Fairbanks Morse got into the locomotive business through submarine engines. FM's unique opposed-piston diesel engine powered about half the U.S. Navy's World War II submarine fleet and developed a great reputation for reliability; the adaptation to railroad equipment during and after the war seemed like a natural transition.

 

In the opposed-piston motor, each cylinder had a piston at either end and the combustion chamber in the middle. There were no valves or cylinder heads. Intake and exhaust occurred through holes in the cylinder walls. The upper and lower banks of pistons each powered a separate crankshaft, and the two crankshafts were linked together to power the locomotive. While this sounds like a complex way to build an engine, the OP diesel in fact had several advantages over a conventional motor: less moving parts, terrific acceleration, and about double the horsepower per cylinder.

 

FM had tooled up to produce its first diesel-electric, a 1000 hp switcher, when World War II intervened, and its entire production of OP engines was requisitioned for submarine service. The War Production Board allowed FM to build one prototype locomotive in 1944, and the H10-44 was born. With a high hood like all subsequent FM locomotives — to clear the tall OP motor — and styling polished by industrial designer Raymond Loewy of Pennsy GG1 fame, the muscular H10-44 made FM a new contender in the nascent diesel locomotive business. In the postwar market, with railroads clamoring for new power to replace their war-weary fleets, FM’s plant worked at capacity filling H10-44 orders from a dozen Class 1 railroads and many short lines as well. Did You Know? In the H10-44 model name, "H" stood for hood type construction, "10" indicated 1000 horsepower, and "44" indicated 4 axles, 4 motors.

 

 

Intricately Detailed Durable ABS Body

Die-Cast Truck Sides, Pilots and Fuel Tank

Metal Chassis

Metal Handrails and Horn

(2) Handpainted Engineer Cab Figures

Authentic Paint Scheme

Metal Wheels, Axles and Gears

(2) Remote Controlled Proto-Couplers

Prototypical Rule 17 Lighting

Directionally Controlled Constant voltage LED Headlights

Lighted LED Cab Interior Light

(2) Precision Flywheel-Equipped Motors

Operating ProtoSmoke Diesel Exhaust

Onboard DCC/DCS Decoder

Locomotive Speed Control In Scale MPH Increments

1:48 Scale Proportions

Proto-Sound 3.0 With The Digital Command System Featuring Freight Yard Proto-Effects

Unit Measures: 13” x 2 5/8” x 3 3/4”

Operates On O-31 Curves Diesel DCC Features

F0 Head/Tail light

F1 Bell

F2 Horn

F3 Start-up/Shut-down

F4 PFA

F5 Lights (except head/tail)

F6 Master Volume

F7 Front Coupler

F8 Rear Coupler

F9 Forward Signal

F10 Reverse Signal

F11 Grade Crossing

F12 Smoke On/Off

F13 Smoke Volume

F14 Idle Sequence 3

F15 Idle Sequence 2

F16 Idle Sequence 1

F17 Extended Start-up

F18 Extended Shut-down

F19 Rev Up

F20 Rev Down

F21 One Shot Doppler

F22 Coupler Slack

F23 Coupler Close

F24 Single Horn Blast

F25 Engine Sounds

F26 Brake Sounds

F27 Cab Chatter

F28 Feature Reset

Want More MTH O Scale Diesel Engines? Click Here!

 

Order Due Date: May 31, 2022

Anticipated Delivery Date: December 2022