3 EMD SD70ACEs up front restart 12,000 ton train on a 2% Grade, Moffat Tunnel Subdivision, Colorado

[@Boberrosini]

Why do Americans still use non-electrified tracks? In Europe almost everything runs on electric. Locos are newer, but in USA seems time stopped 50 years ago.

[@RailBuffs]

Page 2-5 second paragraph should explain it. www.freightworks.org/DocumentLibrary/CRGMSAIS%20-%20Analysis%20of%20Freight%20Rail%20Electrification%20in%20the%20SCAG%20Region.pdf

[@Boberrosini]

That is well explained answer. Now I understand why US railways stay where they are. I am curious though, whenever I look at those trains, they seem to be bigger than ours in Europe. They have shape of brick, even Amtrak passenger ones :D

[@RailBuffs]

@@Boberrosini I have actually researched railroad electrification and recently it has become a more popular idea within the railroads, I think we'll see electrification in the US sometime in the future. Here are some thoughts on electrification: 1. After about 20 years the cost savings of electrification vs the cost of diesel fuel is about equal but the railroads in the US are private and don't want to spend the billions upfront to electrify the mainlines. And our mainlines are thousands of miles long in some cases. It would probably take a big donation from the Government to Electrify the mainlines as part of a step away from fossil fuels. 2. Electric locomotives could be powerful enough to pull our big trains but then the issue become power supply. I think I read that with a 25kV supply, on a steep grade like 2%, you would need a substation every 2 miles, with 50kV every 4 miles. The mainline featured in the video has about 54 miles of 2% grade, that's 1 in 50 to you, so that would require many substations. 3. Our Locos are big, 10ft wide, 75ft long, about 15ft tall, pulling a heavy train is a combination of power and tractive effort which comes from how heavy your loco is. A powerful engine that doesn't weigh as much will just spin the wheels and go nowhere. The SD70ACE T4 is the most powerful single frame locomotive in the world by tractive effort, from what I have seen, because we can put large traction motors on it for power and it weighs 214 short tons, that's 35.6 short tons per axil, giving 889kN staring, 778kN continuous tractive effort. I don't know all European Locos, but one that I do know of is the Eurotunnel Class 9 with only 400kN starring, 310kN continuous tractive effort. The SD70ACE T4 is the newer version of the SD70ACE in the video. What is Europe's most powerful loco?

[@McSlobo]

@@RailBuffs I know nothing about trains and viewed this video by accident but to contribute to this discussion I started Googling. Europe is partially very mountaineous (therefore e.g. Swiss SBB locomotives might interest you) and these mountains exist also in populated areas which means emissions are a concern. The answer also depends on what you mean by Europe because it includes Russia, partially. Trans-Siberian railroad is by the way electrified although it's in Siberia. Eastern Europe uses Russian gauge, Western Europe uses standard gauge apart from Spain and Ireland which might have effect on locomotive dimensions. I would say you should see List_of_largest_locomotives from Wikipedia. I picked a few interesting ones. Russians have "Granite" 2ES10, electric, 17000+hp, "two units" running across Urals which means they visit Europe occasionally. From Western Europe you could take a look at SBB-CFF-FFS Re 620, electric 10,700 hp (8,000 kW) which is ancient but still in operation, and SBB-CFF-FFS Re 460. I guess there's also a couple of DB Class 103 in sproradical use too. Specific purpose trains include two-unit Iore which is used to haul ore in Sweden. My home country Finland is flat so we only have Siemens Vectrons. Hope I didn't mislead you. :)

[@krpajda]

@@bcstechnologylimited896 not just American dollar. Commies also were a large proponent of electrification and most of Eastern European railways have been electrified around the same time as well. One of the major reasons why European trains can run on overhead electric power instead of diesel is that the trains themselves are typically a lot shorter. This is for a coupleof reasons: Most of all you aren't going as far. Freight goes as far as possible by sea, which is much cheaper than rail, and the shape of European coastline means you are almost always within a couple hundred km of a nice deep port. The expection here is the eastern European plain (western part of Russia) but thy have their own unique rail solutions with wider gauge and power you can't scoff at. It's also a plain so no huge hills to scale until you get to Ural but others already mentioned that. Second factor is the infrastructure itself. You have double track lines basically everywhere which lets you support a lot more individual trains allowing each to be smaller to move the same freight. Last but not least electric is more efficient and therefore a lot cheaper in the long run. The loco also has fewer moving parts, reducing maintenance costs.

[@zakkholguin3942]

Anybody else find the combination of cold weather and heavy machinery incredibly relaxing?

[@jlo13800]

Skidoos 850 rotax etec turbo or tge Polaris 850 patriot boost turbo khaos. I like them both

[@awnicholas]

12,000 tons is an ungodly weight to move -- like moving a mountain. Beautiful to listen to!

[@rodneymcgiveron]

in 2001 I think it was there was a move here in Australia of 99,600 tons ...might still be the world record ..that's like shifting about 50,000 full sized cars...I think it was called the Spirit of Goldsworthy train ...

[@birdmanrailfan]

@@rodneymcgiveron and the train used GE AC6000’s for that

[@markmccastle7932]

Yes Sir and a bloody good engineer ta boot as to eliminate wheel slippage

[@FS2K4Pilot]

12,000 tons isn’t even very uncommon nowadays. I’ve heard of CSX moving coal drags in the 20,000-30,000 ton range.

[@cat_with_sunglass]

@@rodneymcgiveron Be aware, these 3 locomotives are running wit only 2 dpu (distributive power unit) on 2% grade which is steep enough to stop a train.

[@archechme]

The sheer amount of torque needed for this is just unfathomable.

[@RailBuffs]

@@Mjoseph117 The torque is the force the Motors exert on the axil and the tractive effort is the force of the wheels gripping the rail. Each locomotive has about 850,000 Newtons for starting tractive effort which equals the torque on the axil.

[@jetstream454]

@@Mjoseph117 That is just like saying "wheels don't spin, they turn".

[@davecrupel2817]

@@jetstream454 "wheels dont spin. They turn" 😂 thats a good one hagaha

[@kittiemuffins6609]

@@Mjoseph117 wrong

[@donbryson7536]

archechme indeed. You know, i had heard “torque”, being used and never understood what torque is, these motors have crazy amounts of it with the tonnage nowadays. Favorites were the sd40&45’s torque and a super car feel, quick with response, o so fun back in the day. I now know the feel of what torque is, amazing. Want ramble no more, Thanks for video

[@jimstein8249]

That sound when the rpm was increased knowing the brute power being produced gives one goosebumps!

[@JasonWagus]

Ear PORN😂

[@southeastvirginiarailfan2110]

You know craps getting real when EMDs start smoking like that.

[@veracruzreal4806]

Dude that was beautifull

[@HazeGreyAndUnderway]

@@veracruzreal4806 that's not beautiful that's fucking disgusting. That to me is poor maintenance and improper fuel feeding. And it's dirty and disgusting.

[@HazeGreyAndUnderway]

Why does it feel like I'm seeing more train videos with dirty fucking engines these past years? That shit looks terrible.

[@kobi7166]

Aldo Raine who pissed in your cereal

[@southeastvirginiarailfan2110]

@@kobi7166*A BEBEH*

[@TheRimeOfTheAncientMariner]

Man, locomotives are an engineering marvel. The weight they can move is just astonishing.

[@xreconusmc3156]

Here I’m pulling over 4.8 million pounds

[@integr8er66]

Until you compare them to ships 😁

[@indridcold8433]

Trains are the invention that changed the world. It is very unlikely there will ever be a time again without trains.

[@ericdee6802]

Each of those engines produce 4400 Hp, and weigh 419,000lbs and the tractive effort is measured in "Newton's". Now add all Locomotives hp and divide that by the total trailing tonnage (rail cars) will give you the Horse power per ton (HPT).

[@grafspeem9402]

It is all about steel wheels an steel tracks. This why trains do not need a lot of power to move cargo. Just run simple calculation what is power to weight ratio for this train

[@icestorm40]

i'm pretty sure my leaning forward and straining in the chair is what made that a successful start!

[@bcstechnologylimited896]

I thought it was all the guys at the rear of the train grunting and pushing as hard as possible. ☻

[@MagnetOnlyMotors]

icestorm40 I know the feeling.

[@carryclass6807]

with all that leaning forward and straining, i hope you didn't have an "accident".

[@armoricain]

Yes, LOL... I know I can, I know I can... well, it should be "We know we can, we know we can!"

[@davecrupel2817]

It was me sticking my head out and blowing backwards.

[@jasonraine6593]

That just sounds so incredible. Nobody does it like EMD!!

[@grantbagwell8092]

GE does 😉

[@bellaxxi4116]

@@grantbagwell8092 hey now I love GEs to but them 2 strokes tho 🤤🤤

[@stevenjones618]

Big boy 4010 and a 844 would do just fine i bet

[@anthonyalba1238]

I think GEs sound better.

[@grantbagwell8092]

@AngryRailfan 4501 sthu foamer

[@mosekintsime1097]

Camera man captured a moment, the engineer who was in control did that beautifully, the slow rev up wis just incredible,those engines are incredible, loved it. Thanks Cam man, i am in South Africa but love American freight trains because they are mega,the back Bone of America. Love them.

[@milehighkit4725]

This is probably one of the best hard pull videos on the Internet. For a minute there I thought they were gonna have to get out and push🙂

[@anthony342]

you need to type class 37 the long hard slog , its a british class 37 pulling steel

[@mattmoschkau2831]

Now that’s an engineer who knows how to feed the beast!

[@lemontiepyle2421]

Hahahahaha...nice

[@johnraccasi681]

Hey folks, first off, this train is destine for where I work, PRT at Wash, Utah. We transload sand into trucks and oil into trucks and tank cars and yes that car is painted pink. Before I started work at Price River Terminal I worked as a conductor for 20 years out of Helper, Utah. When I started in Helper the fleet was almost nothing but EMD SD40T-2's, DC power, simple, tough, and almost impossible to kill. I was working in Helper when the first AC's showed up for us to use in helper service. The DC locomotive powers up when you throttle up (generator), the AC has to wind-up first, charge the field (alternator), makes for different styles of train handling. The AC locomotive is a very finicky item, so many electrical components and sensors to maximize fuel efficiency such as, wheel slip, temperature, air flow, and exhaust. Now keep in mind, I'm an old person and I've been off the main line for several years now, (PRT is a class 3 railroad) but from what I can recall, as with all combustible engines, is that after they sit idle for awhile there is a build up of carbon as the engine temperature drops and with these big diesel engines with their ebb and flow of hot and cold and quality of fuel grade some build more carbon than others. Also with the modern day AC you don't hear wheel slip, if you do there is something very wrong or there is more tonnage than the unit can handle. The wheel slip sensors for each axle will reduce power, to the effected axle, to prevent the wheel from slipping. You can see it on the screen inside the cab, if you have that particular screen pulled up. I had one of the first generation AC"s have an axle seize one night just before we started loading coal at Savage, on the CV spur, while I was watching the tractive effort screen. I've seen AC's spit flames, excessive fuel, and spit sparks, excessive carbon. With excessive exhaust there could be many reasons, failure of any number of electrical components, failure of any number of sensors, or poor quality of fuel. With this video it could see any one or all of the above be the reason for excessive exhaust, but my guess, with being on a grade, waiting for two trains, the tonnage, I will bet that there was wheel slip and with the fuel consumption rate still being maintained at the time power to the axle and/or axles was reduced and the excess fuel not being completely burned. They probably wheel slipped many times before speed was maintained. The two on the end are remote control from the lead unit, I spend almost my whole career helping trains up and down Soldier Summit even with remotes on the end, but for me....EMD all the way

[@Evan60020]

Thanks for the explanation on all the smoke those bad boys were pouring out. I've never seen a diesel smoke like that.

[@Tom-Lahaye]

This is well explained, it was my guess only that the changing nature of load due to wheelslip caused the excessive smoke, as a blown turbo would cause a more permanent emission of black smoke, but you made it clear. I never realised the difference between the loading of a generator or an alternator, I did only notice there was some difference in reaction time between different types of locomotives after throttling up (I had a couple of oportunities to drive a locomotive on a preserved railway under supervision, I'm not passed out as a driver/conductor) At some point there is some squealing that can be heard, that must be the wheels working on the limit of adhesion and the traction control must be making overtime. But this was a truly spectacular departure.

[@terrencebradley5417]

Really great explanation. Thanks for taking the time and effort to show us laymen exactly what was going on in the video. You answered the questions in my mind that came up as I watched.

[@RDC_Autosports]

it’s called “wet stack”from idling, i work on both EMD and GE .... you can thank california for any engine electrical related issue... what you see i is a lack of service... it don’t take long for the air filters on an EMD to clog because the are right behind the top of the cab.... (fill with soot)..GE is way in the back down by the walkway ...8 filters 4on each side...that’s why you ran -2T air pickups were.... down by the walkway. this lead engine is wheel-slip, probly outa sand so it over revs ... it’s electronic so it’s yankin the throttle back then gets traction.... then a big puff of smoke from the throttle goin wide open (900 rpm is wide open on emd ge is like 1200) .... it’s wasting the liners but it’s not his so 🤷‍♂️ also emds do run a lil dirty because it’s 2stroke....(lacks balls compared to the GE 4 stroke) so it take twice the fuel to make power..... look they are both great and both junk... just depends on the years ✌🏻🤙🏻

[@shullreric98]

@@RDC_Autosports where did you get your information?

[@simontaylor2319]

0 - 60 in 3 months! Incredible power

[@xaiano794]

The forces through the couplings are extreme, hundreds of tons of force, so you have to be gentle or you'll just shear it right off

[@laverdadesmejor]

Must maintain rolling traction

[@thedevilneveraskstwice7027]

@@xaiano794 gentle is not what describes the pulling forces in the video

[@xaiano794]

@@thedevilneveraskstwice7027 no but the acceleration is, you need to load up the couplings steadily

[@sorindncs]

Obviously you are a sports car fan and know nothing about trains. A locomotive has only limited traction because the shiny steel rail is slippery and the resistence forces that oppose the tracting effort of the locomotive are absolutely colossal

[@hughjardon5869]

We hardly see (or hear) these huge engines in notch 8 any longer, the bean counters have taken over the railroads! Amazing sight and sound!

[@delten-eleven1910]

The power and torque of those collective engines to move unbelievable tonnage from a standstill is amazing.

[@jeremycross8598]

If I was the engineer or conductor, I'd be lunging back and forth in my seat yelling "come on baby!"

[@npo64]

Europe might have fast passenger trains but nothing beats the awesome power of an American freight locomotive! This is so cool!

[@flyfaen1]

Meh. Look up the IORE loco :)

[@chrisg7160]

I will always love EMD’s as they are what I grew up with. But I also love the unmistakeable chug of that GE on the end of this train. EMD and GE working together to move freight since as far back as I can remember. 💪

[@Allen-Dennis]

OMG, from 1:30 and onwards the engine sounds are incredible and the horns at 2:03 are icing on the cake! I've probably damaged my hearing listening to this. Like they say, nothing runs like a train! Thanks for sharing!

[@theronerd]

EMD power!

[@Allen-Dennis]

@@theronerd I just got a book to help my young grandson and I identify locomotives!

[@Cnw8701]

Wow! That lead unit was working hard! It was belching smoke like a steam locomotive!

[@dumdum7786]

Rollin coal. *spit* yee yee

[@Johnny64ism]

all the locomotives were workin Hard Not just the Lead if that were the case the Train would have just sat there not budging

[@MrTrapezoid]

@@Johnny64ism no shit Sherlock ofc they were all working together🙄

[@ljhudsonjr]

"I'm giving it all she's got, captain!" 😆😆😆

[@jimw7ry]

My thought exactly!

[@tomhorst7614]

I've got to have 30 minutes!

[@Bonzo_B]

For God's sake Jim!!!! It's only an EMD, I can't push her any harder!!!!

[@Compasscard]

And it's just enough to make it rolling :)

[@redsquirrelftw]

Reminds me back in college, was in the city bus once and the turbo on that bus was blown. Driver gets on the intercom while we're on the highway. "I'm giving her all she's got, sorry we're gonna be late, I don't know why they made me take this bus for this route!". We were going like 40 in a 80 zone and everyone was passing us lol.

[@Beltfedshooters]

This is me trying to roll out of bed in the morning.

[@PenisMcWhirtar]

1:27 - that's me clearing out my nasal passages.

[@fiddlyphuk6414]

Wait until you're 60. Your engines will be leaking and your generator will be perpetually limp

[@paullangford8179]

Cigarette and a cup of coffee? Breakfast of champions!

[@robertbundy3948]

yes

[@kevinmiller1985]

@@PenisMcWhirtar Or me farting. Lol.

[@CMDRFandragon]

BNSF9070, wind 270 at 9 knots, Main 2, cleared for take off. Good day sir

[@joelsmith5886]

Nice show I didn't think newer locomotives like those SD70aces smoked like that. I loved It, looked a tunnel motor show.

[@kenneycooper6199]

The smoke, the power and the sound. What a great mix.

[@Blackscorpion1963]

That is about as impressive as it can get so lets just appreciate, appreciate, and appreciate, POWER and application of that power. If you cannot FEEL how impressive the SD70ACe locos are in this vid, then quite simply you are not alive.

[@ljreed8671]

Let's not forget the "Mac 90" on the rear. I'm of the opinion that was the difference in the 3 "Mac 70's" on the headend to get the train moving. A "GE consist" I don't believe would have got the train moving from a dead stop. That's the difference between a 2 cycle prime mover, to the 4 cycle generating that electric power to the traction motors.

[@Blackscorpion1963]

@@ljreed8671 We are all allowed our opinion and you raise a good point. Do you write from experience driving or working in the industry?

[@ljreed8671]

@@Blackscorpion1963 I'm a retired engineer, I retired before distributive power started. Tractive effort 386,000lbs. wheel to the rail. This is a great video, which show cases EMD. The Green & White unit was Burlington Northern who took delivery of AC tractive effort from EMD rated as a Mac 90. None of the other railroads were interested because of maintenance cost which EMD went back to redesign and came up with the Mac 70 to compete with GE. Progressive Rail got involved as General Motors got out of the Locomotive Business, which I'm sure you know. GE took off with it's development of AC traction, but to me it took longer with the response throttle to power because of the 4 cycle prime mover. Class 1's will enter a rebuild program quicker with EMD, than GE's, which are either scrapped or sold off to rebuilders. The early GE Dash 8 with the control stands were my favorites, but you definitely had to wear your ear plugs operating EMD's locomotives.

[@Blackscorpion1963]

@@ljreed8671 You have a lot of valuable knowledge and experience sir and I enjoyed reading and learning thank you. I'm a Kiwi [New Zealander] was a truck and bus auto engineer through trade. I love trains. NZ train history is interesting too. One of my favorite locos is the 'DX' class or 'dixie' nickname. It's a G.E. loco. They were introduced to New Zealand between 1972 and 1976. The class is based on the General Electric U26C model, a narrow-gauge version of the GE U23C model. The U26C is also used in South Africa (re: South African Class 34-900), Brazil, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia. The locomotives have seen several upgrades since their introduction and three versions now exist: the DXB, DXC and DXR. FYI: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_DX_class_locomotive

[@ljreed8671]

@@Blackscorpion1963 Wow that's amazing, the C-30 U boat was the U26C model from GE overseas. There was the B-30 a 4 axle model, and the C-30 was the 6 axle. Early in my career I ran C-30's on CSX, which they would out perform EMD's SD-40's. I remember having to open the panel door past the Dynamic Brake grids to reset the circuit breakers that tripped the traction motor. You could enter this corridor from either side of the catwalk, those U-boats were on their final days of service as the Dash 8's showed up on the property, they were retired. 2 Dash 8' would replace 4 SD-40's depending on the territory they were operating on. So from the late 80's into the 90's the race was on to develop AC diesel electrics, that the class 1 railroads would buy into. To eliminate DC current with brushes in traction motors, and "short time ratings" to keep from burning up those traction motors was the task the railroads put to the locomotive builders, along with increased horsepower. The DX proved to be reliable enough that New Zealand took up with GE, which EMD didn't attempt to present a locomotive to market for the Kiwi? I must say that GE designed a better operating cab for train crews to operate from, then what was here in the U.S. That stub nose front is truly the GE trademark.

[@jasonligo895]

That turbo sound is very addicting. I love it! Almost as good as a large airliner during takeoff.

[@charlesp3764]

Every time i see this..... the power that’s being put down is just amazing....and the sound.......AAA+ all the way

[@applejacks971]

Every time I hear a train lay the power on I am reminded I have the wrong job :(

[@JaysPrints]

This is a shitty life style. Most railfans that come work for us cant handle it

[@JaysPrints]

@colonel 100 we are always short handed and they cannot handle the idea of showing back on rest. Cant handle the weather and being on call 24/7. Amongst other things, but those are their usual bitches

[@JaysPrints]

I wont say all cant do it because we have a couple that do a great job, but very far few in between. We have had a few that have put themselves in positions in training that could have caused great injury or death because they couldnt separate the job from fan mode.

[@JaysPrints]

@Rusty Shackleford I would say if you're an over the road driver it would be similar in the aspect of being away, which is what a lot have a hard time with. I think the hours of service are similar between the two, we can perform duty for 12 hours with a mandatory 10 hours off between shifts. With that said I have sat on a train for 19 hours waiting for relief to come. We broke down which is what caused that time At our railroad we get a 2 hour call to be on duty. Weather gets a lot of people. They dont care about how cold is it out, just tell you come seek shelter if you feel you need it. With excessive heat they will provide Gatorade or something similar.

[@davecrupel2817]

@@JaysPrints Oh what a bunch of fucking crybabies. I'm an aircraft mechanic, and i understand exactly the hard stuff you're talking about. I wont go into an essay, because you clearly understand it. I've had to work in every weather condition possible. Cutting my hands and elbows with lockwire and getting 5 different kinds of fluids on me at once. All that fun stuff. I would LOVE to spend a long cold miserable day freezing my hands off while touching around an EMD, avoiding searing hot cylinder heads and oil lines. I'd love to help change some...say...wrist pins or rocker arms or other parts. Or help inspect the electric motors & generators. Would be a great day. My brother (who loves trains but followed a different career) would turn green with envy 😆

[@rainhunter2935]

Wow! What an amazing vidio! It always makes me so happy to see disels, they're my favorite! This remindes me of a time when I was struggling to do something, and finally did it in the end! It happend when I was once scared to ride a roller coster! I was really nervous and scared, and I was staring up at the coster and my haert was pounding like crazy, and my palms were sweating, and I wasn't sure if I chould do it! But then, my friend lalya took my sweaty hand and held it tight and said I chould be brave, and she whould be right next to me! So, I got on the ride with her, and we sat next to one another, and I held tight to her arm, and tried to relax as sweat was dripping down my forhead. As the coster slowly started up the lift hill, I took three deep breaths, and told myself I chould do it, and sure enough, as the coster reached the top and flew down the track, I screamed all my fear out, and actually enjoyed myself! Hope you liked my comment! Rain.

[@wclmike2471]

Wow. That is impressive. In the 80's it would have been SD40-2's and GE dash 7's and more than twice as long to crawl up that hill.

[@paulmadruga9786]

The power and sound of those engines is just impressive!

[@kennyrota4075]

Also the smoke 🤣🤣

[@Mason_J]

They sound even better in real life the sound of the train vibrates your body

[@GeekBoyMN]

For a few seconds it almost sounded like a jet engine starting up. When I was in the US Navy my ship had 6 Alco 251 V16 main propulsion engines which also powered locomotives for many years and I enjoyed how they sounded when running nearly full power.

[@Sequential_Shift]

GeekBoyMN wasn’t a Newport-Class tank loader by any chance? I served on HMAS Manoora formally known as USS Fairfax County.

[@GeekBoyMN]

@@Sequential_Shift USS Harlan County LST-1196 1983-1985

[@GeekBoyMN]

@@Sequential_Shift Yes I heard what happened about what happened to the Kanimbla and Manoora. I hope your Navy's engineers have developed better rust prevention measures since then.

[@gjslsffan]

USA, EMD Locomotives since the FT's, in the late 1930's had a 16V 567 engines, or 567 cubic inches per cylinder X 16 cyl's. The EMD locomotives in this video are 16V 710's, or 710 ciu per cylinder, or basically the equivalent of 32 Chevy 350's (each locomotive) that will run at full throttle for literally days at a time and will, with proper maintenance do it for 30 years. The turbos you hear are a very special design by GM that has a "sprag clutch" that is at lower speeds and exhaust temps, actually gear driven, and only becomes an actual exhaust/heat gas driven turbo between throttle 6-8 positions. The max RPM is 900. between throttle 6 -8 the HP increases from 2,800 HP to 4,300 HP, in just the last 3 throttle positions. That shows you how much an EMD turbo adds to the overall HP. Not to mention the AC propulsion technologies involved. I always enjoy running these EMD's on this territory, they will pull their rated tonnage rain or shine, just make sure the sanders are working and there is lots of it. Man will they PUULL! I have been on this RR in a hard pull with a GE in the lead, and got kicked in the ass by EMD's that are pulling the train and pushing the GE till it decided to go back to work. Some folks like GE's, some don't. I will tell you, if you have a GE on the head end, and there is a rain cloud, dusting of snow or frost on the rail, within 30 miles and you got no sand, you better call for a help, cause your gonna stall out, hopefully on the big tens, before you get to the tunnel district.

[@The670533]

Really enjoyed this as a diesel fanatic. Just to give it some perspective, that train is about the total weight of about 3 (yes three) US Navy frigates. Like everyone I thought this was a "still" at the start. Great stuff!

[@tonyv8925]

I remember, when I was a kid, watching the GP35's pick up their cars and power up to leave the yards...always loved the sound of those diesel's...

[@austinshackles549]

smoothly done. You can see the point where they open 'em up fully :)

[@railfan220]

That was sweet! I love throttle-ups, especially on grades. Thanks for sharing. -Cam

[@andrewdutton3831]

Great video! Awesome sound, and you didn't muck it all up with silly foamer outbursts and giggly excitement.

[@pvcarmon1]

Love the sound of the giant turbos and black smoke coming out of the stacks. Great video thxxxx!

[@MrEd-qg8td]

LOL sounds familiar. Me 2

[@billysouth4698]

Engineer showed their skill keeping this monster in one piece and not breaking a knuckle, awesome sound!

[@pootispiker2866]

You aren't gonna break a knuckle with three aces up front, lad.

[@billysouth4698]

@@pootispiker2866 You sure about that, lad?

[@pootispiker2866]

@@billysouth4698 At 109klbs of tractive effort, 3 of them alone would make 327klbs. The AAR couplers are good for about 600k on a good day, and assuming the slack was already out of the train, 300k is the most any one coupler experienced. I'm not even accounting to the rear third or so of the train being in compression, so the first car is experiencing significantly less than that. You don't need to be a genius to figure out basic math.

[@billysouth4698]

@@pootispiker2866 I bet you believe since a SD40-2 has only 3000hp it does not get wheel slip, you are a clown and blocked.

[@billysouth4698]

@@pootispiker2866 109K of tractive effort, really? Starting TE is 190,000+ per unit and starting a train on a grade, just stop.

[@rickygarcia7400]

Love how you can still see the exhaust from the front units whin the rear DPUs go by awsome video.

[@arthurvin2937]

It's amazing how it can deliver such gigantic torque from standatill purely by means of electrical motors.

[@randknu1]

@@sonacphotos theese are all AC motors, and if i am not mistaken the traction inverters controlling them are just behind the cab. AC motors do not take damage from standstill power like DC motors do.

[@FrostyAUT]

Electrical motors are actually superior in torque to any comparable internal combustion engine.

[@trevorbrooks1651]

Diesel motors

[@grafspeem9402]

Yeah mechanical transmition would be impossible

[@TheClunkingFist]

@@grafspeem9402 Nah, you'd just need a clutch... a reeeaallly big clutch. -joke-

[@AerialAg]

I don't know a whole bunch about trains but that was pretty darn cool.. beautiful scenery too.

[@treyjordan3168]

Seeing a Train with the Head-End Power being nothing but EMD gives me a Smile

[@thedesertdwellerfromutah4354]

Probably one, if not the best train video on KZbin.

[@kennysell2027]

Love watching these monsters doing the job they were built for, great video, respect from the UK.

[@gjslsffan]

Your welcome Sir.

[@jlo13800]

I like your Napier Deltic 2 stroke too. Thinking about a mini Deltic firmed from 3 mercury optimax 300SX engines. The blocks are 60* v6 193 CID to mske a 578 CID optimax 2 stroke op mini Deltic.

[@patsheavyequipmenttruckvid8936]

I love the EMD units. Particularly the SD70M-2 and SD75i. I noticed while riding in them pulling that kind of tonnage the governor and generator/exciter feels like they fight each other. It would explain the intermittent puffs of black smoke. RPM wants to go up as load goes up but governor kicks in and drops it back down. Very interesting machines.

[@sontungle2641]

Mine its SD70M-2, SD70ACe.

[@LordCarpenter]

Well, that was just awesome! Nothing like the sound of an EMD.

[@ORBITERDAVE]

Awesome video, they sound a bit like our class 66's here in the UK.

[@birdmanrailfan]

That’s because these SD70’s and your Class 66’s use the same engine. EMD 710 series is what it is. 12 cylinders for the 66 for which these Aces use a 16 cylinder variant. But regardless sound very similar! Hella reliable too 👍

[@richardcox8409]

I was fortunate enough that I landed in the engineering design dept at EMD in London, Ontario fresh out of college in the mid 90s. During that time I worked on the long hood and the cab upgrade for BNSF's SD90MAC's . I am always glad to see EMD locos and they will always be a fond and proud memory, thanks for the video.

[@markantony3875]

Yeah, too bad GM trashed EMD with their mismanagement and turned them into junk just like they did with their auto divisions

[@cmac9029]

Now that’s an ACe in notch 8! Awesome sound!

[@mountainmanwannabe9495]

That was an awesome display of power, thanks for sharing that with us.

[@iBackshift]

Wow...super good capture. Never really see EMD's belch black like a GE. Oh well...EMD all the way baby....w00!

[@mikegenset5228]

Those mighty EMDs showing what they can do in notch 8 💪🇺🇸

[@carmiethompson2676]

Those engines haven't been 'opened up' in a while. Clearing their throats! Great sound. Beats an Electric or Gas-Turbine.

[@EvertHarley1]

What a power move ……. great to see……. love US freight trains greetings from Holland

[@jlo13800]

How about a Napier Deltic 2 stroke alcohol engine running oil injection with motel 800 2T. I would love to fill up a v-16 2 stroke emd with that stuff

[@bcstechnologylimited896]

Oh, those poor traction motors! That is some serious horsepower at work. Excellent video.

[@markantony3875]

They are AC induction, frequency drive motors. They are designed so every axle always turns at the same rpm, and they have no short term thermal rating. You can run them at full power at stall speed, and they will not burn out like older DC traction motors. They are working exactly as designed.

[@jlo13800]

An electric motor is a virtual magnetic rotary 2 stroke engine! Tesla and lucid air sapphire anyone,

[@sydspoak6754]

Love it... all those rpms and no movement for more than 40 seconds. Then the show starts !! Awesome video.

[@nomon95]

slipping at the beginning.then start

[@gjslsffan]

@@nomon95 No. No slippage. AC traction at its best. I was an engineer on this territory (BNSF). They are doing their job. These locomotives are made to do this all day for weeks at a time. Thats why the world buys USA made Locos if they need a unit that will perform like these did.

[@fivestars0528]

Thank you sir!! One of the greatest videos I've watched. In Korea(I live), we had often saw double head locomotive (EMD GT26CW Korail series 7100~7500) mountain area, but most of diesel locomotives' operating have been changing into Korail Electric Locomotive 8500 following track improvement; both straight railroad and electricfication. Maybe the oldest Korean diesel locomotive opearting now is GT26CW Korail series 7500 that introduced in 1971 and regenerated in 2002.

[@jaws2858]

Just down the road from my house in Wondervu Colorado. I love hearing those trains way off in the canyons heading through the tunnels.

[@jaws2858]

Well, west or up canyon from me.

[@Gothix1066]

Keeping the spirit of the Rio Grande alive. That’s what I call Heritage power.

[@redbarnz]

That was freaking awesome with the sound turned way up!

[@Essence31217]

Power sound can't be beat. Thank you. It's what I wait for in these train videos.

[@republic_737]

Incredible footage. The SD70ACE is my all time favourite railway locomotive. Amazing EMD 710 engine noise.

[@alexy.9306]

The scenery looks so...Beautiful.

[@Jungleland33]

Still cleaner than a Volkswagen.

[@100pyatt]

????

[@AADFWspotters2]

Hahah that was a good one

[@sawthemin77]

LOL , NICE !

[@99rofl]

not really. your country just tried to push up their own car production because noone wants to buy the GM crap you build :-)

[@Jungleland33]

@@99rofl eh...... They don't produce cars in the country I live in.

[@TheArozconpollo]

God that is a beautiful sound! Massive massive turbine generators, amazingly quick runup. Yeah baby go!

[@jlo13800]

Jesus Christ got his rotron wankle 2 stroke rotary running again. It’s a 700cc 2 Rotor wankel oil injection

[@sakeeler]

That's an amazing display of power. God bless America...

[@jerrydowse5061]

Fine impression of a steam engine..love the noise on start up..Thanks.

[@joeykouba9495]

You wouldn't think it, but we had a nasty grade in Medora, ND that we climbed out of with 17k loads of coal from Glendive, MT to Mandan, ND. No roads to watch, as it's badland area, but man, took a lot of horsepower. Usually had 2-3 up front and 2 in back pushing/pulling, and top speed of about 5 MPH all the way. Took 60-90 minutes to make it 3 miles. lol Knuckles broke here and there. I got lucky, and never had to replace one on that hill.

[@chriskleckner1659]

Awesome startup. There's a big difference on torque with the AC drives as compared to the older DC models. AC drives are used a lot now in Industrial Applications like Extruders.

[@yamilandres]

old school, diesel engines, raw power... beautiful!! Thanks for making and sharing

[@wclmike2471]

Not old at all. All but the last DPU on the very end are just a few years old. And all the cars are state of the art 286 GRL and likely under 10 years old. That equipment will be around for a long time.

[@yamilandres]

@@wclmike2471 I mean old SCHOOL, man. It's a saying. Not talking about DPU, rails, locos or anything else than old school ;-)

[@stevegriffiths2959]

As the train goes away there's so much exhaust smoke it could have been a steamer hauling it!

[@rommelcruz3651]

Brute force and engineering. I don't look at trains like that. I just turn into a little boy when i see or watch video of one! Woohoo!!!

[@Matt_Eagle19x8]

The Sound and the Design these are beautiful locomotives

[@vlaeon]

The way it sounded made me think it was going to go back to the future

[@markwheeler202]

The sound is amazing, but nothing matches the feel of all that power when you're sitting in the engine.

[@xreconusmc3156]

Running 4 fiat Alice tug boat engine with full inter axel wheel lock deployment and sand spreader deployment on the ready. Bout 850,000 tracktive drive to dah rail. About 23,680 horsepower let’s go with throttle up notch seven please. Captain and shift commander LaBonte. Chief engineer.

[@nabzduterrier2736]

Because of the acceleration that puts you on your seat?

[@markwheeler202]

@Jeff C I spent three years on the Soo Line working in or around a switch engine, and occasionally as an over-the-road brakeman. My dad working in the roundhouse for 25 years and he called them engines. Engines. Locomotives. No one is confused by the terminology in the context of this video.

[@markwheeler202]

@Jeff C That was before my time (1972-1975), but my dad worked on them in the late 40's/early 50's.

[@wildcoyote34]

i love that sound ,, listening to all that horsepower slowly winding up i'd have loved being there in person

[@pascalmercier9385]

I was on Canadian submarines.... we had 2 of them puppies to charge up the batteries. What a delight to hear them roar full tilt every nights!

[@guskuratlejr9228]

4 stroke and 2 stroke Love it absolutely raw kick ass horsepower! Thank you for sharing your video!

[@davidkreider942]

Awesome video!! A true testimony to the amazing power of the diesel locomotives.

[@floridianrailauto9032]

Finally, a good video of SD70ACes actually going from idle to run 8

[@bnsf8610]

also showing how much junk they are

[@floridianrailauto9032]

@@bnsf8610 Elaborate

[@danielcarter5973]

I've seen SD70acs idle up short hills with 80 cars.

[@bnsf8610]

@@danielcarter5973 That made No scenes

[@floridianrailauto9032]

@@bnsf8610 Hey, elaborate now

[@juneshopper]

very cool they really had the motors grinding and all the smoke as they took off. Great catch

[@peopleslayer12333]

Oh how i love that sound and the horn, i lived by the tracks for 15 years of my young life. One of these would go by everyday and it stayed with me, my whole house would shake and i lived at least 500 ft from the tracks such power and mass, going to build a N or HO model layout with this beast.

[@tomp8871]

Excellent vid. All throttle up against the mountains, very picturesque. You can feel the weight in the beginning.

[@RailPreserver2K]

even modern diesels apparently try to act like steam locomotives when it comes to smoke on steep grades where power is needed

[@Liton999]

Power of these engines almost equals to the large ferries. Something beautiful.

[@johnireland6301]

Luv those huge two strokes.

[@lynnmcculloch-m4h]

❤❤❤❤❤

[@marcoscosta2318]

I have seen something similar to this live for almost every day when I was going through college , used to live in a town that had a pretty busy set of tracks going right through the middle of it , I remember the noise of those trains , man they sounded nice, this video brought a smile to my face and a lot of good memories back to my mind , thanks

[@davidb5952]

Awesome power and smoke show to make the greenies mad lol. That hill seen in person is very steep. Hard to believe a train can climb it but they sure do.

[@bigtexas7580]

24,000,000 lbs, that's ALOT of weight!! In perspective, my 2017 Peterbilt 389 semi truck with my 2015 Great Dane spread axle reefer trailer fully loaded weighs 40 tons so 12,000 tons, dammit boy! 12,000 tons is equivalent to 300 fully loaded 80,000 lb big trucks!

[@5JSG]

A fully loaded coal train is usually around 27,000 tons FYI

[@xaiano794]

For people wondering, assuming a 2% grade that means the locomotives are providing one 420 tons of motive force, something like 1 million pound /ft of torque

[@Blackscorpion1963]

Xaiano - now what kind of an answer is that - mainly subjective data...you need to show HOW you calculate your figures, or...show by way of numbers and mathematical symbols how you determined your figures. All of your answer needs to be objective & quantified. Until you can do that - your statement is a work of absolute fiction - or in other words - it's a novel...definitely opinion...no fact!

[@xaiano794]

@@Blackscorpion1963 given this is a simple calculation I didn't think it necessary to explain. Given the fact that you're trying to claim my calculation is fiction without understanding it yourself demonstrates your ignorance and honestly you're only making a fool of yourself using that tone with someone who actually understands the subject (I'm an engineer) For the benefit of others who, unlike you, want to learn : The weight of the train is 12,000 tons and the grade is 2%, this means that the force, which is vertically down, is partly pushing the train downwards and requires at minimum an equal force to prevent it rolling downhill. That force is equal to sin 1.15 * 12000 or 240 tons of force. Its generally accepted that to climb an incline you need significantly more power needed to merely hold the train in place, good practice is usually 1.75x, hence 420 tons of force.

[@xaiano794]

@@Blackscorpion1963 oh and a quick read of the wiki page gives each locomotive a rated effort of 191,000lb/ft of torque, so all 5 would be providing roughly 1 million pound/feet.

[@Blackscorpion1963]

@@xaiano794 I don't believe I have ever read such a romantic piece of fiction in my life. It is nothing other than scientific subjective crap. You show absolutely no workings whatsoever. You attempt to justify your novel by feebly stating you are some kind of engineer...All your statements are opinion and nothing is fact. This is proved by the lack of comments. Go back to school.

[@Blackscorpion1963]

@@xaiano794 Fictitious crap.

[@simonrichard9873]

I would love to have seen the amp gauge

[@josephastier7421]

It would read "All of them"

[@nomon95]

if the motors work with 600vdc,, 8500amp per loco. total approx 44000amp(44kA).

[@JimNichols]

1500 baby.....

[@lelins300]

@@nomon95 so would that be enough to power 100 houses or more?

[@nomon95]

Jim Nichols,depend the electric motor if it works with 600vdc 6 motors 8500amp (approx 1420amp each electric motor) but if works with 1500vdc the amps per electric motor, 950 approx

[@oisiaa]

This is one of the best heavy freight startup videos out there!

[@crazycarl00]

It was unconscionable that there was more to be had from those locomotives, yet there was more. The noise is just fucking amazing. Furthermore, to put it into perspective, 12,000 tons is 26 MILLION POUNDS.

[@travelingtom923]

In all the years I have been rail fanning the Moffat Route, I have never seen a green and beige BNSF unit. Love to see all that black smoke pouring out of the lead unit. Locomotives gradually lose power as the altitude increases. If that exhaust was a bit hotter you might have seen some nice fire out of that one.

[@ThePaulv12]

Well if they're turbocharged they shouldn't loose power until about 18000ft. afaik there aint any 18000' passes in the US. It is a fact, that turbocharger compressor section pumping losses decrease with altitude by a small amount (and I do mean small like 10hp on an EMD for example) so the power should actually rise not go down as in naturally aspirated engines. The key advantage of turbochargers is that they maintain power as altitude increases and don't lose power as altitude increases as superchargers do. Superchargers lose power with altitude because they are slaved to the crankshaft and each rotation of the unit yields a known displacement of air. As the air is thinner at altitude less air can be pumped into the engine for that same displacement. A method of overcoming this is the 2 speed supercharger. It changes gears and pumps more air. A turbocharger is free spooling so say 25psi boost is 25psi boost regardless of altitude. The ungeared supercharger would show a boost pressure decrease with altitude whereas the turbo won't until critical altitude (the aforementioned circa 18000ft). EMDs have a hybrid turbocharger iirc. For starting and idling it's crank driven and takes the place of aspiration that Roots type blowers were originally used for in Uniflow Diesel engines, then as the engine notches up exhaust takes over via an overrun clutch. Jet engines lose power with altitude too. If you fly flight sims (FSX clearly models the effect of altitude on engines - well enough for our purposes), you can see that full throttle on a jet engine at 35000ft is only about 55% sea level - 18000ft thrust and the plane is only doing about the same 210-220kts as it would at sea level with that same thrust. At 35000ft this 220kias might be Mach .85 though, so no more power is actually needed and the fuel economy is better and the effect of flying 220kias in thin air is vastly faster (by about 150-200kn) than the airspeed indicator is reading, meaning the time to destination is less and therefore the fuel burn is less. I'm going off on a tangent but the point is air density decrease with elevation increase is an interesting topic. Hope you're well.

[@kleetus92]

@@ThePaulv12 I think you may be conflating wind resistance with power gain... thinner air is less sticky to move through. I also don't understand how you can pump more air at higher elevation when the pressure pushing the air into the compressor is less. You have to overcome the pressure drop of the air filter and delivery pipe to the compressor.... that drop is external to whatever compressor is there be it roots, turbo, or lysholm screw.

[@ThePaulv12]

@@kleetus92 yeah the way you describe it is similar for superchargers, but turbos are free spooling. this free spooling effect allows the turbo to spin gaster in order to make the same boost as preset. If the outside air is thick or thin the turbo will compensate - not via any mechanically induced feedback mechanism - but by spinning slower or faster naturally. All thats happening is the say at sea level the turbo spools at 30,000rpm to produce 20psi boost and at 10,000ft has to spin 40,000 rpm to create the same boost. This means the power remains the same. This is a key advantage of turbochargers vs superchargers. Another thing, high ambient air temperature has a negative effect on performance because if the rated power is say 3000hp at 15deg C then 35deg C can reduce output even if aftercooled if the aftercooler can't maintain 15deg C. There are ways to minimise this.

[@kleetus92]

@@ThePaulv12 The logic is correct, but I don't see how turbine speed can compensate from a lack of airflow reduction as the 'forcing' pressure across your filters gets progressively less as altitude goes up... if anything you'd reach an overspeed condition on the turbine and risk catastrophic failure. And, with the higher turbine speed with less air would actually heat the air more as you're doing more work to it to reach the desired pressure. PV=nRT says that temperature rise is constant for a given increase in pressure, but what it cannot account for is the work needed to get it there, hence the compressor efficiency.

[@ThePaulv12]

@@kleetus92 yeah but 20psi is 20psi regardless of the outside barometric pressure (or altitude). Adaibatic?? (i think that's right - its been awhile lol) heating of the compressed air is controlled by the aftercooling. Overspeeding is controlled by the turbine section because the mass flow is the same on the exhaust side because the power output is the same (hopefully) regardless of altitude railroads traverse. The wastegate controlls overboost. Overspeed won't occur because the highest possible speed the turbocharger can turn will already be worked out in the design phase and this will be factored into the selection of the unit. The few extra hp i initially mentioned is the lower effort required on the compressor section. These principals are thoroughly understood in aviation. In aviation, turbochargers are mostly (but not always) used to turbo nomalize. That is create sea level performance at altitude. Boosted performance is similar.

[@TrainmasterCurt]

Those engines were more smoky than old ALCO’s, really look like steam

[@joeyjamison5772]

Smokes like a son-of-a-gun. London's not that bad.

[@christopherdibble5872]

The engineers don't wave from the trains anymore, not like they did back in 1954, still get a tear in my eye, when I hear an old train in the night!

[@christopherdibble5872]

@Mystic Ghost try the train song " I'm moving on, by hank snow, I think you will like it,chris.