Looks like "Six Alco FA's on the Reading" somehow got translated to "one of maybe six left in the world" ;)
oh well, these things happen with the media all the time..
in reality there are probably 30 to 40 or so FA's (and variants) left..
(about 20 preserved, and several more still running on tourist lines and etc)

but still, very cool about the find for the Alco museum!
Great way to re-use an old cab that probably wouldn't have had any other reasonable future, except scrap..

Scot

The other thing, Scott, is it's a preserved piece of a Fallen Flag, and the Reading has some serious devotees. In that respect, I'd say it's as valuable as the G5s cab in the Chicago Museum of Technology. It's not a whole locomotive, but it represents something tangible to those who feel the connection.

It will make a great display, and it is an excellent representation of what the builders did as well. EMD had an E-unit cab that was mounted on the back end of a truck trailer (that also transported left and right side stairways for the cab). They sent it around to trade shows, state fairs, and holiday displays for about ten years beginning in 1946. It got several different paint schemes during its service life. What a nice display that would have been for a museum, since it was new construction and never was put on a locomotive.

PC

PC -

I wonder if there are any color photos of this E-unit cab in existance on display at some location?

Since you brought up a slight deviation from the original thread, I thought it might by safe to present something I had thought of from when I first saw the photo of the FA cab. The Toledo, Peoria & Western had a EMD B-unit (F3 or F7; I don't now recall which) that they put a cab onto to increase its service availability. I don't recall now if it was "scratch built" by the TP&W shops, or if they got a cab from EMD. I wonder if there might be an FA B-unit out there that is "orphaned"; that is, not part of an A-B set of units. The FA cab might be a candidate to be "TP&W-ized" using that B-unit body. Just a thought. I am actually quite happy that the FA cab is going to end up as a simulator at the Alco museum.

BTW, Happy New Year everyone!

Les

As Dick said, there is a LIRR FA, that they cut the cab off of to make an HEP sled. It is sitting gutted in Morris Park now.

Answering Les, yes there are surviving color photos of the EMD separate display cab in the KCS paint scheme in 1949 (Scheme shown in DSG2, Page EMD-123). Before that it had an odd blue paint scheme with a low positioned color arch at the bottom of the nose and some trim stripes.

And I apologize for a typo above, it was an F-unit cab not an E-unit.

The cutting of the cab was very similar to the Alco Museum's FA-1, it kept the rear bulkhead and was trimmed around the top of the pilot. In some photos it is displayed with a fabric "pilot", in other photos with a real one. It probably took time to put a real pilot in place after transportation so the fabric one was a quick substitute.

PC

Other products-How about the tackling sleds for the NY Giants football team ?

DPK

Its not the first time a ALCO FA Cab was used as a display. During the 1964 Worlds Fair, an ALCO cab was a attraction for the LIRR display.

The LIRR Worlds Fair cab was an ex-New Haven unit. THis is the same cab preserved at the Oyster Bay Railroad Museum, today.

Sorry everybody. I've wanted to post details on this for a while now but have not had the time. It is indeed Reading 301! The story we have been told is that when ALCO scrapped the Reading FA1's (and others I assume) several cabs were set asside and saved for some reason (wreck rebuilds? new loco production? I'm not sure). The Long Island's Worlds Fair exibit was probably a similar story. In 1968 Jack Pollard of Altamont was called by an individual who will go un-named from and organization that will go un-named and asked to retrive the cab from the ALCO property. The person and organization may or maynot have had legal right to it but I will not go there. Reguardless, Jack was able to haul it from the plant and moved it to a piece of property in Altamont where he was building a house at the time. There it sat for 44 years! It was well hidden and for years most people were unaware of its existance (including myself) although occasional rumors would surface (at one point it was a PA and at another an F-unit).

When we finally got the ALCO Heritage Museum off the ground this summer the first piece accuired was the M47 Patten tank coincidently owned and on loan by Jack Pollard and his son Mark. On the day the tank arrived I asked the question of this rumor of a locomotive cab in Altamont. Jack's words were "Oh sure. I'm aware of it. I put it there". Jack is not a "train guy" so he was unsure what it was exactly. He did however put us in touch with Dorothy who is the current resident of the house. I still had no clue what to expect when I walked around her house on that rainy day, until I was greeted by the unmistakable nose of an FA! The rest is, as they say, history.

Many thanks go out to the Pollard's for transportation, Dororthy Friedlander for allowing us to take away her "back yard buddy", and Jim Cesear our Museum Project Director for making the arrangments. We are actively seeking donations to complete the cosmetic restoration as well as the conversion to a simulator. They can be sent to the "ALCO Historical & Technical Society" 1910 Maxon Rd. Schenectady, NY 12308. You can specify "301 project". And yes, she will be returned to her former Reading paint and number.

Some pics can be found here:
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/archivethumbs.aspx?id=75232


Matt Giardino
Vice President
ALCO Historical & Technical Society

Thanks Matt for filling in the details, very much appreciated. Good Luck and a Prosperous New Year to You and the Museum and Society.
Mike Tillger

The FA nose displayed at the LIRR Worlds' Fair exhibit was removed from loco NH 0402. This was done by Alco as a consideration to the customer-who had recently purchased 22 new locomotives. The 0402 was actually rendered at Schiavone in North Haven, CT-with the salvaged material being returned to GE for processing.

Based upon a number of photos, the NH 0402 nose section traveled by flatcar from CT to the Alco plant, where it was prepared for display.

Given that Alco was a union outfit, one would suspect that the processing of scrap
loco hulks was done off-site. I've seen some photos of this transpiring-at a yard down in the Albany area.

DPK