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Re:(erielack) A study of two ex-D&H SD45s

Because of its original 6-foot gauge, the Erie was wide.  It wasn't necessarily high.  The Jersey City freight tunnel was a constriction; the K5s had their cabs lowered from the USRA plans to allow passage, and I'm not sure the S-class could go through at all.

Then, in EL days, much of the freight went Lackawanna-side and the DL&W was neither high nor wide.

Randy Brown
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Wow, good eyes, Paul, I didn't notice any of that. I recall much discussion about a year ago concerning SD45 fan housings, horn placement and clearances. I tend to favor LDY's explanation, that EL was concerned about clearances in NYNH&H territory that would host EL runthrough power. However the same low-profile treatment was applied to the Dash-2's in 1972, when this would have been much less a consideration. Someone mentioned that the M&E may have been the problem if used for detour moves. I see that the boomers did have their horns repositioned but as far as I can tell the fan housings weren't modified. Obviously there was no geographic restriction on the high-and-wide ex-Erie. I'm not completely certain about the ex-DL&W prior to the 1975 clearance project. The only boomer photo I have seen in this territory is post-modification, so if someone has a photo of 801-803 in their original state on the ex-Lacka that would answer that question. This 
is one of the little ironies!
  of EL, the road of H&W clearances specifying low-profile diesels.

Paul B


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