Fairbanks Morse H12-44TS Locomotive Lettered for Santa Fe, No. 541.
The year 1956 saw a couple of significant and distinctive additions to Santa Fe's passenger fleet. That summer, new Hi-Level chair cars, lounges, and diners arrived for the El Capitan, and a somewhat less glamorous but still vital component of the passenger operation was enhanced by the delivery of three new Fairbanks Morse H12-44TS's for service as coachyard switchers at Chicago, IL.
The H12-44TS was one of a handful of locomotive models that was unique to the Santa Fe. Built as a special order, the three locomotives were essentially lengthened H12-44 switchers with a short hood housing a steam generator. A switcher with a steam generator was necessary to keep the trainline from freezing up as passenger consists were shuffled between the 21st Street coachyard and Chicago's Dearborn Station. Breaking down the designation, H indicated a hood-unit, 12 stood for 1200 horsepower, and 44 meant 4 traction motors and 4 total axles. As for the TS, Extra 2200 South magazine says it stood for Terminal Switcher, while The Santa Fe Diesel V.1 claims it stood for Train Steam.
Close examination of the H12-44TS suggests that it was something of a Beloit kitbash, with pieces coming from both the H12-44 switcher and the H16-44 roadswitcher FM was building at the time. The 31' truck centers and 55ft. 4 inch overall length were identical to those of the H16-44's being built in 1956 for railroads such as Virginian and B&O (interestingly, the original Loewy-styled H16-44's were over a foot shorter than the more spartan versions built after 1953, so Santa Fe's H12-44TS switchers were actually longer than their 3000-class H16-44 roadswitchers!). The short hood, with its recess for the cab door and its high mounted headlight, and resting atop a louvered box containing the main air reservoirs, is also recognizable from the H16-44. In contrast to the H16-44, the H12-44TS short hood lacked the large, angled numberboards, permanent classification lights, and external handbrake, in keeping with the locomotive's role as a switcher, not a road switcher. Inside the short hood was a single Vapor Clarkson OK-4070 steam generator, the type used in most of Santa Fe's passenger F-units. The partioned tank slung under the frame, carrying 1200 gallons apiece of diesel fuel and water, appears to be the same tank used under passenger H16-44's built for Chihuahua Pacific (#600-602) and New Haven (1600-class).
The remainder of the H12-44TS - the switcher trucks, long hood, and the power plant inside - are the bits contributed by the H12-44 switcher. The H12-44TS's were built just prior to the last H12-44 carbody revision, and the lower profile, four section, horizontally louvered battery boxes and low headlight positioning on the long hood contrasted with the vertical louvered boxes and high headlight on the short hood end of the locomotive. The H12-44 long hood was also slightly narrower than the H16-44 short hood on the other side of the cab, and lacked a recess for the open cab door. Under that long hood was FM's signature opposed-piston, 6-cylinder 38D 8 1/8 engine, producing 1200 hp at 850 rpm. The engine turned an FM-built, Westinghouse-compatible DGZJ generator, providing DC power to four DRZH traction motors mounted in Type-A switcher trucks. Shop diagrams in the back of Iron Horses of the Santa Fe Trail show a gear ratio of 68:14 and a top speed of 60 mph for the H12-44TS's, though its doubtful the units ever achieved that speed in service. On rigid switcher trucks, it would have been quite a ride!
The three H12-44TS's, ATSF 541-543, joined five boiler-equipped Santa Fe RS-1's (2395-2399) that had switched Dearborn since the late 40's. Alco was still building RS-1's in 1956, and one might have expected Santa Fe to place a repeat order when the need for more coachyard switchers arose. In the years since the RS-1's arrived, however, the railroad had begun purchasing what ultimately became a fleet of 59 Fairbanks Morse H12-44 switchers. These locomotives were assigned to the eastern portion of the system between Kansas City and Chicago. Meanwhile, Santa Fe's Alco switcher fleet was concentrated at the other end of the system on the Coast Lines. The RS-1's in Chicago were essentially Alco orphans in a sea of FM's, and this may explain why Santa Fe placed the special order for FM terminal switchers rather than opting for more RS-1's.
With the possible exception of trips to Argentine for overhauls, the H12-44TS's spent their entire working lives in Chicago.
Тип: traincar