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These Trains Routinely Hit one Hundred Mph

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Gasoline, naphtha, and distillate engines had been tried in motorcars and small locomotives with restricted success. Most had mechanical drivetrains -- very like a truck -- which weren't well suited to railroad service. The overall Electric Company developed an electric transmission system that had the engine drive a generator. The resulting electricity could be simply managed and used to energy motors on the axles, like those fitted to electric streetcars. This system was utilized to gas-electric motorcars and, later, to small locomotives. GE constructed three unsuccessful diesel-electric locomotives in 1918, and in 1925 started to furnish electrical equipment for Alco diesel-electric switchers. These were reasonably successful and pointed the method to the manufacturing of a number of hundred diesel-electric switchers prior to 1940. Developing a diesel powerplant able to surviving the rigors of mainline service was one other matter, and it was here that the upstart manufacturer E

These Trains Routinely Hit one Hundred Mph

Image
Gasoline, naphtha, and distillate engines had been tried in motorcars and small locomotives with limited success. Most had mechanical drivetrains -- much like a truck -- which weren't nicely suited to railroad service. The overall Electric Company developed an electric transmission system that had the engine drive a generator. The resulting electricity might be simply controlled and used to power motors on the axles, like these fitted to electric streetcars. This system was utilized to fuel-electric motorcars and, later, to small locomotives. GE built three unsuccessful diesel-electric locomotives in 1918, and in 1925 began to furnish electrical gear for Alco diesel-electric switchers. These had been moderately successful and pointed the strategy to the production of several hundred diesel-electric switchers previous to 1940. Developing a diesel powerplant capable of surviving the rigors of mainline service was another matter, and it was here that the upstart producer Electro-Motiv