DD40 restored?

[Chris333]

Just heard a UP DD40 came through Youngstown coming from Cleveland on the way to the Juniata shops to be restored. Someone last saw it getting fuel at Conway.

Anyone have more info on this?

[Leggy]

Cosmetic resto being performed by NS iirc.

[Chris333]

But is it for UP? If so that seems odd.

[Leggy]

Owned by the Museum of Transportation St Louis Mo.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_Transportation

[Chris333]

Wonder if NS has to pay a licensing fee to UP.

[wazzou]

How's that laser cutter coming along?   

[Chris333]

Laser cutter? Oh that was yesterday  looks like I need a tub of ice water to run it. Plus I can't find out how narrow it cuts or if it works with CAD.

[C855B]

Owned by the Museum of Transportation St Louis Mo.

WHAT????!??? The 6944? Boy... I leave the immediate area for a couple of years and now they do what I've been requesting for, oh, nearly a decade?

Seriously, this makes me very happy. Yes, cosmetic only. I forget which running bits were removed by UP (prime mover? generators? electrical cabinets?), but it was donated non-operable, period. The last discussion I had with museum management about it was over three years ago and we were wringing our hands over the lead mitigation issues associated with the original paint.

Glad they were able to muster the funding to send it out. They have a small but capable restoration shop, but it would likely overwhelm them.

When I talk to the curator (hopefully in the next day or so) about the GE 25-tonner DKS was asking about, I'll ask her what their plans are with the DDA40X, although I'm more curious where they got the money because it seemed an insurmountable budget-blower not too long ago.

[Chris333]

Found this:
http://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36704

Going through Ohio yesterday:
https://www.facebook.com/altoonaworks/photos/a.389322700636.358874.222359370636/10154413758260637/?type=1&theater

Few days ago:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10202221915604997&set=o.222359370636&type=1&theater

Was still in Conway as of 5PM 7/15/14.

[C855B]

Oooo. Those pictures are painful. Condition is even more grim than I recall from just three years ago. Maybe it was that bad then, but I couldn't get an overall impression since it was tucked back in the storage tracks and crowded-in by other stuff.

Anyway... again, happy to see it going for new paint. Needed it badly. Thanks for the links!

[peteski]

Speaking of these, what is the difference between DD40 (or DD40A?) and DDA40X?  And what is with all these shifting letters?  DDA40, DD40AX, etc, etc...  Everybody seems to be calling them by slightly different names.

[Leggy]

Only ever a DDA40X, people just shorten it to DD40.

[C855B]

Oh, it's an old railfan debate. EMD's model designation was DDA40X. I have a copy of the operation manual, and it is most definitely "DDA40X".

"DD40" was what Athearn called their HO foobie of an EMD cataloged-but-never-sold model. The "DDA" prefix came with the DDA35, the A-unit version of the DD35, a cabless double GP35 on 8-axle trucks. Lord knows why EMD didn't call the cab version a DD35A, but they didn't.

UP confused this in their computer inventory system by calling them "DD40X" since the locomotive model field in their punchcard system only had 5 characters at the time. I guess some middle manager thought the "X" was more important than the "A", possibly to identify that they were an experimental model and had special service and parts needs, and UP's numbering system made B-units obvious with the "B" suffix. This carries forward to today, as you will see "DD-40X" as the model designator on the lower-rear corners of the cab on the operational 6936.

In N scale, Bachmann refuses to correct their calling it a "DD40X".

An authority on the DDA40X is Don Strack. Here's a link to his page on it: http://www.utahrails.net/articles/up-dda40x.php

[peteski]

Thanks guys!

Actually Wikipedia has a good article on these too http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMD_DDA40X . Look like some parts of that article were taken from Don Strack's page.  But it didn't explain the plethora of different names.

[jnevis]

Luckily 6946 isn't in that bad a shape.  At one point UP donated 6912 for parts for it and it was running for a while but never got off museum property.  They have brought in 6936 to run the Feather River Canyon museum special a couple times.