Thursday, February 7, 2013

the Baldwin 'Sharks'

The Pennsylvania Railroad was the biggest original buyer, 72 A units and 31 B units.  Here one of the A units is seen at South Amboy, New Jersey.
Lionel models.

Not a football team, but the popular nickname given to the Baldwin (strictly Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton) RF-16, a 1,600-hp (1,200 kW) Bo'Bo' type diesel-electric locomotive built for freight service between November 1950 and May 1953. A total of 109 cabbed A units along with 51 cabless B units - a total of 160 - were built. As was the case with most passenger locomotives of its day, the RF-16s came equipped with a retractable, nose-mounted drop coupler pilot. Unlike competing units from EMD and ALCo, the RF-16 used an air-powered throttle, meaning that it could not be run in multiple operation with EMD or Alco diesels without special equipment.

The style was inspired by the Pennsylvania Railroad's T1 class duplex steam locomotive, some of which were built by Baldwin. The first locos to receive the new styling were the Baldwin DR-6-4-20. When the RF-16 (essentially a "debugged" Baldwin DR-4-4-15 freight locomotive with a new prime mover) was introduced in 1950, it was given the new "Sharknose" styling.  See also the post on the "Babyfaces"

Length: 54 ft 4 in (16.56 m)
Service weight: 266,000 lb (120.7 tonnes)
Prime mover: 608A Four-stroke diesel 15,832 cubic in (259.44 litres), Inline 8 cylinders
Aspiration: Turbocharged
Tractive effort 43,000 lbf (191.3 kN)

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