GG-1 electric locomotive - real life MOC with LDD files

[Murdoch17]

The GG-1 was a class of electric locomotives built for the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) for use in the northeastern United States. 139 GG-1s were constructed by General Electric and PRR's Altoona Works from 1934 to 1943, although mine is used by Brick Railway Systems on the New York - Chicago route. The real GG-1"s never traveled that far west in service, due to the overhead wires ending at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

The GG-1's served under the PRR, then Penn Central, and onto Conrail and Amtrak, until finally a few went to New Jersey Transit, with some of these units served from 1935 on the PRR to to retiring with NJ transit in 1983. The model seen here is painted in this fictional Brick Railway Systems blue and red color scheme. This means the engine will be pulling some stretched 1980's style passenger car painted like the ones in sets 7715 / 7718. Unlike my previous model of a GG-1, this one has no interior details.

The engine features moving panto-graphs for picking up (imaginary) electricity from the overhead wires. They are both in the raised position here, though normally the one opposite the direction of travel would be used. The exception to this was if the rear panto-graph was knocked off or damaged by overhanging debris, which the engine would then have it's lead panto-graph raised in order to limp the the repair shop.

The loco features Anthony Sava's sliding middle axle design. This means the middle axle out of the three on the bogie closest to the middle of the loco slide laterally back and forth to allow the engine over switches and curves that would be normally to tight to maneuver. These special bogies are used twice of course: one for each half of the loco.

The two outer wheels closest to each end are connected to the inner bogies via cup-and-ball parts. This allows them to swing freely and not bind up while still representing the right amount of wheels for a GG-1 loco.

The coaches this engine will pull are inspired by train sets 7715 / 7718 from the 4.5 Volt era in the early to mid 1980's. The doors should be printed like these: http://alpha.brickli...Color=5#T=C&C=5 and http://alpha.brickli...e?P=4182p05#T=C I already have 75% of the parts for this model, including all but one door.

Here is the LDD file for the engine by itself: http://www.moc-pages...1461783587m.lxf

...and here is one with the coaches and engine: http://www.moc-pages...1461783797m.lxf

According to a Facebook comment made to my post on the LEGO Train Fan Club page, the engine I built look similar to this bi-centennial Conrail-era unit:

Comments, complaints and questions are always welcome!

(This page will be revised again when the cars are built In Real Life.)

Recently, I discovered this neat website on the GG-1's, called the GG-1 homepage, which was last updated in 2002. It features some cool stuff and hard to find info though so here is the link: http://www.spikesys.com/GG1/

Edited May 17, 2016 by Murdoch17

[dr_spock]

Nice 80's style. I have fond memories of the GG1 from being pulled into New York City by one. I think the headlight enclosure was bigger than a 1x1 stud.

[Murdoch17]

Nice 80's style. I have fond memories of the GG1 from being pulled into New York City by one. I think the headlight enclosure was bigger than a 1x1 stud.

Thanks. I wanted to make the headlight a 2 x 2 dish, but found it didn't look right, being slightly too big. Also, I am very jealous you got to ride behind a GG-1... it's something that may never happen again, as most locos' transformers were drained of their toxic coolant oil and possibly filled with sand or cement, though this may not be entirely true for all of them.

Edited May 6, 2016 by Murdoch17

[cgarison]

Nice work. With the red on the front, this could be the bloody nose Amtrak with some light bley bricks.

[Murdoch17]

Nice work. With the red on the front, this could be the bloody nose Amtrak with some light bley bricks.

--SNIP--

Thanks, that's a good idea... I'll have to think about that for a future model!

[wylan_1994]

The GG-1's are beautiful trains. Very nice job!

[Murdoch17]

The GG-1's are beautiful trains. Very nice job!

Thanks. They are very beautiful, but unfortunately I have only seen one in rather bad shape, the one at the St. Louis Museum of Transport: engine number 4918 / renumbered 4918 and painted plain black. They also happen to have the the last P-5 (prototype 4700), the PRR's precursor to the GG-1. It is and also in poor shape, but both engines are at least under cover of a open sided shed. I hope to see a GG-1 in better condtion someday, or at the best possible scenario, have both the P-5 and GG-1 restored to become painted and lighted static exhibits in a place of honor, not shoved on a back side-track well off the beaten path.

As a side note, I discovered this neat website on the GG-1's, called the GG-1 homepage, which was last updated in 2002, but features some cool stuff and hard to find info. Here is a link: http://www.spikesys.com/GG1/

[Murdoch17]

MAJOR Bump / Update : I am going to remodel my GG1 electric loco into a "bloody nose" or "Platinum Mist" Amtrak paint scheme from the late-1970's, as seen here with accompanying Amfleet passenger cars.

I don't think anyone has ever even attempted doing this paint scheme in LEGO before, so I guess I am the first to do so. The engine is going to be numbered 926, which matches up with a real loco preserved in this paint scheme in Syracuse, New York.

I'm even building some Amtrak passenger cars to go with this GG-1, and will put AMTRAK on the middle of the loco in printed 1 x 1 tiles along with the number 926 at both ends on each side.

 

Here are my WIP Amfleet cars... they need some refining, but it works for now.

Any thoughts?

[icemorons]

I love the GG-1 MOCs you've done!   That bloody nose paint scheme is quite fetching.   I remember seeing several GG-1 in the Harrison (NJ) yards as a child, as I passed by on the nearby highway.   I've always been rather enamored by the design.  Nice work!

[Murdoch17]

On 1/24/2018 at 6:15 PM, icemorons said:

I love the GG-1 MOCs you've done!   That bloody nose paint scheme is quite fetching.   I remember seeing several GG-1 in the Harrison (NJ) yards as a child, as I passed by on the nearby highway.   I've always been rather enamored by the design.  Nice work!

Thanks! I hope you like the newly-modified version seen below.

I just got finished changing the color scheme of the Amtrak train from white to light bluish gray as it matches the actual real-world "Phase I" (the "bloody nose GG-1 electric loco) and "Phase III" (the Amfleet tubular passenger train) paint schemes more closely. The passenger cars have also been modified into a cheaper-to-build format with regards to the roof and base slopes.

[Paperinik77pk]

Simple and effective design! Smooth as silk! 

I'd really like to see it in action!