ALCO Century 415
Encyclopedia
The ALCO Century 415 was a diesel locomotive
of B-B wheel arrangement
produced by the American Locomotive Company
(ALCO) as part of their Century Series
of locomotives.
It was a large switcher
or small road switcher
equipped with a raised cab mounted slightly off-center, with a lower, narrower hood on either side. The longer one contained the diesel engine
, a 1500 hp (1.1 MW) eight-cylinder turbocharged Alco 251-F
, while the shorter contained auxiliaries. The C415 could be ordered with three different cab heights; a low one for minimum clearances, a regular height one, and an extra-height one for maximum visibility.
Truck
s fitted were either AAR
Type B or ALCO Hi-Ad (high adhesion).
The locomotive was not that popular; 26 were built between 1966 and 1968 for seven different owners. The locomotive is still in use today. According to the November 2011 issue of Railfan & Railroad magazine, the Burlington Junction Railway
now owns two C145s numbered 701 and 702.
Diesel locomotive
A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
of B-B wheel arrangement
Wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
produced by the American Locomotive Company
American Locomotive Company
The American Locomotive Company, often shortened to ALCO or Alco , was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States.-Early history:...
(ALCO) as part of their Century Series
ALCO Century Series locomotives
The ALCO Century Series locomotives were a line of locomotives produced by Alco,the Montreal Locomotive Works, and A. E. Goodwin Ltd under license in Australia. Production of the Century Series began in 1963 and ended in 1972. MLW and Goodwin continued to build Century locomotives after Alco...
of locomotives.
It was a large switcher
Switcher
A switcher or shunter is a small railroad locomotive intended not for moving trains over long distances but rather for assembling trains ready for a road locomotive to take over, disassembling a train that has been...
or small road switcher
Road switcher
A road switcher is a type of railroad locomotive used for delivering or picking up cars outside of a railroad yard. Since the road switcher must work some distance away from a yard, it needs to be able to operate at road speeds, it must also have high-visibility while it is switching, and it must...
equipped with a raised cab mounted slightly off-center, with a lower, narrower hood on either side. The longer one contained the diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
, a 1500 hp (1.1 MW) eight-cylinder turbocharged Alco 251-F
ALCO 251
The Alco 251 diesel engine was developed by the American Locomotive Company to replace the 244 and 539. The 251 was developed to be used in diesel locomotives, as a marine power plant in ships and as a stationary power generator.-Development:...
, while the shorter contained auxiliaries. The C415 could be ordered with three different cab heights; a low one for minimum clearances, a regular height one, and an extra-height one for maximum visibility.
Truck
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
s fitted were either AAR
Association of American Railroads
The Association of American Railroads is an industry trade group representing primarily the major freight railroads of North America . Amtrak and some regional commuter railroads are also members...
Type B or ALCO Hi-Ad (high adhesion).
The locomotive was not that popular; 26 were built between 1966 and 1968 for seven different owners. The locomotive is still in use today. According to the November 2011 issue of Railfan & Railroad magazine, the Burlington Junction Railway
Burlington Junction Railway
The Burlington Junction Railway is a Class III short line railroad which was chartered in 1985. Originally operating on of former Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad line in Burlington, Iowa, it provides short freight hauling, switching operations, locomotive repair, and transloading...
now owns two C145s numbered 701 and 702.
Original Owners
- Hamersley IronHamersley IronPilbara Iron is a wholly owned subsidiary of the multinational Rio Tinto Group, that manages assets for Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto, and Robe River Iron Associates, an unincorporated joint venture between Rio and three Japanese steel companies Mitsui Iron Ore...
in AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
bought the prototype, formerly lettered as ALCO 415. The locomotive was equipped with a medium height cab and AAR Type B trucks. - Chehalis Western RailroadChehalis Western RailroadThe Chehalis Western Railroad was the name of two different shortline railroads that were owned and operated by Weyerhaeuser between 1936 and 1993...
bought a single high cab unit with AAR Type B trucks. - Columbia and Cowlitz RailwayColumbia and Cowlitz RailwayThe Columbia and Cowlitz Railway , is a wholly owned subsidiary of Weyerhaeuser Company, and is headquartered in Longview, Washington; the railroad serves an route from the Weyerhaeuser Company mill in Longview to the junction just outside the city limits of Kelso...
bought a single high cab unit with Hi-Ad trucks. (Both the Columbia and Cowlitz and the Chehalis Western are WeyerhaeuserWeyerhaeuserWeyerhaeuser is one of the largest pulp and paper companies in the world. It is the world's largest private sector owner of softwood timberland; and the second largest owner of United States timberland, behind Plum Creek Timber...
properties) - Monongahela Connecting RailroadMonongahela Connecting RailroadThe Monongahela Connecting Railroad or Mon Conn was a small industrial railroad in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, now part of the Allegheny Valley Railroad. It was a subsidiary of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company and a large portion of its work was for its parent company, though it also served other...
bought a single low cab unit with Hi-Ad trucks. - Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific RailroadChicago, Rock Island and Pacific RailroadThe Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock.-Incorporation:...
bought ten medium cab units with AAR Type B trucks. - Southern Pacific RailroadSouthern Pacific RailroadThe Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
bought ten high cab units with AAR Type B trucks. - Spokane, Portland and Seattle RailwaySpokane, Portland and Seattle RailwayThe Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway was a United States-based railroad incorporated in 1905. It was a joint venture by the Great Northern Railway and the Northern Pacific Railway to build a railroad along the north bank of the Columbia River....
bought two medium cab units with Hi-Ad trucks; these were passed to the Burlington Northern RailroadBurlington Northern RailroadThe Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996....
after a merger between the two railroads.
Preservation
- Southern Pacific RailroadSouthern Pacific RailroadThe Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
2406 is in MonterreyMonterreyMonterrey , is the capital city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León in the country of Mexico. The city is anchor to the third-largest metropolitan area in Mexico and is ranked as the ninth-largest city in the nation. Monterrey serves as a commercial center in the north of the country and is the...
, MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, lettered as Fundidora Monterrey Steel 25. - Hamersley IronHamersley IronPilbara Iron is a wholly owned subsidiary of the multinational Rio Tinto Group, that manages assets for Hamersley Iron Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto, and Robe River Iron Associates, an unincorporated joint venture between Rio and three Japanese steel companies Mitsui Iron Ore...
1000, formerly AlcoAmerican Locomotive CompanyThe American Locomotive Company, often shortened to ALCO or Alco , was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States.-Early history:...
Demonstrator 415 is at the Pilbara Railways Historical Society in AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. - Monongahela Connecting RailroadMonongahela Connecting RailroadThe Monongahela Connecting Railroad or Mon Conn was a small industrial railroad in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, now part of the Allegheny Valley Railroad. It was a subsidiary of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company and a large portion of its work was for its parent company, though it also served other...
701 is at the Railroad Museum of PennsylvaniaRailroad Museum of PennsylvaniaThe Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania is a railroad museum in Strasburg, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.The museum is located on the east side of Strasburg along Pennsylvania Route 741...
. - Chehalis Western 684 is at Fife History Museum.