UP 949 Naked

951 needs clothes, too!

Yeah it does look bare....they now have this....

 

 

When they had this....but I personally miss the nose door also.

OK why would they remove the door?

They were welded shut for safety reasons.  The door gaps filled and sanded, then painted.  Here is a photo of the work being done...

 

Wow that really does change the look, a lot more than one might think it would. Too bad they just couldn't weld them shut an leave them in place.

I agree, I wish they could have welded it from the inside and kept the exterior appearance.  Maybe it would have posed future maint. issues in terms of corrosion in the door frame?....But yes it does really change the look.

NS did the same thing to their F units.  Really they don't need the door there, and they are a safety hazard in a collision.  Recall the IC road foreman that perished when their E units hit a gasoline truck and the fire blew into the cab through the front door. IIRC UP did more re-enforcement work inside to prevent the old door from blowing in.  Does it look worse or is it we aren't used to them having no door there?

 

It took me a long time to get used to the nose on the SD60M's with their front door being different than the ones on the DDA40X and F45's.  Same thought in the front door design there too, keeping it from blowing inside the nose in a collision.

 

Greg

 

UP also had an incident when DD40X 6936 had a grade crossing accident a few years ago and a crew member perished when the door collapsed.

I can understand the nose door.  The naked look without the "Union Pacific" is another matter.

 

When did the door come off?

I believe NS bought their F units with the doors already removed by the dinner train that ran them before.

That is entirely possible, I just noticed that the NS F units didn't have front doors when they were new to their business train.

 

I'm not sure but, when UP upgraded the E9's to GP38 standards at VMV is when they lost the front doors.  As for the Union Pacific on the nose, you are right it looks naked without it. 

 

Having had to use those doors, they are a pain in the forehead if you don't duck low enough.

Greg

The nose lettering was added to UP cab units around 1960 or just a bit earlier. They operated throughout the 1940's and 1950's with the shield and wings only. To me, these units look more naked without a Mars light, which UP did not apply after its first order of E9's was delivered. True, many engine crews perished or were injured after a collision where the nose door opened. One such incident in the '50's was sort of humorous. An Erie passenger train struck a truck loaded with eggs, which flooded the cab and coated the crew. We should acknowledge, though, that, most of the time, the nose door remained secure in road crossing collisions.

I saw the E's at the Amt Sta in Houston Yesterday, and they do look naked up close and personal!

They can always paint a black line to simulate the nose door still being in place, like they have done on Lackawanna 808.  They even put a grab irons and a door handle in place!

 

 

Thanks,

Mario

 

Now see that looks muuuuuuuuch better IMHO.  You have the safety and the look....perfect.

This is what the NS F units looked like when purchased by NS

 

 

After Rebuild

Nice photos....they look naked also.  To me that is.

Yes, but at least NS put a true F unit pilot back on the front instead of those boxy things