Did I ever mention that I like GP30’s!

When will a manufacturer offer the N&W (or Southern) high short hood GP30? Those are the best looking GP30s ever built, in my opinion!

Had no idea, Frank.

I like them, too, but only own one -- EMD Demonstrator. Missed out on the others or they were in that fictional road I don't like to talk about. Would like to see MTH do the pinstripe/bookend ATSF's and CNW in Premier with Proto-3.

It's not quite finished, got a few more details to wrap up.

Good Day, 

Your ATSF GP30 looks fantastic! The custom work on top looks great. The Santa Fe GP30's are a classic. Here are several pictures from photo collection.

Regards,

Frank 

I will want to pick up one the WBB GP30's when they're released.  Probably the GN.

Alan

What GP30's should look like!

Here is MTH Premier Reading 5513 (the first production GP30) in a meet with Reading T-1 2100 painted and detailed as Reading 2124 by Reading Steam Guru. The 60' Madison cars are Williams in a two-tone green Reading Company scheme. The GP30 is pulling a freight headed by a Weaver Reading hopper with speed lettering.

As the engineer in this Lionel Burlington can attest, 'That is one nice ride'

FYI for those in the Baltimore area, the B&O Museum's short excursion train is being powered by a former B&O GP30 in "Sunburst" paint for the next (likely) few weeks. Rare to see that engine in public view. Rarely operates and rarely pulls public trains. 

Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to operate Western Maryland Scenic GP30 502 for about 2-3 miles. Neat experience. 

Something different, BN GP30 modified to be a GP39E.  What did the E stand for?  This would be a neat model!

Regards. 

Swafford

Now THAT's what I'm talking about!!!

I have a custom made trio of N&W GP30s, #524, #525, & #527, in HO scale in my display case. Sure would like to get the exact same three units in O-Scale.

The "E" meant that the complete rebuild was done by EMD. The other two rebuilders of those original GP30s was: "V" for VMV, and "M" Morrison-Knutson. All those old GP30s and GP35s received rebuilt 645 prime movers, an AR10 main generator/alternator, Dash-2 electrical controls, AAR control stand, and a bunch of other stuff I can't remember.

Hot Water:  I remember hearing that the GP30 was not a totally successful engine as built by EMD.  I'm not sure just what it's problems really were but I know that there were far fewer built than the GP-38 series.

Am I right on that or am I confusing that with another engine?

Paul Fischer

The GP30, with its 567D3 turbocharged engine, really didn't have that many problems. The electrical system was, however much more problematic. Plus the GP35 came out pretty quickly.

Hot Water, when Mike Wolf was here for the NS Heritage event several of us expressed the desire for a high hood GP30.  When I told him that there are probably two ways to do the Southern (with and with out the front seal) and five or six ways to do the N&W (lettering, logo, and paint color) plus the NS version he raised an eyebrow.  He then went out to the two I pictured here to take pictures.  So we can hope. 

And since we have an operating GP30 here an authentic sound file could be recorded.

I like it. What did it start out as?

Love those Hi-hood GP 30's and I am a steam guy! 

Visit my new website Bo's Trains at http://www.bostrains.com

My repainted Lionel GP30. Of course after I did this, WBB announces they are going to do C&O GP30's.

The C&O's are nice, but their younger siblings beat them hands down IMHO ;-)

Its the Lionel GP30 non powered unit. I have a powered Legacy unit as well, just haven't worked on it yet. Needed to practice with the dummy unit first.

The truck sideframes were modified by removing the outter brakeshoes, fixed pilots which was a major modification, removed footboards from pilot and scratch built the flat pilots you see now (another major project), new air hoses & MU hoses, speed recorder cable, cab vents, removed the sun shades and mounted in the down positon, removed crew figures, roof top AC unit, scratch built antenna mount, painted the anti glare panel on the nose and tops of walkways, added fuel sight glass to one side of tank that Lionel forgot, and then a light weathering to tone down the bright yellow.  

GP30 with a high hood difines UGLY!

First TMCC loco I ever bought was the B&O GP-30 in the sunburst livery. Looks like the one up at the museum in Baltimore.

Give me some of that high nose GP30 action! Some of them even made it into NS livery:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.n...Picture.aspx?id=9104

Bob

Why did GM put that roof casting on the 30's?  It is unlike anything else they made.

And UP did have some GP30B's.  I have read the B's had steam generators.  Were they ever used on passenger trains?

I'm not sure why GP30s have a reputation for being ugly.  IMHO they were the only hood unit that, to my eyes, had given ANY consideration to style.  If the GP30 were a steamer, we'd be calling it "Semi-streamlined."

Soo Line GP30 #700

Soo Line GP30 #703

Andrew

From a technological standpoint, the GP30 was EMD's first unit with a pressurized carbody. They also made a jump in the model numbers just for the heck of it. I remember a GE guy reminiscing, "we were really worried when EMD came out with the GP30 ... we thought they had a 3000 HP unit!" This was after the SD24 that had 2400 HP.

I've wondered if the unique carbody styling had anything to do with accomodating the new Dynavanes air filtering setup which did inertial filtering of air for the equipment blower and engine air intake. I didn't get to work on locos that old and never inspected one that close.

I remember seeing A-B-A sets of GP30's working UP's Park City branch in Utah circa 1978. They looked good in that arrangement. 

Along the Columbia River in 1968, this consist has at least three GP30's. I took this shot with my first Brownie camera, my second roll of 8-exposure film, and always thought this photo had an odd model-railroad look to it with a painted backdrop. Little did I know that I would be working for UP 10 years later, by which time the GP30's were mostly shuffled off into secondary duties.

On the subject of the GP30, I've seen the new WBB unit. It's refreshing to see a combination of a correctly proportioned , well detailed shell mounted atop a smooth running mechanism without the electronics required for command control operation for those of us who prefer to run conventionally. I hope the GP30 is an indicator of more like this coming our way.

Bob    

Here here!!! I have one GP-30. A dead MTH Premier unit I got cheap. Put a WBB DCU in it and I am a happy owner!!! MTH Premier looks with simple brain! I am sure I'd be happy with a WBB unit when they do a road I like but until then my D&RGW Frankenstein unit will do.

Good Day,

I'd like a trio of these GP30's!

Regards,

Swafford

A Southern Railway unit:

Bob

I hate to admit it but that ugly thing is starting to grow on me.

Maybe if Williams paints one like this I will buy one.

Good Day,

Anyone have a close up picture of a Union Pacific GP30 A-B-A set?

Regards,

Swafford 

I like GP30's too. I think they're very unique looking loco's and tend to stand out when mixed with other geeps or other larger loco's. I consider them to be "old school classics".

I'm currently building a few of them in 2rail. I'm experimenting with mating a Lionel SP GP30 to an Atlas GP35 chassis, although the cab is a phase I and not the phase II found on SP prototypes. I like WBB GP30 for the fact that it is a phase II cab that the SP used on their prototypes. and I think it looks good with the extended cab. I'll start purchasing a few of the WBB 30's just for the phase II cab. I saw them upclose at a recent show, and although they aren't as detailed as the Lionel version, they look pretty nice, and since I plan on just using the shell for my conversions, the price is very attractive. MTH and Lionel only manufactured the phase I cabs on their GP30's. Here are a few pics of my experiment. 

love that N&W

N&W's GP30s wore this scheme as well:

Bob

High nose GP30 on the Indiana & Ohio:

Bob