On 31.03.17 1:34, hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com wrote:   
   > On Tuesday, March 28, 2017 at 7:10:18 PM UTC-4, houn...@yahoo.co.uk wrote:   
   >> Did FL-9s normally run under their own power or on the 3rd rail in the   
   >> Park Avenue tunnel?   
   >   
   > They were supposed to run on 3rd rail while in the tunnels and terminal.   
   > However, as they aged, this didn't work so well, and sometimes they had   
   > to use diesel.  GCT stunk from the fumes when that happened.   
   >   
   > In the dark days of the 1980s, they may have been forced to use   
   > a straight diesel at times.   
      
   It seemed to have been all the time, IIRC.   
      
   I had a cab ride on an FL-9 from GCT, BTW; The engineer spooled up from   
   the engine room when the train was in the bay track and departed from   
   there completely on diesel.   
      
   Assuming that FL-9s did at one point run on electricity into and out of   
   GCT, how did they switch modes when they exited the portal? There was no   
   other way to spool up except in the engine room, so did the fireman go   
   back do it on the fly or did the train have to come to full stop at some   
   place like 125th Street?   
      
   > The opening of the upper Harlem Line electrification and new MU cars   
   > alleviated the situation quite a bit,   
      
   The cab ride that I had was well after they completed electrification.   
      
   > as did rehab of the FL9's.   
      
   Was that the ACFL-9 or F-10? I heard that they were extremely   
   problematic, and that they normally had to have a technician ride along   
   in the cab in the more-than-likely event that something would go wrong.   
      
   Essentially, that was the EMD equivalent to the SPV-2000.   
      
   The one advantage that I imagine that the rebuilt models had was that   
   the engineer could spool up from the cab.   
      
   > Ironically, when new, the FL9's had a lot of teething pains for   
   > what should've been pretty basic technology.  Despite that, they   
   > ended up staying in service for nearly 50 years, very long for   
   > a diesel locomotive.   
      
   They were an icon. Shame about the Hancock whistles, however -- their   
   replacement by the F-note horns kind of heralded the FL-9s' end, IMHO.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)