For Pennsy Fans: FF2s

[ricksan]

As many of you know, in 1956 the Great Northern Railway installed a ventilation system in the Cascade Tunnel, making it feasible to operate diesel-driven trains through it. That in turn ended the need for electric locomotives, and along with them, the 70+ miles of electrification between Wenatchee and Skykomish. GN then sold its fleet of eight Y-1 electric locomotives to the Pennsylvania Railroad, which PRR designated as class FF2.

One of the Y-1s had been damaged in an accident during the GN days and PRR used it as a parts source, numbering the other engines 1 through 7. The locomotives were repainted in PRR's Brunswick Green scheme with gold lettering. PRR also removed the massive overhead bus bars, but left the headlights and bells where they had previously been relocated by GN. And due to clearance issues, PRR also blocked off the side access doors and removed their associated steps and grab-irons.

PRR used the FF2s in helper service along some lesser branch lines east of Harrisburg, not far from the Main Line. Here's an FF2 working somewhere on the NEC route.

FF2_RWA.jpg

The FF2 is now available in the RWA file library. Although it's a free download, you'll need the Cascadian route in order for it to work properly. The loco will show up as "PRR FF2 Locomotive" in the scenario editor menu, and it should also show up in your Quick Drive menu.

Due to the lack of catenary-height standardization from one route to another, the FF2 pantographs may not exactly make contact with the overhead wires in some routes, though it's usually not noticeable. This is not something you can fix, though I can if somebody builds a Main Line route!

Many thanks to to long-time PRR modeler Tom Pearce for his input to this project.