shop in Pottstown, Pa., Aug. 1 and expects to renovate the 16-car consist with a July 2, 2012, target date for the first run. But, says Greenbrier Express Co. President and CEO Ross Rowland, don't expect to see steam on the point of the luxury special."

This past weekend I couldn't help but notice that the PGA was at the Greenbrier and it raises a question that hasn't been answered....

What arrangements have been made to handle golf clubs on the train.????

not that many railfans play *that* game, but the people who are likely to take this train just might

Bob H

There's a detailed article on the Greenbrier on the front page of the NY Times today

http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/08/15/tr ... anted=3&hp

My apologies. To go to first page of article, use

http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/08/15/tr ... gewanted=1