GE 44 tonner

Although many people think of the GE 44-ton as an industrial engine, it was actually designed for common-carrier service. The 1937 diesel agreement ruled that any engine weighing over 90,000 lbs required a fireman. The 44-tonner weighed in at 88,000 lbs, just under the limit. Industrial roads had no such restrictions and could run as big as a locomotive as they wished without a fireman.

385 of these locomotives were built starting in 1940, with 9 going to Canada and 5 to Mexico. Of interest are 7 units that went to Uruguay, 3 wide gauge units that went to India for a dam project, 2 units that went to Trinidad, 9 that went to various sugar plantations in Cuba and 5 that went to the Arabian-American Oil Company in Saudi Arabia. 239 of these locomotives went to Class I railroads. They were built in 11 phases with slight changes being made with each phase. A little over 90% of these engines were built with two Model D17000 Caterpillar V8 power plants. Other prime movers included the Hercules DFXD 6 cylinder; the Buda 6DH1742 and the Caterpillar 342 6-cylinder. The first GE 44-tonner was delivered on 4 September 1940, carried s/n #12908, and went to the CB&Q as their 9103. The last was delivered to the Dansville & Mt. Morris in Dansville, NY as their 1 on 19 October 1956 and carried s/n #32664.

Bison Rail owns three GE 44-tonners numbered 44, 45 & X47. The 44 came from Mexico and is in almost perfect condition due to the dry desert conditions there. The 45 came from the Smoky Mountain Railroad in Sevierville, TN and the X47 is an ex-USN unit. The X47 is relegated to industrial use as even though it is in excellent running condition, the exterior is in such bad shape that it is not feasible to get it FRA-certified. Actually, it was found on a railroad in the Southeast, and as payment for a past debt the railroad agreed to deliver it to Bison Rail at no cost. They immediately leased it out to one of the local industries where it tirelessly labors away 24 hours a day and puts a few dollars in Bison Rail's coffers.

History of the three units is as follows:

Notes - S-BC (Sonora-Baja California); SCOP (Secretaria de Comunicicaciones de Obras
Publicas)

The Smoky Mountain Railroad was a small branch line owned by the A. J. King Lumber Company of Sevierville and started out as the Knoxville, Sevierville & Eastern. It operated 30 miles of 56 & 60 lb rail from a connection with the Southern Railway in Knoxville to Sevierville.
There is an excellent web site on the Smoky Mountain at www.smokymountainrailroad.org.

The Sonora-Baja California was a 538 kilometer (322 miles) railroad originally operated by the Department of Communications & Public Works or SCOP (see above). It extended from Benjamin Hill, Sonora to the U.S. border at Mexicali, Baja California. More on it can be found at www.mexicanrailspot.com/sbcindex.

Specifications of the GE 44-ton are as follows:

Length - 33' 5" Engine - (2) Caterpillar D17000 V8 RPM - 1000 Air Compressor - Gardner-Denver ADS

Height - 13' 3" Horsepower - 380 Traction Motors - 4-GE733 Double Reduction Brake System - 14EL