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- Completely New
Model
- Prototype-Specific
Detailing
- Magnetic
Knuckle Couplers
- All-Wheel Drive
& Electrical Pick-Up
- Machined Brass
Flywheel
- Constant &
Directional Headlights
- RP-25 Wheels
- Heavy Diecast
Chassis
- Five-Pole
Skew-Wound Motor
- Available With
or Without Factory-Installed Sound & DCC
Sound can be operated with standard DC power
pack and Quantum Engineer (#920-5990 sold
separately) or DCC controllers. Sound features
include: Diesel Engine, Horn, Bell, Squealing
Brakes, Doppler Effect, Air Let Off (in
neutral), generator, and Trailer which mutes
whistle and bell for double heading.
By the early 1930s,
Fairbanks-Morse was ready to expand its line of
diesel prime movers with a new design aimed at
railroads. The new Model 38 as it was known used
opposed pistons in place of a traditional cylinder
head to form the combustion chamber. Although more
mechanically complex, it was very smooth-running
and quiet when properly adjusted. The original
six-cylinder 5 x 6" design could generate 300
horsepower; the Milwaukee Road had a single rail
car, and the Baltimore & Ohio had two fitted
with these engines. Larger eight-cylinder 8 x 10"
models soon followed, producing 1,300 horsepower.
This version caught the eye of the US Navy, who
ordered several for submarines. In 1938, these same
engines were selected by the Southern Railway to
power five new lightweight rail cars. But further
railroad sales were put on hold as the nation
entered World War II and the Navy needed every
Model 38 it could get. But as the war began winding
down, F-M was given the OK to build a prototype
loco to test civilian applications for the Model
38. On August 21, 1944, F-M rolled out its first
H10-44; "H" for a hood-type car body, "10" for 1000
horsepower and "44" for a B-B (four axles and four
traction motors) wheel arrangement. Raymond Lowey
designed the body, which featured a gently sloped
nose and a rounded roof extending back over the
cab. The prototype went to work for the Milwaukee
Road, who placed the first large order for 10 more
in 1945. Some 197 were built through May of 1950
when a 1200-horsepower version (H12-44) was
introduced. These models used the same body through
1952. Some H10s and H12s soldiered on into the
early 1980s, often working for shortline and
industrial users. The first H-10 was restored by
the Illinois Railway Museum and is still in
operation.
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