my ESPEE MODELERS ARCHIVE

California's Railroad to the U.S. 1861 - 1996

Southern Pacific SD45X

9500 - 9505

6 units delivered

SP bought 3 experimental EMD 4200hp SD45X's #9500 - 9502, during 1970, and tested them for EMD in the Sierra's. These came painted in standard SP paint, and SP light packages. Later SP bought another 3 from EMD, and they came in EMD Demonstrator blue and white, numbered 4201 - 4203, and also having full SP light packages, these were eventually repainted to red and gray, and renumbered 9503 - 9505. EMD kept one other #5740, that they had built, for use as a continuing testbed. 4203 was still in Demo paint as at 1979.

These units basically developed the Dash-2 features, having the modular control circuits and the HTC trucks, as well as other Dash-2 enhancements.

In November 1970, three units #9500, 9501 and #4201 were fitted with round top 'elephant ears' to continue the testing of cooling air problems in tunnels.

References:

• SP Dieselization by John Bonds Garmany - Pages 370 to 372.
• SP in Color Vol.4