This is kind of weird and random, but seriously, what is the advantage of a high hood locomotive? I understand some locos only came in a high-hood config, but some came in both high and low hood. Why on earth would railroads buy high-hood locomotives when they could buy low-hood ones? I don't get it.
Weird question: What's up with high hood locos?
- Thread starter k4kfh
- Start date
High short hood engines were purchased for, among other reasons, being able to be used long-hood forward, without crews objecting. Those engines usually were set up with the long hood designated as the front, though some were equipped with dual controls, so they could be easily jsed in either direction. The reason for wanting to run long-hood forward is a holdover from the days of steam, when the boiler sticking out ahead of the crew was seen as protection for them in the event of a collision.
NYC_George
Well-Known Member
I'm not sure about this but maybe these high nose loco's were equipped with steam generators. It certainly would make servicing the generator a whole lot easier having some head room.
George
George
Here's a pic of QR's 1460 class with their nose "snorters"
![1500[1].jpg](https://modelrailroadforums.com/forum/data/attachments/11/11140-6807ae4defce79d9685975f5700a8b29.jpg "1500[1].jpg")
I think those had the dynamics in the short hood.
I remember some high short hood GP 38 and 40 series units heading to Mexico with steam generators in the short hood, but most just had the toilet and odds & ends in there.
Yes I would say it is the dynamic brake grid and cooler, you can see the fan shroud on top. The ones with a toilet in there would have always run long hood forward?
Ah, good. I thought I was the only one.
The toilet was pretty much always in the short hood. The exceptions I can think of were some of the old streamliner units that had a rudimentary toilet in the rear corner, near the engine. If nothing else, it would encourage users not to take the Sunday newspaper with them...
The first answer is dead on for the conventional answer. The crews were used to thinking in terms of surviving an accident. According to an article in Trains™
N&W and Southern ran long hood forward in an attempt to make it easier for crews to operate bidirectionally over coal mining branches.
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N&W and Southern ran long hood forward in an attempt to make it easier for crews to operate bidirectionally over coal mining branches.
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I think I've mentioned it before, in NZ when the first commuter diesel arrived (about '52) they were basically switcher type locos and built to run cab forward. Crews converting from steam insisted they be changed for that reason.
