Wednesday, May 24, 2017

New Haven EP-3 Motors

Motor #352 @  Danbury, Connecticut 1958  
Casey Cavanaugh Photo, Copyright NHRHTA Inc. Reproduced by Permission

General EP-3 Information

The successful New Haven class EP-3 motors built by General Electric were designed to pull 15 heavyweight passenger cars. Assembled during 1931 these were the first for the railroad with a 2-C+C-2 wheel arrangement and twin AC traction motors per driving axle, they were geared for 70 MPH. A large electric at 403,500 pounds and 77' long at the pulling faces. Steam for train heat was provided by a oil burning vertical boiler with a 1,800 gallon water capacity. Ten of these box cab design motors were built, NH road numbers 0351-0360, the "0" prefix was later eliminated from the road number in the 1950's when the car body was repainted in #13 Pullman green as pictured above.

Comprehensive EP-3 Information

More comprehensive EP-3 information can be found in the book, New Haven Power, by J. W. Swanberg.

A complete 34 page detailed history of the EP-3's authored by New Haven electric expert R. L. Abramson was published in the New Haven Railroad Historical & Technical Association magazine, Shoreliner, volume 34 issue #2, the issue cover is seen below.


This excellent issue is still available from the association via their web site www.nhrhta.org.

EP-3's at Danbury

During the mid 1950's era of the layout, the prototype EP-3's regularly pulled round trip passenger trains between Grand Central Terminal in New York, NY and Danbury, Connecticut. Motors assigned to these runs were also stored overnight and weekends at Danbury.

Modeling EP-3's are a must for the layout, building them will be the subject of the next post.

                                                       Modeled Motor #352 @ Danbury, Connecticut 1957

No comments:

Post a Comment