Locomotive Controls EMD SD 40-2 

At VMV in Paducah Ky, I built several SD-40 -2 cabinets brand new. Card racks are a pain on spacing . They weighed 2 tons and had 5 miles of wiring in them. A 5 ton fork truck would pick it up and take it to the main machine shop floor and over head crane would set it in the locomotive .

So if you have traction motor number 2 cutout will the amp gauge/power needle not work?

it's so cool to see a "GM" stamp on this. Most of my family worked for GM in Flint back in the day and I recall seeing so much activity in the train yards as a kid. Thanks for showing us these beautiful machines. Fantastic!

Great video. I was amazed at the similarities the cab has to a Swiss locomotive. I drove Swiss locomotives for 33 years. Now I am binge watching your other videos. Thanks for the work you put into it.

possibly the greatest locomotive ever built. Dependable and powerful and the numbers built reflect that. Still going strong with good shop people in the mix. Cheers Rob

This is one of the best You Tube channels, this guy does everything on the Cumberlans Mine Railroad and has good video and narrating skills. It's something like Agent Jay Z, which is a big complement.

Thanks for the cab/control tour. Very interesting how controls have evolved! I started out on the 26L brake, but also got some time on the vintage 6L steam engine brake. Great memories. Thanks!

Fairly new subscriber. I love the inside information and how you explain things. So much to know with a railroad. Keep up the great videos! We all enjoy them.

Just ran across this one Dave. Awesome tour! Huge thanks! Very cool!..and that link you left another guy asking the difference between freight & passenger brake setting, was very informative. Thanks again!

Came across this outstanding videos it is right up my alley.GREAT JOB DAVE !!!!!!!

Thanks Dave.

I enjoyed the tour. Thank you for posting

Great video, thank you for posting!

Good morning to all from SE Louisiana 29 Sep 22.

Very cool Dave!!! Learned a bunch about the SD40-2 controls. Wow!! Thanks!!

That is the same EMD unit type one of my brothers worked on @ CSX down in Jacksonville. Pretty cool. Glad I found this one. Thanks for giving me a tour.

Thanks Dave. I had never seen inside of one of these cabs.

I was always wondering about isolating traction motors and you sir are the first to show me that on this medium. Plus didn’t know that only one traction motor gives you that amp reading and not all engaged with a computer sampling an average to that gauge. And they don’t take the reverser handle out anymore so us laymen can’t run it at all if we tried without that handle present. Must be a trusting shop on that front …and thanks for all you’ve offered up so far for us fans here on your channel. Long live the remaining SD40s!

This video is really cool. After watching it for about 6 times, I feel like I can go and engineer a train, lol ;)

Thank you, that’s a very comprehensive tour of the cab, interesting to see how accurate the Train Sim World 2 SD40-2 compares with the real deal, I’m a new subscriber and thoroughly enjoying your videos 👍🏻😁

wow thanks i was trying to get out of Uceta Yard

Thanks for the tour of the engine.

Great vid.....Huge fan of the SD40-2....We've had them run here in Australia....sweet locomotive...Thanks so much..

Excellent tour Dave ... I love them old SD 40-2's ...We'll get engine tour next time ... Thx ...

Thanks for putting this up.

Thanks man, this was my first time driving an SD40-2 all though it’s slightly different, the power fuses and stuff behind the drivers seat where different, this video helped me a lot, thanks so much for the video

Very good. Thank you!

Nice the sd40 has a old Pull valve train horn gotta loved those.

Very interesting video, I've always wondered what it looks like inside the engine. Thank you very much.

This is a really cool video, Happy New Year!!

Amazing awesome super Demo

Cool to see the inside.

Hi Dave! Just got around to watching this -- it's fascinating, of course! I should have learned something about this when I rode with Rodney, but I was too mesmerized!

When I was a young boy, I used to say when I grew up, I was going to be a locomotive engineer. My dad scoffed and said I was going to go to college. I never made it there

Just finished reading through the entire EMD GP38-2 Operator's Manual and since SD40-2 is pretty similar, sharing the 26L air brake controller and all, here's a couple of extra nuggets: The throttle handle's "STOP" position is supposed to shut down all engines in the entire consist. The automatic brake's "EMERGENCY" position also acts on the whole consist (and thus train), regardless of the MU-2(A) switch positions - yes, even from a trailing locomotive, which makes sense for an emergency, but I wonder if it would overrule a "SUPPRESSION" position in the lead locomotive…

Awe great stuff

Nice Video.

First time I ever saw the inside of a locomotive I was 2 years old. My family went all the way across the country to see my grandparents for a vacation at their home. I was too young to now remember all the details but I had a relative who ran a switcher locomotive. He took me to see it, started it up, sat me on his lap, and let me run it for something like a quarter mile on the yard. Aside from that all I remember is it was flat Grey and might have been an EMD SW7

Have you ever been to the Chicago rail yards? It’s really quite a sight. 30 tracks wide, shipping container loading, ethanol, coal, steel, you name it. I have a lot of clients in the area, many of which are right up against the tracks. Rail folk are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet. Always happy to chat.

So the alerter has replaced the deadman from the steam locomotive days. Thanks for the really interesting video as I grew up in a coal town in the same province as another Cumberland mine that was famous for all the wrong reasons.

Im a new engineer on a plant crew that we switch out. We run EMD GP40-3 locomotives with the same brake stand. I always thought that the OUT/FRT/PASS knob was cut out/front/pass as in by-pass. Now I know. Thanks!

Liked and subscribed.

Great Video. ! 👍 One day. Hanging around a SuzieQ SD40-2. I learned how to change all the brake shoes on the whole unit. Guessing that was the easiest part of Railroadin. LMAO. 😊😎

Very interesting, thank you! Now I understand a few things better. Some things are very similar to ours in Austria. 😀

Somewhat like a diesel-electric DC drilling rig, except it has a rheostat for speed control, and the gen sets load themselves according to power needed. They also have a regenerative brake connected to the drum, typically called a Dyna-Matic.

Air gauges: main reservoir - shows pressure in #2 main air reservoir. Normal pressure = 130-140 psi. At 150 psi. the safety valve should lift. Equalizing reservoir - shows pressure of the feed valve setting and responds to changes in the position of the brake valve handle (in this case schedule 26L) Most modern trains carry a 90 psi. feed valve setting. Brake pipe - shows the brake pipe pressure at the locomotive. The rear end of the train could be quite a bit lower but by law cannot be more than 15psi. difference. This pressure will respond to changes in the equalizing reservoir, but at a slower rate depending on brake pipe volume. (Bigger train = slower application rate) Brake cylinder - reflects the amount of air in the locomotive brakes only, as controlled by the independent brake valve. Depending on the locomotive brake set-up, relay valve piping, etc., the maximum pressure may be as low as 36 and as high as 72.

5:46 Who is John Galt?

Very very interesting! But can u do a video of turning on the bell? I didn’t hear it at all and would be appreciated

Let's roll. !!!

Good video! It would have good if you explained the dynamic brake system

Dave, can you give us a rundown on your experience with trains, thanks 👍

A lot of the controls are familiar but we don't have amp meters or dynamic brake control , it was on our 201 class but it was isolated.

Great video. Do these locomotives have a dead mans switch in them as well?

Next time, more in depth about the Pnuematic Switch.....what is it for and what doe's it do?

So with that trailing locomotive box by the radio does that only work with 1 trailing loco or can it work with multiple. say 3 engines tied together would setting the trailing dynamic dial set both trailing locos or just the one directly behind the engine?

Neat

I saw an old locomotive being started. The first thing that had to be done when cold starting was loosening the cylinder cocks and run the starter for a certain number of turns to blow any water out, close the cylinder cocks, then you could actually start the locomotive up. Does this step still need to be done on the newer locomotives, or does it happen automatically when you start up?

Very informative. My husband and I a new to model railroading. I want to learn all about the real railroads so that when we set up our layout we can follow the same rules real trains do. Do you have a similar video for Steam Engines?

6:29: Gotta fire up *Train Sim World 2* after work -- I don't think the _independent_ in the sim's SD 40 lets you _bail off_ in whatever position it's in -- I think it has to be fully released (all the way to the left) before I can bail-off.

How many channels are on the radio ? It looks like you have the road frequency and then there are other pairs of frequencies I would guess for in the mine, for loading, and for the barge operation Do you have a marine radio ? Do you have channel 16 for talking on the river ?

4:35 when you moved your finger, the gauge moved a couple notches, how'd you do that?

No comments on the dynamic brake?

I'm just curious, but do you have energize that knife switch that's next to that 400 amp breaker? Is that all DC? Thanks for sharing.

Great video! Are you able to fence the DPU with these SD40s?

Could a locomotive be outfitted to change track switches ahead of itself?

When you say "trailing locomotive" do you mean a DPU since multiple uits can be hooked up with MU cables

Mucho gracias. Now THIS is meat & potatoes rather than the usual bloody boring RU-vid fare.

How does the locomotive know which way is forward and reverse. Have seen engines pointing both ways running together. Do you have to flip a switch or does it automatically know.

Was this video shot while frame being repaired... No engine running...

Had to watch it about 10 times just to try and understand the brakes! Dynamic brakes? On the tractor trailer we had parking brakes for tractor or trailer (knobs), foot pedal for service brakes on both units or (steering column mounted) "trolley" brake handle for trailer-only. I do believe you have to be an octopus to do what you're doin'!

How long did this take to put together? Please respond ASAP

Good clip thanks. How old is this locomotive ?

What is the difference between the freight setting and passenger setting?

Alright, I'm ready to drive the train. Now where was the steering wheel again? 😉

Wow, see how sensitive the amperage gauge was?

So, having just watched this, if something should happen to the driver, I could step in and take over the controls! ( Just to be safe, I’ll watch it again.) …😁…

Do they still make dual control loco anymore.

That would be your Supply Gauge Second is your Application Gauge

Lots of things to do before starting a locomotive

Morning Dave, how RR going?

Knowing, by experience, the first thing to learn is about the brakes. They don't show up at stand still! The power thing does..... Imagine the feeling, when running, that You need to stop, but You don't find the brake control and "the wall" is coming closer..... I shorten how.... The "usual" trucks had "hanging" pedals, for the brakes and the clutch. A more modern truck had air brakes and the brake pedal was a flat little thing, the size of ladies hand bag mirror, down on the floor. Desperately kicking down somewhere where the brakes should sit the "adventure" ended well.... Being 17, no car driving license...

Is there a fridge in the cab?

When he touched the amp guage it went up.

What is your job at the railroad?

The 26 brake system is the best in my book.....mechanical not fly by wire like the 30CDW.

Has anyone commented about all the clutter in the main disconnect box?

4:40 how is that showing a load with the engine shutdown? That shouldn't be possible

Where's the steering wheel?

That Smart Start module looks so out of place in that panel!

Page 323 Loco means "crazy" in Spanish.

こちら日本の機関車より、 さらに多くのレバーが ありますです。

can't imagine anyone showing the 'public' anything about locomotive controls, except to stay away from locos and railroads.

Do you miss being an engineer?

Lots of indicators.... Looking at US trucks they have the entire panel full of indicators. The more indicators, the better? Never seen an European, Swedish truck, equipped like that. A master alarm, some sub alarms, that's all. Not much of automation in those creations.

You talk like you have no idea what you're talking about.

I didn't know Uhm was a word. Not a very good narrative.