Santa Fe CF7

The CF7 is an EMD F-unit railroad locomotive that has had its streamlined carbody removed and replaced with a custom-made, "general purpose" body in order to adapt the unit for switching duty. All of the conversions were performed by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway in their Cleburne, Texas workshops between February, 1970 and 1978.[1] This was Santa Fe's most notable remanufacturing project creating a total of 132 CF7s.[1] The program was initiated in response to a system-wide need for more than 200 additional four-axle diesel road switchers to meet projected motive power demands on branch lines and secondary main lines.

CF7
Locomotive #517, a CF7, is the main power on the Commonwealth Railway in Suffolk, Virginia.
Type and origin
Power typeDiesel-electric
BuilderGeneral Motors Electro-Motive Division (EMD);
rebuilt by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, Cleburne, Texas shops
ModelCF7
Rebuild dateFebruary 1969/1970 – 1978
Number rebuilt132 or 233
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • AARB-B
Gauge4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Length48 ft 6 in (14.78 m)
Loco weight249,000 pounds (113 t)
Prime moverEMD 16-567BC
Engine type2-stroke diesel
AspirationRoots blower
Displacement9,072 cu in (148.7 liters)
CylindersV16
Cylinder size8.5 in × 10 in (216 mm × 254 mm)
TransmissionDC generator,
DC traction motors
Loco brakeStraight air
Train brakes26 L air
Performance figures
Maximum speed65 mph (105 km/h)
Power output1,750 hp (1,300 kW)
Tractive effort62,250 lbf (276.9 kN)
Career
LocaleNorth America

Santa Fe's aging fleet of F7 units were approaching retirement age in 1970. These units were remanufactured into switchers and named CF7. Santa Fe used them for a decade and sold many of them to short lines around the states. Many of those were still being used as of 2003.[2]

Development

Santa Fe Railways by Steve Glischinski published in 1997 reports 132 units were built between 1970 and 1978[1], and North American Locomotives: A Railroad-by-Railroad Photohistory by Brian Solomon published in 2012 reports 233 units were built between 1969 and 1978.[3] All CF7s are rated at 1,500 hp.[3]

In service

The CF7s worked within all segments of the Santa Fe system. While most saw action switching cars and transporting local freight, others could be found in multiple unit consists hauling mainline drags. The units distinguished themselves working on potash trains between Clovis and Carlsbad, New Mexico; Nos. 2612–2625, all equipped with remote control equipment (RCE), were typically "mated" to road slugs (converted cabless F-units). CF7s also powered grain trains across the Plains Division.

The Santa Fe had planned in the mid-1980s to renumber its CF7 fleet from 2649–2417 to 1131–1000 and repaint the units in the new "Kodachrome" paint scheme, all in preparation for the upcoming Southern Pacific Santa Fe Railroad (SPSF) merger. However, the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) subsequently denied the merger application, and no CF7s were decorated in the new livery. Amtrak used some of them with mixed results

Afterlife
Watco CF7 #5 at Pittsburg, Texas in August 2015

Changing philosophies regarding motive power expenditures led the Santa Fe to begin trimming its CF7 roster in 1984. The majority of the locomotives were sold for as little as $20,000 to short-line and regional railroads such as the Rail Link, Inc., the York Railway, and the Maryland and Delaware Railroad (6 were involved in wrecks and 3 others sent directly to the scrap yards), though Amtrak and GE Transportation Systems were among the major initial purchasers. By 1987, the company had divested itself of all of its CF7s. These locomotives have well withstood the test of time, and have long outlived their projected service lives, two times, both as original F-units and as rebuilds. As of 2017, all CF7s still in service are over 60 years old.

Preservation

#2546 is preserved at the Kentucky Railway Museum[4] and #2571 at the Oklahoma Railway Museum.[5]

See also

References
  1. Glischinski, Steve. (1997). "p121". Santa Fe Railway. Osceola, WI, USA: Motorbooks International. p. 121. ISBN 0-7603-0380-0. OCLC 37567382.
  2. Solomon, Brian (2003). Santa Fe Railway. Voyageur Press. p. 48. ISBN 1610606728.
  3. Solomon, Brian. (2012). "p228". North American Locomotives : a Railroad-by-Railroad Photohistory. Laguna Hills: Quayside Publishing Group. p. 228. ISBN 978-1-61058-685-6. OCLC 1027156389.
  4. "Equipment". Kentucky Railway Museum. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
  5. "Equipment". Oklahoma Railway Museum. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
  • "Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe CF7". QStation. Retrieved December 6, 2005. Includes background and modeling information, equipment rosters, and a photo gallery.
  • "CF7: The Ugly Duckling?". Locomotive Rebuilding Programs. Archived from the original on December 17, 2005. Retrieved December 6, 2005.
  • "The History of EMD Diesel Engines". Pacific Southwest Railway Museum. Archived from the original on January 13, 2006. Retrieved December 14, 2005.
  • Duke, Donald (1997). Santa Fe: The Railroad Gateway to the American West, Volume Two. San Marino, CA: Golden West Books. ISBN 0-87095-110-6.
  • Middleton, Keel (2005). "Wheat Harvest on the Plains Division". The Warbonnet. 12 (4): 6–23.
  • Pinkepank, Jerry A. (1973). The Second Diesel Spotter's Guide. Milwaukee, WI: Kalmbach Publishing Co. ISBN 0-89024-026-4.

Further reading
  • Poole, Cary F. (1997). CF7 Locomotives: From Cleburne to Everywhere. The Railroad Press, Hanover, PA. ISBN 0-9657709-0-7.


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