Electric's - the sounds of power

56...,

That must have been pretty cool... "watching and listening"... I'm a fan of electric locomotives.

Not that long ago, I bought a MTH Premier Conrail E44 electric locomotive; and, I went online... looking for information about the prototype.

The last electrics shown in the video are E44's and the sounds those units were making; well, I've never heard anything like that before. Unique! Do you recall hearing those sounds?

BTW, mine looks the blue Conrail unit, in the number two position.

Rick

Most large electric locomotives did make quite a bit of noise.  They had large blowers cooling the electrical equipment.  Most also had motor generators providing control power, battery charging, and in a few cases tractive power.  Over this noise the sound of tap changers or switch groups and air compressors could be heard.  On the smaller locomotives which did not have this equipment, like a 65 ton GE, the noise of power was the straight cut gearing when the locomotives were under load.  This was the sound that I associate with electric power.  

The "rectifier" based engines had large mercury filled ignitron rectifiers that converted the AC to DC.  The banks of these converters required large amounts of air for cooling purposes.  This is why the EP-5 was nick named "the jet".  It sounded like a DC-9 getting ready for take off.

The earlier electric locomotives like the GG-1 that used AC motors were deadly quiet.  I remember being in Penn Station when a GG-1 was dead heading from NJ to Sunnyside.  All we saw was the headlight in the tunnel and then felt the slip stream as the engine whooshed through the terminal.  I don't think I've ever seen anything that large move that quickly with little or no noise.

I've only seen a GG-1 once in my life, many years ago, but I took was impressed.  You are right, its truly amazing, isn't it?  Electrics can be soooo quiet it is uncanny. 

It's the same around aircraft.  The B-17's and B-24's with recipricating engines were noisy compared to the British Lancaster Bomber with it's water cooled V-12 Rolls Royce smooth and quiet engines.

In the book "Milwaukee Road Electrics," the author stated that the Bi-polars had to continually ring their bell while under way, and that included out in the wilds. Apparently they were quiet enough that livestock and large animals, like moose and elk, were picked off. Work crews too had to be on a constant vigil for the approach of the electrics.

Neil 

My parents used to take me to Sunnyside yard so I could watch the trains.  I would stand with my face against the railings on the Honeywell Street bridge right over the LI hump yard and the PRR engine service facilities.

As Chuck said, GG-1’s where very quiet.  The only noise was the blower motor and the bell.  You could feel the bridge vibrate as a 230+ ton GG-1 came in for service.  It was really impressive to a little kid.  Others GG-1’s sat silent on the ready track and occasionally the pop valve would release on the steam boiler.  With 2 blats of that Leslie A-200 horn they would roll out to pick up their train with that distinctive gear whine, bell ringing, vibrating the bridge again.

I have 2 MTH Premier GG-1’s.  They are beautiful but I am a little disappointed because the sounds, except for the horn, do not match the sounds in my memories particular that gear noise under way.

Dan

Thanks a bunch guys, for your informative contributions. A great subject... for me.

In the video that I posted, the electric locomotives have a very powerful presence... They actually appear quite massive looking, and their distinct sounds fit... these big powerful machines under load.

I would have loved to have seen these prototypes in action.

Rick