SW-1 upgrade question

PCook · **Joined:** Sat Jul 02, 2005 7:16 am **Posts:** 2129

A question was received recently by off site communication asking about whether EMD had developed a conversion package for using 645 power assemblies in SW-1 locomotives that have 567 UC/VC/AC/BC upgrade package or a 6-567C engine.

The answer is no. (Reference: EMD MI 9547 page 1, list of applicable units).

They developed conversion packages for use on 8, 12, and 16 cylinder 567 engines but I am not aware of any for the 6 cylinder 567 engines.

Posted here for general information, in the event it might be useful to anyone planning or working on a preservation project.

PC

etalcos · **Posted:** Fri Jan 03, 2014 2:38 pm

It may not have been EMD approved, but I have seen it done in a 6 cylinder BC and C. Apparently quite successfully -- at least the folks that did it seemed happy.

ETA

Catalpa · **Posted:** Fri Jan 03, 2014 6:01 pm

THE 567 upgrade, at least as EMD supported it, relied on when the block was manufactured. I remember when working a series of locomotive conversions for MARC, that we had to research when a particular block was manufactured, in order to know if the 645 power assembly in a 567C block upgrade would be covered by warranty.

G.F.Payne
Baltimore, MD

NH0401 · **Posted:** Sat Jan 04, 2014 10:51 am

Was a 6-645E block ever supplied when a C block was beyond economical factory repair ?

Dave

PCook · **Joined:** Sat Jul 02, 2005 7:16 am **Posts:** 2129

A very interesting question Dave.

In the early 1970's I recall seeing one spare 6 cylinder unmachined crankcase in the corner of the storage area at Plant One. My recollection is that it was "E" construction. I don't know if the normal production machinery was set up to do "C" water manifold configuration, but they could have easily done that machining in the rebuild line.

They built many 567E engines in the other cylinder configurations for customers who had a "proven product" requirement or needed backward interchangeability. It would probably have been inconvenient to construct new "C" or "D" crankcases after they started the "E" series due to the different top deck construction.

EMD had quite a few "special" replacement provisions they could do in rebuilding that are now difficult to find in written documentation. Probably all the parts and rebuild bulletins should be scanned and preserved but there is so much else that also needs to be done.

PC