GE AC4400 Engine

Starting GE AC4400 locomotive engine after changing all 16 fuel injection pumps and fuel injectors. As we crank the engine the fuel system is slowly priming the fuel pumps and one by one the cylinders are starting to fire up causing the knocking sound.

[@jamesshanks2614]

As a locomotive engineer on Conrail back in 1985 I went to work at Beacon Park yard to discover I had a GE B23-7 for my switcher job and while checking it over called the engine house and inquired how many injectors he had on hand for a 1900 series locomotive? He replied two!!! Not enough I replied. He showed up at the west end about 3 hours later just as we were coming off our dinner break so we climbed on the engine together and he said she don't sound good. Then walked out on the catwalk to checked over. Turns out I was right, I only had 5 working cylinders. Throttle to the third notch of power engine loaded electrically smoothly to 900 amps then backed off as the engine couldn't rev up under that load, once it got to that third notch of engine speed it would start to increase the load and would hold it but if I went to the fourth notch it couldn't generate enough power to maintain the fourth notch of power. Next day, same engine but the engine house foreman left a note for me on the throttle stand, 12 rebuilt fuel injection pumps and injectors. Purred like a kitten. I like the -7 series for yard switching plenty of compressed air, nice riding class B AAR trucks, good engine brakes and enough power to pullover 80 plus 100 ton hoppers of trap rock from a bowl shaped yard easily. And a cab heater that can blast you out of cab on low heat and comfortable steps for my crew to use at either end of the locomotive. And with throttle responce it loaded quickly and accelerated easily. And with 2250 horsepower you weren't at a loss of power.

[@Astrophysix1]

The engine you describe sounds amazing.

[@ImpyLane]

I'm curious to know why, as an engineer, you were asking about injectors? We just run them, let the house worry about rivets, Shumway carbonators, and injectors haha!

[@hakeemsd70m]

Beautiful 7FDL sounds! I love that knockin' rhythm!

[@Alco16-251F]

Reminds me of Classic Alcos. The GE 7FDL is an exact copy of the Alco 251 since the 251 was the basis of GE's 7FDL engine. Still has the classic Alco 6 pack sound.

[@thebluehero2219]

Had some rhythm to it didn't it!!!🎶🎶😂✋🏾😀

[@Nec1228]

I did nozzles for the first time on a 12 cyl 7FDL last week, when I went to start it and it sounded like that I was so nervous. I thought I blew it up!

[@EdmontonRails]

from the sounds of their engines it just seems they push so much pressure through the engine and exhaust

[@SpeakerPolice]

Really neat video! Would love to have heard more at idle.

[@thinker44duhhuh22]

SpeakerPolice i

[@passacaglia28]

What an awesome symphony of mechanical noise!

[@trucking604]

120 seconds of starting and 7 seconds of running. Would have been nice if you could have let the video go a little longer of engine actually running.

[@FarAway418]

That's because we stop cranking the engine before there was enough fuel injection pumps primed and injecting fuel into the cylinders to keep the engine running. The second attempt was more successful.

[@Jhihmoac]

What a chore to get a locomotive diesel engine up and running... I can see why they try to just leave them running...

[@BNSFfan2373]

FDL16 rules!!!!!!!

[@clockbuilderhg]

Music!

[@fernandooliver3605]

Buenas tardes, excelente música para mis oídos

[@zarall1]

She rang the bell maybe a low lube oil pressure

[@JhonyPilot]

as locomotivas AC44CW possuem 16 cyl . as locomotivas ES44AC possuem somente 12 !

[@claudehebert3131]

Was it that type of engine that lost a cylinder head and threw a piston flying 150' and through a house's roof? It was in a CN train getting back from the USA towards Canada.

[@BenjaminEsposti]

Yup! It was CN2699, a C44-9W, which uses an almost exact copy of engine (In the AC4400CW, it has been uprated from 4000HP to 4400HP).

[@ellisjackson3355]

I think I read this story somewhere else, funny seeing it here too

[@UQRXD]

Someone left a horse shoe in the cylinder.

[@therailontokyo]

nice audio! comforting sound.

[@Корермен-ь2с]

7 FDL12 Kazakhstan yes

[@cruistassone199]

Type of engine is a V16?.

[@tankman_tv9332]

This engine is a GE 7FDL

[@slowpoke96Z28]

Yea, V16

[@flippy9415]

+Claude Hébert It was an eastern diesel of siome kind, I don't remember the model.

[@gizmo98632]

I'd like to know what wound up right there at the end when it came to idle

[@motorpickle6410]

+gizmo98632 Air compressor.

[@tomlowe8563]

MotorPickle yes

[@davidgoodwinjr.9298]

the knocking sounds like a steam train

[@АзаматХайдаров-ь5н]

Стук на дизеле

[@brandonrice6900]

Nice

[@robertmueller5890]

I love the sound of a FDL all up until a cam section or a PA gives out.

[@immortal1266]

eu adoro isso, amo!

[@beezanteeum]

Cheese Cheese Cheese Cheese #ChizMill

[@zarall1]

She rang the bell maybe a low lube oil pressure

[@pkranz937]

luiz fernando milani milani On these units, if you don't have the access bar down and door closed for the invertor cab, it won't start.

[@bolor-erdeneboldbaatar5579]

doodkb cgoubbbhhhjstpqye1d 🐴🐴🐔🐔🐔🐔🐦🐄 p

[@leonblittle226]

Sounds like a bag of old spanners, GE always sound terrible.

[@FS2K4Pilot]

Ain't got nothing on Alco prime movers.

[@brianburns7211]

They sure don’t sound like the sweet chant of a good EMD!

[@chessplayerelite669]

GEs have only 12 cylinders, not 16 like EMDs do

[@CentralALSirens]

Guess again GE's can have V6 V8 V12 V16

[@chessplayerelite669]

NOPE!

[@CentralALSirens]

Well your wrong there

[@CentralALSirens]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GE_Dash_8-44CW Like a example I am right Scroll down on that link and see your self

[@formidable38]

What about the 7FDL16's in the Dash 8??

[@TK-ec5bv]

Cooper-Bessemer design.