The ALCO RS-3 is a , B-B

diesel-electric locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving whee ...

manufactured from May 1950 to August 1956 by

American Locomotive Company The American Locomotive Company (often shortened to ALCO, ALCo or Alco) was an American manufacturer that operated from 1901 to 1969, initially specializing in the production of locomotives but later diversifying and fabricating at various time ...

(ALCO) and its subsidiary

Montreal Locomotive Works Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) was a Canadian railway locomotive manufacturer that existed under several names from 1883 to 1985, producing both Steam locomotive, steam and diesel locomotives. For many years it was a subsidiary of the American ...

(MLW). A total of 1,418 were produced: 1,272 for

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

railroads, 98 for

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

railroads, 48 for

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

ian railroads, and 7 for

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

railroads. The RS-3 greatly resembled the earlier RS-2 and somewhat resembles the RS-1, but it had 100 more horsepower thanks to its 12-cylinder, 1,600 hp ALCO Model 244 engine. It also had some changes to the fuel system and body shape. Much like the RS-1, many RS-3s served for decades; some are still in use as of 2022.

Variants

RSC-3: an RS-3 that used 3-axle trucks instead of 2-axle trucks. The middle axle on each truck was unpowered. This variant was designed for service on light track, as the extra axles better spread the weight of the locomotive. The RSD-4 and RSD-5 were similar units but with all 6 axles powered. RS-3m: an RS-3 whose engine was replaced with the more reliable EMD engine. Various railroads had repowering programs, most using 567B (and later 567C) engines from retired E-units in their RS-3's. The New York Central RR rebuilds were nicknamed "DeWitt Geeps", after the shop that did the conversions. Various Alco production variations occurred depending on the specifications by the customer. A small handful were built with steam generators in an extended-height short hood, nicknamed "Hammerhead" RS3's. Some had dynamic brakes located in the short hood. Some NYC units had one of their air tanks mounted on top of the long hood. Carbody vents, doors, and louvres also changed over the production span.

Competition

ALCO built the RS-3 to compete with EMD,

Fairbanks-Morse Fairbanks, Morse and Company was an American manufacturing company in the late 19th and early 20th century. Founded in 1823 as a manufacturer of weighing scale, weighing scales, it later diversified into pumps, engines, windmills, coffee grinder ...

, and

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railway locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, Eddystone in the early 20th century. The com ...

—and in particular with EMD's

GP7 GP-7 or GP7 may refer to: Vehicular * EMD ''GP7'', a class of locomotives * Ducati ''GP7'', a model of the racing motorcycle Ducati ''Desmosedici'' * Honda ''GP7'', a model of the subcompact Honda ''Fit Shuttle'' Other uses * (48616) 1995 GP7, a ...

, introduced in 1949. The arrival of the 1,500-hp GP7 led ALCO, Fairbanks-Morse, and Baldwin to increased the power of an existing locomotive line from and add more improvements to create new locomotive lines. In 1950, Fairbanks-Morse introduced the H-16-44, while Baldwin introduced the

Baldwin AS-16 The BLH AS-16 was a diesel-electric locomotive rated at , that rode on two-axle trucks, having a B-B wheel arrangement. It was the successor to Baldwin's DRS-4-4-1500 model, and remained in production until Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton quit the locom ...

. ALCO's line was the RS-2, although 31 were built in 1950 with . Fairbanks-Morse's line was the H-15-44. Baldwin's line was the

Baldwin DRS-4-4-1500 The Baldwin DRS-4-4-1500 was a diesel-electric locomotive of the road switcher type rated at , that rode on two-axle trucks, having a B-B wheel arrangement. It was manufactured by Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) w ...

. EMD kept its

at until 1954, when it introduced the GP9, rated at . In the end, EMD won the road switcher production race. EMD produced 2,729 GP7s. ALCO produced 377 RS-2s, and 1,418 RS-3s. Fairbanks-Morse produced 30 H-15-44s, and 296 H-16-44s. Baldwin produced 32 DRS-4-4-15s, and 127 AS-16s.

Exports

Brazil

In 1952, the

ian railway the

Estrada de Ferro Central do Brasil The Estrada de Ferro Central do Brasil was one of the principal railways of Brazil, uniting the states of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Minas Gerais. Origins On 9 February 1855, The imperial government of Brazil signed a contract with Edward Pr ...

purchased forty six new RS-3s from the

. Some are still active as work train engines for

CPTM The Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos (CPTM) () is one of the rapid transit companies serving the city of São Paulo, alongside the São Paulo Metro, Via Quatro and Via Mobilidade, all four forming the largest metropolitan rail transpo ...

, Supervia, and CBTU – BH respectively São Paulo's, Rio de Janeiro's and Belo Horizonte's commuter railways. In Brazil these units were nicknamed Canadians or Hot Tails.

Spain

In 1964, the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

railway the

Ferrocarril de Langreo Ferrocarril de Langreo or FC de Langreo (FCL) was a Spanish railway company which operated a line, in the Autonomous Community of Asturias, in northern Spain. It was the third train line constructed in Spain and was built during the 1850s. Hi ...

purchased four RS-3s from the

Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis The Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis is a Class III switching and terminal railroad that handles traffic in the St. Louis metropolitan area. It is co-owned by five of the six Class I railroads that reach the city. Present operation Th ...

. A fifth unit, number 1604, was purchased in 1971 from the

Burlington Northern Railroad The 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 1995. Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroad ...

(BN), a piece of surplus Great Northern Railway stock from the 1970 merger that formed BN. The locomotives served until 1984, when the line was converted to .

References

Bibliography

* * * {{MLW diesels RS-3 B-B locomotives RS-3 Railway locomotives introduced in 1950 Passenger locomotives Freight locomotives Standard-gauge locomotives of the United States Diesel–electric locomotives of Brazil Standard-gauge locomotives of Spain Broad gauge locomotives in Brazil Standard-gauge locomotives of Canada Diesel–electric locomotives of Canada Diesel–electric locomotives of Spain Diesel–electric locomotives of the United States Shunting locomotives Maine Central Railroad locomotives Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway locomotives