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Clean and glossy in fresh CP Rail paint, the crew of MLW RS-18 CP 8790 awaits clearance to take their train eastward to Montreal one afternoon in the winter of 1970-71. Behind it is a CP MLW FB or FB-2. 
The posture of the crewman on the left is expressive, and his hat would go well with a steam engine.
Some years previously, the tunnel from Trois-Riviers station to the between-tracks platform had been sealed off.
Copyright Notice: This image ©John Pittman all rights reserved.



Caption: Clean and glossy in fresh CP Rail paint, the crew of MLW RS-18 CP 8790 awaits clearance to take their train eastward to Montreal one afternoon in the winter of 1970-71. Behind it is a CP MLW FB or FB-2.
The posture of the crewman on the left is expressive, and his hat would go well with a steam engine.
Some years previously, the tunnel from Trois-Riviers station to the between-tracks platform had been sealed off.

Photographer:
John Pittman [288] (more) (contact)
Date: 1970 (search)
Railway: Canadian Pacific (search)
Reporting Marks: CP 8790 (search)
Train Symbol: Not Provided
Subdivision/SNS: Trois-Rivieres (search)
City/Town: Trois-Rivieres (search)
Province: Quebec (search)
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Photo ID: 33253

Map courtesy of Open Street Map

Full size | Suncalc
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13 Comments
  1. Very interesting that CP designated the short hood as forward but on CN the long hood was considered the front

  2. As far as I know, what was the front depends…
    CP RS-18′s like this one all had the short hood front, (and CN RS-18′s also I think) but CP’s similar-looking RS-10′s ran long hood front. All CP GP7′s and GP9′s ran short hood front, but on CN which GP9 end was the front depended … after remanufacture, long hood fronts became CN 7000′s and 7200′s while short hood fronts became 4000′s and 4100′s. It’s complicated ! E&OE

  3. Hmm, interesting. I looked up some old photos of CN RS18′s and it shows the long hood as the front with the small FL FR on the long hood. I tried to find a clear picture of the Tempo units to see what was considered the front (Pics with both long hood or short hood leading) but could not see the designation.
    As for the CN GP9′s, the original configuration was long hood forward.
    After rebuild, CN wanted to separate the two classes, so the 7000/7200′s were build with the long hood forward because they were meant for yard operations only. The 4000/4100′s were built for road service that is why the short hood is forward. LOL trust me, running a 7000/7200 in road service is literally a pain in the neck!! Ouch.

  4. The variation I have always found interesting on this subject is that the CP trainmasters started out long hood forward. That’s a whole lot of hood out the front. It didn’t last, they were converted to short hood forward not long after they went into service. If I remember correct, a few even had a wide short nose to accomadate more steam generation.

  5. Actually the practice of long hood forward was practiced by most railroads as the dieselized, especially by N&W and Southern. It was to protect the crews in case of a collision. In steam days they had the entire length of the locomotive to give them some protection (although crews could die from being scalded). The long hood of the diesel was thought to offer better protection.

  6. The Tempo units were designated long hood forward:

    http://www.cnrphotos.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=8688&g2_imageViewsIndex=1

  7. The Tempo RS18′s were bi-directional (had two control stands) for operation in both directions. I suppose after finishing a run in one direction, it made it easy to run the unit to the other end of the train and run in the other direction.

  8. CN considered the long hood as the front of the Tempo units. There are a couple of good photos on cnrphotos.com which clearly show FR or FL on the long hood end.

  9. Thx Mr.Dan. I have been up inside the Tempo units when I was a brakeman, I had forgotten about the dual control stand :-)

  10. @First954. I could not find those units on the website and any other photos i checked on Google only show “Caution no footboard”

  11. ngineered4u….Check out long hood leading views of 3151, 3154 and 3155. Click on the 1200×800 to view a larger size image. The FL and FR indication is there just in front of the “caution no footboards.”

  12. Ok thx will do.

  13. For CP road switchers, whether maroon & grey or multimark, the colour scheme is directional, multimark or wrap-around maroon at the back. Plus the “F” is usually big enough to see! CN paint schemes don’t have this directionality, and the FL/FR are smaller print or not visible at all. On closer inspection, the only high-short-hood CN roadswitchers I’ve found with controls setup for short hood forward are 10 GP9 units CN 4602-4611 acquired from the Northern Alberta Railway. (ex)NAR GMD-1 also short hood fwd.
    Apart from crash safety – if the loco is setup for long hood forward, when running in reverse the view forward is slightly better (though uncomfortable) so maybe less need to wye the engine. Downsides when running long hood forward include limited forward visibility and more chance of exhaust fumes in the cab.

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