What Happened to B-UNITS?

The Booster, or B-unit, was once a staple of most diesel-powered American trains throughout the mid-20th century. They were cheaper cabless variants of their A-unit counterparts, and meant to supply extra horsepower. Steam locomotives were still more powerful than the diesel, but the diesel was far cheaper and more flexible. But what happened to the boosters? Why don't we see them on freight and passenger trains anymore?
Music:
OMORI - I Think My Dad Shops Here
Deltarune - Dialtone
Super Mario RPG - And My Name's Booster
OMORI - Finding Shapes in the Clouds
Deltarune - My Funky Town
Deltarune - Green Room
Deltarune - Girl Next Door
Deltarune - Game Main Theme (Piano Sketch)
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[@AmtrakGuy365]

At 0:56, the 1600 hp should be 1800 hp. Sorry about that!

[@vuurvrrailfanner4656]

yuh huh

[@RuralRailProductions]

Yo amtrakGuy365!!! 🗣️🗣️🔥🔥💯💯

[@AroyalGibus]

@@RuralRailProductions real

[@AroyalGibus]

oof

[@Traincraft_Fan]

you forgot the GE UM20B, it was one of the first GE locomotives meant to compete with EMD, and failed, however, it did have a B-unit

[@YourLocalHistorian]

The AT&SF also converted locomotives that were involved in catastrophic wrecks, destroying the cabs into B units

[@nekomasteryoutube3232]

I think other railroads also did that. A fucked up cab unit would get its controlls removed and windows blacked out, and it'd just work like a cabless booster. Also irrc sometimes whem some stuff is either too damaged or too old to use its prime mover, they might turn a locomotive into a road slug.

[@YourLocalHistorian]

@@nekomasteryoutube3232 CSX did that to a lot of GP 35s and GP 30s

[@nekomasteryoutube3232]

@@YourLocalHistorian Then again I imagine by that time, they're pretty old locomotives, so why not use them for something else that doesnt require an expensive rebuild.

[@SirLANsalot]

they only would do that if the can was beyond repair, as most would just be put back together as if nothing happened.

[@daniellxnder]

Was it called as 'slug'?

[@hungrymoose7627]

FUN FACT. Canadian National and Canadian Pacific's E and F B units had primitive control stands in them so they could be shunted under their own power.

[@trainglen22]

Neither Canadian road had any E b-units.

[@ostrich67]

I think all B-units had that.

[@kriscarver-seaboyer9204]

That they did. They were called hostler controls, and like any locomotive they could be moved individually at an engine terminal or in a repair facility.

[@jackgamer6307]

I have no idea why not all of them had such controls

[@RustyorBroken]

I wondered about this. Without any sort of controls of their own they would have to be shunted with another locomotive. Not terribly convenient.

[@davidmolin8944]

I cannot believe that Spamton G Spamton was the salesman’s for the B unit on all the big locomotive builders, bro must’ve really been raking in that cash

[@InventorZahran]

Hey! Is your [diesel-electric locomotive] not powerful enough? Add a B-unit from [hyperlink blocked] and double your [horsepower]! It'll only cost [$4.99] and looks [way better] than a second cab unit. Don't be a [little sponge], use B-units like a [big shot] railroad!

[@WeldinMike27]

Oh... That's the worst name I have ever heard.

[@KCDash4400cw]

I would do anything to get a GEVO B Unit

[@vuurvrrailfanner4656]

yeah your getting blocked 😭🙏

[@therealrailfangamingboi]

​@@vuurvrrailfanner4656 I imagined a P42 with a B unit 🗿

[@Texasrailfan9021]

How about a SD70ACe B Unit!

[@thedesigner00]

@@Texasrailfan9021 and I would do anything to make sure that never happens

[@crocowithaglocko5876]

@@thedesigner00I would do anything to ensure it happens

[@rsconover7957]

I just love A-B-A or A-B-B-A combos

[@tolucaheights]

A man of culture i see

[@InventorZahran]

What about the legendary A-B-B-B-A set?

[@JimBones1990]

@@InventorZahran A-B-B-A-A-B-B-A-C.

[@griffithwes0074]

Key lady moment. Swedish people moment.

[@professorjamesmoriarty5191]

​@@InventorZahran6 unit A B B B B A lashup was common in chicago in the early years.

[@844SteamFan]

4:20 Supposedly ATSF wanted a B40-8B to go with their B40-8Ws, but it would’ve costed the same as a B40-8W so they didn’t.

[@therealrailfangamingboi]

420 nice

[@DanTDMJace]

@@therealrailfangamingboiwhat?

[@therealrailfangamingboi]

@@DanTDMJace if you know you know

[@shanelynch2218]

Nah that crazy

[@844SteamFan]

@@DanTDMJace It’s a marijuana joke

[@richardjayroe8922]

B units are used on Donner pass with rotary snow plows

[@nathanschmidt4889]

Huh...forgot about those. Can't remember if they're motive power or generators, though. I know the plows aren't self propelled, but their slugs might be

[@richardjayroe8922]

@@nathanschmidt4889 I think they act as both

[@nicktynan1355]

Just generators. Rotaries fan blades are powered by traction motors, from which the b units (referred to as "snails") are the power source for. The whole setup is moved by locomotives controlled from the snow plows.

[@russellgxy2905]

@@richardjayroe8922 Neither actually. Those B-units are snails. Unlike a slug which is “no engine,” snails are “no motor.” The name comes from the fact the “shell” is still in place, while slugs are typically low-slung. The snails were used to power the rotaries after they were converted to diesel operation. Notice how the snails are where a tender used to be, and the lack of steam. They still have no means of propulsion, so they’re still pushed by locomotives. I believe Amtrak’s HEP B-units are also snails, as they were meant to just supply HEP on trains where a locomotive was not equipped, like an SDP40F Incidentally, the Milwaukee road had a few ABA F-unit sets where the B-unit _is_ a slug, evident by a distinct lack of fuel tanks

[@EllieMaes-Grandad]

@@russellgxy2905 So much for standardisation . . . . from a modeller's perspective, a prototype for anything and everything . . .

[@jeesmith99]

My dad was a conductor/brakeman for Santa Fe. In his tenure, he called them slugs. He was too late to the a unit and b unit world. He didn’t like them. Especially when the head end was bad order and the slug wasn’t a replacement leading the consist.

[@jeesmith99]

I forgot to mention he was Bakersfield to Barstow where lots of power was needed up front and as helpers.

[@patrickread5455]

Slugs and B-units are different things normally, but it probably varies by railroad. Slug, as I've heard, is a locomotive with no cab or engine, only traction motors. B-units have an engine and motors, just no cab. SLugs are meant for shunting an low-speed work because at slow speeds, the engine will generate more power than the motors in the A-unit can use, so a slug gives it more motors to use that power.

[@RedSkeletonGames]

@@patrickread5455That's probably the best explanation of that. You learn something new every day I guess

[@this51man]

​@patrickread5455 slugs are also weighted down with concrete blocks for the lack of engine to get every single pound of that tractive effort Also unlike some B units (depending on who ordered it), slugs can't move on their own. They need their "mother" engine since that's where they get all their power from

[@russellgxy2905]

​@@this51man Another critical difference is cabs. B-units are essentially cabless locos, but many slugs have cabs! CSX converted most of their GP30’s into slugs, but kept their cabs in place. Crews seem to like them as they can lead a train without a rumbling prime mover behind them. In theory, you could couple a B-unit to a cab-slug and run a train that way

[@mason9077]

You should also do a video on "mother and slug" and "Cow and calf" configurations of paired motive power.

[@motorola762]

Surprised you didn't Segway into talking about slugs. How the problem went from needing more horsepower to needing more traction.

[@pavelsovicka5292]

Just as an interesting sidenote: In eastern Europe, especially russia, the term "booster" means a frame with only traction motors and balast (no cab but also no engine). This booster is connected to the main locomotive by power cables in series with its own motors. This basically doubles adhesion and given there are twice as many motors in series it means that the entire unit has double the tractive effort with half the speed. They are only used as shunters.

[@Colonel_Blimp]

Yes. What the Americans call a slug.

[@vettebecker1]

My favorite diesel locomotive has always been the EMD F and E units, we currently own a 7.5 gauge A&B Southern set for our outdoor railroad.

[@rottenroads1982]

0:08, POV: Mattel Destroying Thomas & Friends.

[@MarioYoshi4723]

I’ve always asked myself this. I once found fanart of an ALC-42 B-Unit and I thought it looked pretty nice. I sent it to a train meme page and got a resounding: “Absolutely the **** not”.

[@MatNichols-iz9dy]

That would look so good though

[@harrisonofcolorado8886]

10 bucks that that train meme page is full of anti-Charger foamers

[@StefanWithTrains3222]

The Airo APV's are basically B-units

[@00Zy99]

Link to the image, please?

[@tolucaheights]

The ATSF theme song lives rent free in my head

[@Cowl_5544]

B-units are a classic but even though we don’t have that much today some still are still around in preservation Also rip Thomas

[@Cowl_5544]

Also my last name is Rock lol

[@STHSIndustries2K6]

B units are pretty iconic. I usually think of the F and E units when I see B units. Railroads definitely got creative with B units from the streamliners. Classic B units

[@Hammerandhearth]

Yeah, what did happen to B-units?!?

[@thatrandomguy8124]

scraped or converted

[@rockets4kids]

2:56

[@jankington216]

Why produce locomotives without cabs? They're less useful, if anything

[@ErickC]

TL;DR, the railroads realized that booster units were stupid. You pay just as much as you would for a cabbed unit, and utilization is poor because they can't operate autonomously. So, your two-unit train reaches its destination, and gets split up, and now you need two cabbed units. The power desk can't do anything with the booster, except maybe swap it for a cabbed unit from another consist, which is a waste of time. Better to just have a cab in every unit since you're paying the same anyway, and then any unit can be used for any purpose any time.

[@kriscarver-seaboyer9204]

The B unit was created for one purpose but quickly evolved into a specific use locomotive, the one we all immediately think about - as a “building block” of rail power. However, its specific use wound up evolving into something else over time. Henceforth B units became a motive power dead-end. That the concept survived as long as it did to encompass third generation motive power such as GP60Bs and M420Bs shows how long it takes for change to happen with managerial thinking.

[@railfandepotproductions]

Some b-unit paint schemes rhyme well with normal funits

[@Ryan_Rail]

1:55 As a Coloraod Springs resident and a museum tour guide, I got an ear full of just how "ugly" the AB Rockisland units were from older residents in the area.😅

[@jst7714]

0:01 the streamlined FEC paint scheme was perfection

[@berkshireerielocomotive3322]

Interesting presentation. Even though a vast majority had operator's controls and we're self-propelled, having a cab just made everything easier. As the operator's station in was located on one side of unit near a door, in which the operator had to lean out of to see.

[@kleiner851]

holy moley 10 seconds in and we already got trainbuild thank you

[@ANTI_I7]

the spamton references are just amazing

[@InventorZahran]

You sound like you live a [$4.99] life!

[@JJRol.]

I really love these videos. They sort of remind me of bedtime stories I heard when I was a kid, always about trains. These videos are super relaxing, especially the ones talking about older history!

[@H-24-66]

You always answer the questions I have about railroading I don't know how to find the answer to.

[@JRS06]

I remember that the train in Cars had a B unit, but I had no clue what it was. Thanks for explaining it.

[@fullscale4me]

On the Milwaukee Road: As intercity passenger service faded they broke up F7 ABBA sets. They sent most of the B units to freight pools. The displaced E9 A units were used to support the Chicago commuter service. I saw this when commuting to college.

[@LuGer212]

I think there's either a visual or voice-over error at the A plus B unit power output segment. if it's 1600 x2, it should be 3200 hp. or if 3600 hp is the output, it shoudl be 1800 x2 hp. otherwise I would like to say: so great to see another vid on the channel. :)

[@AmtrakGuy365]

The EA's A and B unit were each rated for 1800 hp, idk where I got 1600 from lol. Went ahead and corrected that in the pinned comment. Thanks for watching and letting me know!

[@waltonwarrior7428]

Great Railroad history review. Thanks for posting

[@CraftyFoxe]

Really great editing!

[@tracynation2820]

Super. The D&RGW had an extra porthole window and rudimentary controls so that they could move their "B" units around without the need for an "A" unit. 💙 T.E.N.

[@Aussie_Transport5371]

When you Briefly went over Australia you missed something, Australian National converted 4 ex SAR 600 Class to have no cab and run with there Ex Commonwealth Railways ALF class (formerly AL class, the 2nd cab removed) and where trialed as ALF-BU-ALF, this was great and all but it was very common for the locomotive to catch on fire, all since stored and then scrapped, the ALFs still exist though, you should do a small diesel oddity video on them. Good video as usual

[@F40M07]

Great video Jared!!! Love the information on this!!!!

[@3bydacreekside]

We went to Jared ❤

[@peterbumper2769]

IMHO they went when the railroads understood that freight was the railroad future and an all engine consist made for better versatility

[@gcorriveau6864]

Fascinating. That quick glimpse of CNR's converted 'Blind Mice" (or blind beetles?) was a fun reminder of a very odd example.

[@seantoris1763]

Excellent work as always

[@Abitibidoug]

I remember in the 1980s Via Rail refurbished some EMD A units at their shop in Montreal. The B units weren't refurbished and were either scrapped or sold.

[@TheWinnipegRailfan]

Scrumptious video as usual J-Money ! The B Movie.

[@CSXfan618]

Jared the BN B30-7As that were exported to Brazil were 4010, 4013, 4050, and 4051, among others and were sold to America Latina Logistica. Great video Jared!

[@douglasskaalrud6865]

I don’t have any Soo Line F7A units on my layout but I do have two F7Bs. In the Soo Line tight-fisted power scheme of things in the early 1970’s it was common to pair up SD40’s and Dash-2s with an F7A or even an F7B for better unit utilization. That practice stopped only when the Soo started taking delivery of the GP38-2s and they finally had enough power to run their trains in a more conventional fashion. The ends of an F7B are a modelers paradise that are always overlooked. There are no pilot plates so all the plumbing is open. MU and steam lines, cut bars, sand hoses can all be modeled. The control stand in an F7B is for “local control” so a hostler can move them around the servicing area to make up a consist-nothing more. A relative of mine said he’d rather grab a switcher to shuffle units than to actually use the hostler controls . I remember him saying they were not designed for use by humans. It must have been interesting to be a brakeman on the ground and watch a seemingly unmanned brick rolling around.

[@ErickC]

I've seen photos of those hostler cabs and agree they weren't designed for humans! I think they only had the first 3 throttle notches available.

[@JordysRailVideos]

4:52 The BU's from the 1990's were rebuilt SAR 600 class locomotives and the XRB's from the 2000's were new builds after XR's 557 - 559 (XR's 550 - 555 were rebuilt 1st (X32 - X35) and 2nd series (X38 + X40) X class locomotives with G class 16-645's and XR556 (was meant to be rebuilt from X36) never happened)

[@DTD110865]

There was a book I have which I can no longer find, which showed a 1965 color photograph of an A-B-B-B-A unit (or something like that) in Albuquerque which the author claimed will never be seen again. I really wish I could find out where I stashed that book.

[@RMSTitanicWSL]

Many B-units had hostler controls, and could move independently of A-units, at least at low speed. The Rock Island's two AB-6s were actually considered motor cars by EMC, hence the lack of an "E" designation. The same applied to the AA-6 built for Missouri Pacific, which was similar to the AB-6s, except for having a streamlined front end like normal E6As. Numerous railroads converted road switchers into B-units over the years. Sometimes, the cab would remain, but the interiors (seats, controls, and other cab accommodations) would be removed. This happened with a number of D&RGW GP30s and GP35s, a BN GP38, the CSXT BQ23-7s, and a bunch of UP SD40-2s. As for units that lost their cabs (usually to wreck damage), the list includes a Missouri Pacific U30C (temporary, while waiting to get an EMD cab applied), several AT&SF SD45s and SD45-2s, an SSW B36-7, and a miscellaneous bunch of BN units, including several GPs of various models and a couple SD40-2s. If memory serves, BN was unusual for having a GP38B with its cab structure intact, as well as a GP38-2 with the cab actually removed.

[@Panzermeister36]

Another great video, thanks!

[@merryjingles]

this is some real quality stuff mate! Have you considered doing a more rolling stock-focused video, like evolution of boxcars or tofc/intermodal?

[@philpots48]

Great video, thank you. Just the other day, seeing B-Unit's I wondered about them.

[@clintwilde1048]

When I was a kid back in the late 50's, my Dad was a supervisor over stationary boilers and power plants at Mayport NAS in FLA. Along side one mooring, were picket and what seemed like Fletcher class destroyers, several abreast, there was a truckless, non-descript RR B unit up on a timber foundation that provided shore power to all those tied up ships. I remember being in it with him while it was running, quite noisy, but both sides had been cut making a large swing up window to look out. It was there for quite a few years until real shore power was established from the power company. I was just a kid, but I remember following him as he crossed from ship to ship checking power, and how narrow the passage way in the superstructure was from starboard to port, then across the gang way to the next, imagining these in combat in WW II.

[@MrBnsftrain]

There are also some Russian 3-unit and 4-unit diesels and electrics, which are still being constructed!

[@James_Knott]

Several A & B units, EMD IIRC, were used by GO Transit, a Toronto area commuter service. They were used to provide electrical power to the train and the A could be used for the cab at one end, as GO trains have a cab at each end. I believe they were ex Ontario Northland units.

[@hjmiller2689]

Don't forget the GP35 had quite a few B-units (DD35's) in a sort of way before the DD35A was fully introduced

[@StickPeopleAndPuff]

Side note: "CP Rail" is a hell of an abbreviation 💀

[@yeoldeseawitch]

it probably doesnt help that the railroad was part of a campaign called "every child matters", which was a fundraiser for missing children. but having that and "CP" on the front of the train certainly is not a good look

[@1Nanerz]

Still my faves are BN’s B30-7A cabless units. Not even a BN fan, but they look awesome.

[@kennethtiller7916]

Excellent video

[@schrap72]

I loved the oscillating light on the front of the engine when I was a child. It fascinated me! 😊😊

[@nonenowherebye]

I remember when I was a kid, the extra long grain and coal trains that CN and CP would run out to BC would often have units in the middle, with what was turned a "robot" leading the middle locomotives. From what I understand, its job was to control the middle locomotives so they shared motive power properly. As electronics and sensors got better, the functionality was integrated into the locomotives themselves. The robot itself was painted to look like a locomotive, except it was something like half as tall, and didn't actually have an engine (or didn't look like it had one).

[@jameslegg9944]

If you don’t know what that image is. It’s a train crossing the Potomac River on the girder bridge. heading into Harpers Ferry West Virginia. (0:48)

[@Petemonster62]

I have seen F B-units used with road switchers on the Soo Line in the 1970s.

[@asteroidrules]

I would have mentioned the EMD DDs, some of the last and most terrifying B units. Union Pacific wanted more power from their boosters so they ordered twin-engine sixteen-wheel B units, the last of which - the DD40 - is to this day the most powerful diesel-electric locomotive ever at 6,600 horsepower. UP originally ordered the DDs as B units only because they were concerned about having a four-axle truck leading a train and planned to sandwich them between GP35s.

[@Bill_D.]

I remember when Family Lines (Clinchfield steam no. 1, 4-6-0), ran the Baker Special in 1978, with 2 F-7B units. They had a modified diesel control stand in the steam licomotive, to operate them.

[@rayinpau.s.a.6351]

As a Train Buff . The B-Unit always completes my lash ups !

[@tommurphy4307]

if you are modeling in the early 70's (my pike is set at 50 years prior) its about time to scrap your A-units, but keep the boosters active like the SP did.

[@pokerfaceproductions1010]

a chair is a type of seat

[@CoffeESbeve]

a table is a type of thing where you usually place stuf

[@InventorZahran]

A bed is a type of large table designed to be slept on

[@PendragonDaGreat]

1:13 I too believe in Shimarin Supremacy. (fun fact: I actually have the very same collapsible grill that she bought in the original version of the scene)

[@DreamKeeper.]

I live near the upper Mississippi in the driftless area and I saw 3 b units on a CN consist. One of them was running. It was an amazing sight to see

[@SynchroScore]

I see you've indicated some of the B-units we've got at the Illinois Railway Museum. Last year, we had an A-B-B-A set of E-units running, that was hoot, especially when we got permission to do a high-speed mail pickup.

[@rochesterjohnny7555]

The LIRR had a strange B-Unit in the late 90s on a train a few times, I never knew what it was until now, cool info

[@beboboymann3823]

Sell them to utility companies to scatter about within the grid to kick in when generating plants are struggling to prevent brownouts. Or sell them to municipalities to use as emergency generators for emergency services departments.

[@thesudriana016]

1:28 There Goes a Train footage!

[@TheWarbonnet660]

It was also in “loaded for war” a Santa Fe documentary

[@paulsmyers203]

I could see the concept of a B unit coming back as a battery locomotive to tie into an MU. Instead of venting braking energy out through the roofs as heat it could be dumped into the B(attery) unit and consumed later to speed the train back up.

[@beeble2003]

BTW, there's another kind of B-unit that's still running. A lot of lease units are marked "B-unit only" as crew facilities like the toilet were removed rather than refurbished when the locomotive was retired from Class I service and sold to the lease company.

[@TaboMabo]

Here in italy we never had diesel B units, but in the 50s there has been a small production of E322/324 ELECTRIC B unit. Almost all have been scrapped though

[@karstendoerr5378]

They still exist today. They just look different, like locomotives without a driver's cab. And they are coupled in front of the locomotives with a driver's cab. An example of this would be BNSF GP60B #346.

[@Verylonelyloconow]

That was some clag on the last train

[@EmS2o1o]

Thomas getting hit by a diesel train 0:07

[@sotomanuel3]

XD

[@MatthiasWiesmann]

I suspect B units disappeared for the same reason large locomotive built by permanently coupling multiple units became rare: the cost of a control cab relative to the whole locomotive went down. There are still massive monsters like the Shen 24 or the 2ЭС10, but they are the exception. In fact, most European locomotives have two cabs for the same reason: more flexibility.

[@beeble2003]

Yeah. You gotta wonder if having only one cab is really cheaper, when you see every ten-car local train running with 6000+hp because they're using a pair of GP40/50/60s to get a cab at each end.

[@MatthiasWiesmann]

@@beeble2003 Local trains need to constantly accelerate (and brake), so the number of powered axles matter, this is why modern local trains are mostly multiple units. In Zürich, some local trains run with two Re 420 (4700 kW / 6300 hp) for 6 double decker cars, not because of the power , those Re 420 used to pull full intercity trains, but in order to be able to accelerate.

[@beeble2003]

@@MatthiasWiesmann In the context of US railroading, "local train" means a freight train that generally doesn't exceed 25mph, and where the majority of time is spent switching cars into and out of customer sites. Acceleration isn't a factor in that context.

[@MatthiasWiesmann]

@@beeble2003 Ah, ok, thanks, yes i agree, in that case you probably don't need that much power.

[@Michael-dn7uj]

in the early 1970s the HAYSI railroad in Virginia purchased a former Clinchfield F7b, mounted a control stand inside the carbody and used it as their primary motive power throughout the 70s, the locomotive is currently at the tennessee valley railroad museum

[@bobingabout]

Considering American freight trains tend to have like, 4 to 6 A units in them, I'm kinda surprised that they don't have more B units. I mean, look at some of the shots you posted, they have 3 or 4 head engines. Though, speaking from the British perspective, All of our Engines have a cab at both end, unless it's part of some sort of streamline consist. (in which case, the engine at either end has a cab.)

[@ErickC]

Ask yourself this: what happens when you reach your destination, and now you need 4 or 5 individual locomotives for local service or other tasks? Where do you get them from? The incoming train only has one cabbed unit and a bunch of boosters that you don't need.

[@bobingabout]

@@ErickC As someone in Britain, I guess that is something I didn't think about. 1. Currently, most British trains are passenger, and most of those are fixed consists. 2. Most British cargo trains are also fixed consist, you might just roll the head engine around to the other end (with a passing lane, which is why the engine has a cab at both ends) 3. Looking back at the past, the freight engine would drop off the cargo, then pick up the next job, yard engines, usually specific shunters like the Class 08 would split up and move the cargo wagons around. If the prime mover is going to stick around and do shunting work, then sure, having it being able to split up into half a dozen individual locomotives to do the yard work does make sense.

[@wilschmor5615]

Would love to see a version of this video for slugs

[@davidburke1794]

I have seen some "B" units running as a single power unit as experimental closed loop short line in south ATL. No driver or any personal involved. Total remote managed.

[@Yardmaster_Media_110]

I love the Spamton referance! Really made me laugh!

[@theromanorder]

Can you do a video on the other trains mentioned that replaced the b units, Like what benifits did they offer that would make them better then the bosters (other then the flexibility of multiple diesels) like the road switchers, whats that exsactly?

[@zadaakusaido]

The Booster reference from Mario RPG took me back. 😊

[@harryrimmer6830]

And, of course, as higher and higher horsepower units were developed, the need for the additional prime mover in the B units were not needed, so "slug" units with additional traction motors only were developed.

[@matthewmiller6068]

Then swung around to seemed like slugs became popular in some rail lines having 1 diesel feeding power to 1-2 slugs that were just motor wheelsets and weights without a prime mover...

[@redlight722]

There is a B unit in the middle of Dallas at “John’s Cars” A collector of actual Amtrak trains.

[@miniaturefarmer464]

I think Santa Fe got GP-60B's for cost savings. They ran them from L.A. to Chicago on UPS trains. They just kept them in the middle of those lash-ups.

[@lachlanlandreth9069]

The problem with the Australian ones were the fact they had a smaller fuel tank then the locos they were paired with. Fuelling from an inline fuel wagon was planned but never commissioned and used before storing.

[@FailedSquare]

They are still semi around, they still use yard slugs in some places. The slugs don't have engines, they simply use the power generated from the loco to drive traction motors. I'm not aware of any road use for slugs though

[@tommurphy4307]

with the demise of the steel industry coming soon if you are 50 years behind.....

[@truecamvidea5881]

So they existed. I'm searching about an opposite unit - dieselelectric locomotive that had extra output and via DC cables, the electricity was sent to a "booster unit" that was basically a DC motor on heavy chassis. I've seen a video about that long time ago. I remember those units being less tall. This made perfect sense - d-e locomotive has constant RPM and provides extra output (DC current). Why not send it to a pair of extra wheels to provide more torque and adhesion...

[@Sleeper____1472]

TL:DW Why get a booster when a road switcher with a cab makes more power than your entire lashup.

[@pickle4034]

awesome. so sad to see the santa fe at the end so faded as it was a top of the line 90s 2000s engine im sure. very weird to see that fading/aging but then again ive been inside for 5 years also fading so its a parrallel of sorts.

[@user-tr3py5nz2j]

The F-units really are my favorite diesels so I have about as many B-units as A-units. The combination of A and B units for freight and passenger trains just seem to be the perfect visual representation of diesel era trains. I do have other diesels dating up to 1965 so I can run more modern locos when I feel like it, but even then I really like the appearance of F-7’s, F-9’s and SD-9’s. I guess I just like the earlier diesels by EMD, mainly.

[@ih1440]

Love the 334 sneaking in there. Special unit to me

[@ravenbarsrepairs5594]

You didn't mention the old locomotives that were gutted and turned into modern B units, i.e. just the traction motors and lots of concrete, powered off the A units engine.

[@daniel_the_railfan]

Good vid bro

[@poisonedbasin89]

just found this channel and got very pleasantly jumpscared by Spamton

[@RuralRailProductions]

B units are fire💯💯🗣️🗣️🔥🔥

[@STYtrainspotter2007]

nice video Jared, also I'll give a little bit of a back story of the Australian B unit named the XRB they were built in 2005 by Pacific national in the South dynon locomotive depot in Melbourne Australia on 5 foot 3 broad gauge rail, and run tests on the BG, they're exactly built as PNs new XRs rebuilt from X classes, but XRB (the B standing for B unit). XRBs have a EMD 16-645EC3 engine in it so it produces 4,200 hp and only 3 of those were built. They were mainly used on the MP or MA services so that's Melbourne to Perth or Melbourne to Adelaide when they were gauge convered to standard gauge XRBs were seen with NR classes hauling them. they were short lived when the new 92/93 class locomotives came in or they just were forgotten, as of 2022 they haven't turn a inch being stored at port Agusta, last photo of one I've seen was around 2013 on a MC freight going towards Sydney

[@ConRob_The_Gunzel]

In there last few years they where used on the Leigh Creek coal trains until they close the power station. Still stored at Port Augusta but have moved in the workshop

[@joshuahudson2170]

Some B units could actually be moved around the yard without the corresponding A units. This was useful in the service shop, but you would never want to take them anywhere else that way.