Rockhill M-25
Original owner, US Navy. Built by General
Electric Co., Schenectady, NY
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This small locomotive is typical of General
Electric's early single-ended locomotives
built for industrial applications. It was
built in 1942 for use at a Hudson Motor Car
plant at Centerline, MI. Information received
from a Hudson authority in
2006 indicates this plant built 20mm Oerlikon
anti-aircraft guns for the Navy (not torpedo
boats as previously stated). Centerline
reportedly had space for 20 rail cars on a 900
foot loading dock, so the loco was
probably kept quite busy at its first home.
Hudson lost the
contract to operate that plant in October 1943;
sometime around that date the loco was moved to the
Naval Mine Depot at Yorktown, VA. Following
WWII, it was sold to Tidewater Oil Co. in Delaware
City, DE. By 1972, it had been sold to the
American Bridge Division of US Steel at Elmira,
NY. While with AmBridge, the locomotive reportedly
served during construction of the I-81 bridge
over the Susquehanna River at Harrisburg,
PA. It was used to shuffle loads of steel
out onto the bridge for placement by a traveling
crane.
The locomotive was at the AmBridge plant in Elmira
when it changed hands to Sumitomo Corporation,
ABB Traction, Adtranz (ABB-Daimler Benz Transportation
Systems), and finally DaimlerChrysler. All
these companies performed construction and
overhaul of trolley, subway, and light rail
equipment, so the locomotive feels right
at home at our facility. |
| One of the first tasks after receiving the
locomotive was to obtain starting batteries.
We'd like to extend our sincere gratitude
to Deka Battery (East Penn Mfg.) of Lyons
Station, PA, for their assistance with that
task. Once the engine was started and run,
we realized we would need to replace the
obsolete single-disk fuel pump with a more
modern PT pump. With that lengthy task complete
and the engine running again, we realized
the air compressor was worn out, so we replaced
that with a rebuilt unit with the help of
Hantz Locomotive Service in Pittsburgh.
Finally, with the
locomotive painted and looking great, components
of cylinder #6 failed suddenly and disabled
the engine completely. With lots of searching,
we found parts we could afford and rebuilt
that cylinder. The locomotive was finally
placed in service in July of 2001, and was
critical to completing overhead construction
for our track extension in a timely manner. |
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The M-25 supplements our Brookville gas locomotive
for moving trolley cars and work equipment.
At more than three times the weight of our
Brookville, the GE makes moving heavy equipment
like our bucket car, cabooses, and "Liberty
Liner" much safer and easier.
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Coming or going, the M-25 makes moving our
custom bucket car a lot easier! |
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We'd like to thank the Pennsylvania Trolley
Museum for bringing this locomotive to our
attention, and the former Adtranz (DaimlerChrysler,
now Bombardier) personnel for arranging for
us to acquire it. We thank the following
businesses for advice and hard-to-find parts:
Ed Grimm's Truck Parts of Douglassville,
PA; Miller Diesel of Harrisburg, PA; Larry's
Truck Electric of Warren, OH; Crump Diesel
of Cohoes, NY; Ashland Diesel of Ashland,
PA.
Specifications:
| Make: |
|
General Electric |
| Build date: |
|
July 1942 |
| Location: |
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Schenectady, NY |
| Builder's Number: |
|
15232 |
| USN #: |
|
65-00352 |
| Model: |
|
B50/50 1-GE733 |
| Engine: |
|
Cummins HI-600, 6 cylinder, inline, 672 c.i.,
150hp |
| Drive: |
|
Diesel electric, 300Vdc |
| Generator: |
|
GE GT-1503 |
| Traction motor: |
|
GE 5Y733H1 |
| Brakes: |
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Westinghouse SA-2 straight air |
| Weight: |
|
25 tons |
| Gauge: |
|
Standard (56 1/2") |
| Dimensions: |
|
Just about as high as it is long... |
Have a similar locomotive? We have surplus Cummins diesel parts listed for sale here.
Before restoration:
Locate pictures of similar small industrial
locomotives on the excellent North East Rails: Industrial Locomotives pages.
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