Lima LS-1000

Last updated
Lima-Hamilton A-3080
Type and origin
Power typeDiesel-electric
Builder Lima-Hamilton Corporation
ModelA-3080
Build dateMay 1949 – April 1950
Total produced38
Specifications
Configuration:
   AAR B-B
   UIC Bo′Bo′
Gauge 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)
Length47’ 10”
Loco weight250,500 lb (113.6 t)
Prime mover Hamilton Engines and Machinery T89SA
Engine type4-stroke diesel
Aspiration Turbocharged
Displacement6,107 cu in (100.08 L)
Generator Westinghouse 499A
Traction motors Westinghouse 362D (4)
Cylinders Inline 8
Cylinder size 9 in × 12 in (229 mm × 305 mm)
Loco brake Straight air
Train brakes Air
Performance figures
Maximum speed60 mph (97 km/h)
Power output1,000 hp (746 kW)
Tractive effort 74,508 lbf (331.4 kN)
Career
Class NYC- DES-15a NKP- LS-10 WAB- D10
Locale North America

The A-3080 (LS-1000) is a diesel-electric switcher locomotive built between May 1949 and April 1950, by the Lima-Hamilton Corporation of Lima, Ohio, United States. The A-3080 is a 1,000 hp (750 kW) switcher, which became the standard for Lima's designs. By changing fuel rack settings, the A-3080 was upgraded to the A-3170, producing 1,200 horsepower (890 kW) from the same turbocharged Hamilton T89SA four-stroke, eight cylinder inline diesel engine, a Westinghouse generator and four Westinghouse traction motors provided the 74,508 lbf (331.43 kN) of tractive effort.

Contents

Lima-Hamilton never assigned a model number to their models but referred to them by specification numbers. Model designations such as LS-1000 were a railfan invention. Lima-Hamilton assigned A-3080 as the specification number for this particular unit.

History

In 1946 Lima's Class 1 market prospects were bleak unless it could enter the diesel-electric locomotive field quickly, but they couldn't afford a full-scale development program. Lima was viewed as an attractive potential partner by other firms eager to enter the market. One proposal was from Fairbanks-Morse, since the five-year contract with General Electric to build road locomotives for Fairbanks-Morse would run out in 1949, and GE had no interest in renewing the contract since they were working with the American Locomotive Company (ALCO), and already had designs of their own for the road diesel market. Although all the details of the Fairbanks-Morse proposal are not known, it appears to have offered little more than a contract to assemble locomotives and that Fairbanks-Morse wanted a manufacturing facility, not a partner.

At the time, Lima was also conducting discussions with the General Machinery Corporation. One of the companies making up General Machinery Corporation was Hamilton Press and Machinery Company. One of Hamilton's products was a diesel engine for marine and stationary generator applications. On July 30, 1947, Lima Locomotive Works and General Machinery Corporation merged to form the Lima-Hamilton Corporation. Almost immediately there were differences in goals between management.

The General Machinery Corporation management wanted to terminate steam locomotive production, while the Lima management was still committed to the development of a 4-8-6 super steam locomotive, nicknamed "double-bubble" for its unique firebox, designed with poppet valves, to be a true competitor in the diesel market, the design of which began in 1929. By April 1949, the design was shelved, and Lima finished its final steam locomotives a month later. Chief Mechanical Officer Bert Townsend resigned in protest of the decision to scrap the plans to build steam locomotives.

The A-3080's similarity to the ALCO S-4 switcher may be more than a coincidence. Former ALCO engineer F. J. Geittman was hired by General Machinery Corporation prior to the merger with Lima to oversee their diesel locomotive project. His job was to develop a new prime mover, as the current Hamilton diesel engine was not suited for locomotive applications.

Hamilton engineers proved to be worthy counterparts to their Lima brethren. They realized from the start that high power-to-weight ratios yield no advantages for locomotives, since locomotives are traditionally weighted with ballast to obtain optimal adhesion. This allowed them to incorporate heavier crankshafts, bearings, connecting rods and other parts. Whereas the competition was experiencing road failures with their engines because they followed traditional design methods and used lightweight components.

On May 13, 1949, Lima-Hamilton unveiled its first diesel, A-3080 #1000, the first of five demonstrators #1000-1004. #1000 became Toledo, Peoria and Western #300, #1001 became American Rolling Mill Company #707, #1002 and 1003 became Wabash #400 and 407 respectively, and #1004 became Indian Hill and Iron Range #302.

In September 1951, Lima-Hamilton merged with Baldwin Locomotive Works forming Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton. Baldwin's primary interest was Lima's shovel and crane business which was expected to do well with the upcoming highway building boom. Lima-Hamilton's locomotive business was discontinued after the merger. Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton's locomotive fortunes declined as the rush by railroads to replace steam power subsided. B-L-H exited the new locomotive market in May 1956.

Original owners

OwnerQuantityRoad numbers
Armco Steel
3
707 (ex-Lima-Hamilton demonstrator 1001), 708, 709
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
10
330–339
Erie Railroad
10
650–659, to Erie Lackawanna in 1960, same numbers
Indian Hill and Iron Range
1
302 (ex Lima-Hamilton demonstrator 1004)
New York Central Railroad
6
8400–8405
New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (Nickel Plate Road)
4
305-308 (305 first production A-3080) to Norfolk and Western in 1964, same numbers
Toledo, Peoria and Western Railway
3
300 (ex Lima-Hamilton demonstrator 1000), 301, 302
Wabash Railroad
2
400, 407 (ex Lima-Hamilton demonstrators 1002 and 1003) to Norfolk and Western in 1964, same numbers
38

Preservation

The last extant A-3080, former ARMCO Steel 709, is operated by the Whitewater Valley Railroad

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Locomotive Company</span> Defunct locomotive manufacturer

The American Locomotive Company was an American manufacturer of locomotives, diesel generators, steel, and tanks that operated from 1901 to 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baldwin Locomotive Works</span> American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1956

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montreal Locomotive Works</span> Defunct Canadian locomotive manufacturer

Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) was a Canadian railway locomotive manufacturer which existed under several names from 1883 to 1985, producing both steam and diesel locomotives. For a number of years it was a subsidiary of the American Locomotive Company. MLW's headquarters and manufacturing facilities were in Montreal, Quebec.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GE U25B</span> GE U25B 2,500 hp diesel electric locomotive

The GE U25B is General Electric's first independent entry into the United States domestic road switcher diesel-electric locomotive railroad market for heavy production road locomotives since 1936. From 1940 through 1953, GE participated in a design, production, and marketing consortium (Alco-GE) for diesel-electric locomotives with the American Locomotive Company. In 1956 the GE Universal Series of diesel locomotives was founded for the export market. The U25B was the first attempt at the domestic market since its termination of the consortium agreement with Alco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lima Locomotive Works</span> Defunct locomotive manufacturer

Lima Locomotive Works was an American firm that manufactured railroad locomotives from the 1870s through the 1950s. The company took the most distinctive part of its name from its main shop's location in Lima, Ohio. The shops were located between the Erie Railroad main line, the Baltimore & Ohio's Cincinnati-Toledo main line and the Nickel Plate Road main line and shops.

Fairbanks, Morse and Company was an American manufacturing company in the late 19th and early 20th century. Originally a weighing scale manufacturer, it later diversified into pumps, engines, windmills, coffee grinders, radios, farm tractors, feed mills, locomotives, and industrial supplies until it was purchased by Penn Texas in 1958.

Locomotive classification on the Pennsylvania Railroad took several forms. Early on, steam locomotives were given single-letter classes. As the 26 letters were quickly assigned, that scheme was abandoned for a more complex system. This was used for all of the PRR's steam locomotives, and — with the exception of the final type bought — all electric locomotives also used this scheme.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Motors Diesel</span> Subsidiary of General Motors

General Motors Diesel was a railway diesel locomotive manufacturer located in London, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1949 as the Canadian subsidiary of the Electro-Motive Diesel division of General Motors (EMD). In 1969 it was re-organized as the "Diesel Division of General Motors of Canada, Ltd." The plant was re-purposed to include manufacture of other diesel-powered General Motors vehicles such as buses. Following the Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement in 1989, all of EMD's locomotives were built at the London facility. In 2005 new owners of EMD renamed the Canadian subsidiary "Electro-Motive Canada". The plant was closed by EMD's new owner Progress Rail in 2012, with EMD's production remaining in LaGrange, Illinois and Muncie, Indiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Locomotive Company</span>

The Canadian Locomotive Company, commonly referred to as CLC, was a Canadian manufacturer of railway locomotives located in Kingston, Ontario. Its works were located on the south side of Ontario Street between William and Gore streets on Kingston's waterfront.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ALCO RS-3</span> Model of diesel-electric locomotive

The ALCO RS-3 is a 1,600 hp (1.2 MW), B-B diesel-electric locomotive manufactured from May 1950 to August 1956 by American Locomotive Company (ALCO) and its subsidiary Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW). A total of 1,418 were produced: 1,265 for American railroads, 98 for Canadian railroads, 48 for Brazilian railroads, and seven for Mexican railroads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cab unit</span> Body styles of locomotive

In North American railroad terminology, a cab unit is a railroad locomotive with its own cab and controls.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FM Consolidation Line</span> Series of American locomotive models

The Consolidation Line was a series of diesel-electric railway locomotive designs produced by Fairbanks-Morse and its Canadian licensee, the Canadian Locomotive Company. Railfans have dubbed these locomotives “C-liners”, however F-M referred to the models collectively as the C-Line. A combined total of 165 units were produced by F-M and the CLC between 1950 and 1955.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electro-Motive Diesel</span> American locomotive manufacturer

Electro-Motive Diesel is a brand of diesel-electric locomotives, locomotive products and diesel engines for the rail industry. Formerly a division of General Motors, EMD is now owned by Progress Rail, a subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc. Electro-Motive Diesel traces its roots to the Electro-Motive Engineering Corporation, founded in 1922 and purchased by General Motors in 1930. After purchase by GM, the company was known as GM's Electro-Motive Division. In 2005, GM sold EMD to Greenbriar Equity Group and Berkshire Partners, and in 2010, EMD was sold to Progress Rail. Upon the 2005 sale, the company was renamed to Electro-Motive Diesel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ALCO RS-2</span>

The ALCO RS-2 is a 1,500–1,600 horsepower (1,100–1,200 kW) B-B diesel-electric locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) from 1946 to 1950. ALCO introduced the model after World War II as an improvement on the ALCO RS-1. Between 1946 and 1950, 377 examples of the RS-2 were built, primarily for American and Canadian customers.

The Erie-built was the first streamlined, cab-equipped dual service diesel locomotive built by Fairbanks-Morse, introduced as direct competition to such models as the ALCO PA and FA and EMD FT. F-M lacked the space and staff to design and manufacture large road locomotives in their own plant at Beloit, Wisconsin, and was concerned that waiting to develop the necessary infrastructure would cause them to miss out on the market opportunity for large road locomotives. Engineering and assembly work was subcontracted out to General Electric, which produced the locomotives at its Erie, Pennsylvania, facility, thereby giving rise to the name "Erie-built."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lima 750 and 800 hp switchers</span>

The A-3149 (LS-750) and A-3171 (LS-800) were diesel-electric switching locomotives built between November 1949 and June 1951, by the Lima-Hamilton Corporation of Lima, Ohio, U.S.A.. The A-3149 is a 750 horsepower (560 kW) switcher. It was later upgraded to 800 hp (600 kW) by changing fuel rack settings. Both models used the same turbocharged Hamilton T69SA four-stroke, six cylinder inline diesel engine, a Westinghouse generator and 4 Westinghouse traction motors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lima LS-1200</span>

The A-3170 (LS-1200) is a diesel-electric switcher locomotive built between May 1950 and August 1951, by the Lima-Hamilton Corporation of Lima, Ohio, United States. Lima's original design was the A-3080, a 1,000 hp (750 kW) switcher, which became the standard for Lima's designs. A 660 hp (490 kW) switcher had also been designed at the request of American Rolling Mill Company, but none were built. By changing fuel rack settings, the A-3080 was upgraded to the A-3170 producing 1,200 horsepower (890 kW) from a turbocharged Hamilton T89SA four-stroke, eight cylinder inline diesel engine, a Westinghouse generator and 4 Westinghouse traction motors provided the 74,508 lbf of tractive effort.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baldwin RS-12</span> American 1200hp diesel-electric locomotives

The BLH RS-12 railroad locomotive was a 1,200 hp (895 kW) diesel-electric road switcher locomotive configured with an AAR type B-B wheel arrangement. It was the follow-on model to the former Baldwin DRS-4-4-1000, first introduced in 1948. It was more successful than its predecessor selling 50 units to eight railroads, versus 22 units to three railroads. Only one railroad, The Pennsylvania Railroad bought both models.

References