Apart from Amtrak specific freight/mail, should the Genesis be defined as specifically a passenger hauling locomotive? What freight cars would be considered within the prototypical range of the locomotive?
Tim Brien said:None, its a passenger specific locomotive, never intended to haul freight. It was built specific to Amtrak specs and was never used on any other railroad, but of course, its your railroad
Apart from Amtrak specific freight/mail, should the Genesis be defined as specifically a passenger hauling locomotive? What freight cars would be considered within the prototypical range of the locomotive?
From the earliest days of mass-produced diesel locomotives the motor pinion to axle gear ratios used to obtain high speeds on passenger locomotives rendered them less than efficient at freight moving - the old thing of you trade torque for speed.
Changing the gearing would alter the current draw of the traction motors, which would then impact the control system.
Nevertheless, if the freight load is kept within a similar tonnage range as the passenger trains - meaning really Short - it seems it would work okay; which is not the same thing as saying it would work well.
Here’s some numbers to compare to freight locomotives’ ratings
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GE_Genesis
Forrest,
your Wikpedia link lead me to the Amtrak Autotrain, combining autoracks and passenger cars for long distance travel. Power provided by back to back P42’s (sometimes a third loco was added.
Iv’e seen two Genesis’ pulling Amtrak passenger trains with four or five of those “Thralls” box cars in front of the passenger cars. That ain’t baggage in those.