EMD GP7

ALCO, Fairbanks-Morse, and Baldwin had all introduced road switchers before EMD, whose first attempt at the road-switcher, the BL2 was unsuccessful in the market, selling only 58 units in the 14 months it was in production.[7] Its replacement, the GP7, swapped the truss-framed stressed car body for an un-stressed body on a frame made from flat, formed and rolled structural steel members and steel forgings welded into a single structure (a "weldment"), a basic design which is still being employed today. In heavy service, the GP7’s frame would bow and sag over time.[8] This defect was corrected in later models.

The GP7 proved very popular, and EMD was barely able to meet demand, even after opening a second assembly plant at Cleveland, Ohio. Later, locomotives in EMD's GP-series came to be nicknamed ‘Geeps’. Many GP7s both high and short-hood can still be found in service today on shortline railroads and industrial operators. Although most Class 1 roads stopped using these locomotives by the 1980s some remain in rebuilt form on some major Class I railroads, as switcher locomotives.. The "GP" designation stood for "general purpose", while the "7" had no meaning other than matching the EMD F7 cab unit then in production.

The GP7, GP9 and GP18 locomotives share a similar car-body that evolved over time. Most GP7s had three sets of ventilation grills under the cab (where the GP9 only had one), and two pair of grills at the end of the long hood (where only the pair nearest the end was retained on the GP9).[2] However, some late GP7s were built with car-bodies that were identical to early GP9s. Early GP7s had a solid skirt above the fuel tank, while late GP7s and early GP9s had access holes in the skirt (see photo of Illinois Terminal 1605, top left). Many railroads later removed most of the skirt to improve access and inspection.

Locomotives could be built with the engineer’s control stand installed for either the long hood, or the short hood designated as the front. Two control stands for either direction running was also an option, but one end would still be designated as the front for maintenance purposes. The GP7 was also available with or without dynamic brakes, and a steam generator installed in the short hood was also an option. In the latter case, the 1,600-US-gallon (6,100 L; 1,300 imp gal) fuel tank was divided, with half for diesel fuel, and half for boiler water. One option available for locomotives without dynamic brakes, was to remove the two 22.5 in × 102 in (570 mm × 2,590 mm)[9] air reservoir tanks from under the frame, and replace them with four 12 in × 150.25 in (305 mm × 3,816 mm)[4] tanks that were installed on the roof of the locomotive, above the prime mover. These "torpedo tubes" as they were nicknamed, enabled the fuel and water tanks to be increased to 1,100 US gallons (4,200 L; 920 imp gal) each, although some railroads opted for roof-mounted air tanks and 2,200-US-gallon (8,300 L; 1,800 imp gal)[10] fuel tanks on their freight ‘Geeps’.

There are five GP7s on A J Kristopan's EMD Serial number page that reused previous serial numbers: B&O 6405 (preserved), CRI&P 1308 (2nd), L&N 501 (2nd) and 502 (2nd), and SLSF 615 (2nd). These rebuilt units were rebuilt as new on new frames. Another rebuild by GMD is that CN 4824 was rebuilt as a GP7 with parts from an F3A in October 1958.

Over 100 GP7s and four of the GP7Bs were built with 567BC or 567C engines starting in March 1953 through May 1954. These are noted on the roster above.

Many railroads rebuilt their GP7s with low short hoods; some railroads went further in their rebuilding than others. Missouri Pacific Railroad upgraded their GP7s with 567BC engines (a B-block upgraded to C-block specs) and replaced the standard EMD 2-stack exhaust with a 4-stack "liberated" exhaust, raising their power output to 1,600 horsepower (1.19 MW).[13]

Illinois Central Railroad rebuilt most of its GP7s with 567BC engines, 4-stack exhausts, paper air-intake filters, 26-L brakes (their original 6-BL brakes made them operationally incompatible with locomotives fitted with 24-RL brakes).[14] All but the first locomotive rebuilt had their front (short) hood reduced in height for improved crew visibility. The IC designated these rebuilt locomotives GP8. The IC acquired many second-hand units through Precision National Corporation (PNC), and then started offering their GP8/GP10 rebuilding services to other railroads through their Paducah Shops (note, a rebuilt "Paducah Geep" was designated a GP8 or GP10 depending on the power output of the rebuilt engine, not necessarily what it was rebuilt from).

In 1960 the Alaska Railroad purchased a dozen GP7Ls from the US Army and rebuilt eleven of them in 1965 with low short hoods for better visual clearance. One of the ten remaining Alaska GP7s was rebuilt by Morrison-Knudsen in 1976. The other nine units were rebuilt at Paducah Shops in 1976-1977.

Canadian Pacific Railway rebuilt their GP7 fleet in the early 1980's as GP7u units for yard service, including a chopped short hood, new numberboards and front cab windows, and upgrading the 567B prime movers with 645 power assemblies and to "BC" engine block specs (some upgraded with 567C engine blocks out of retired F-units).

Georgia Railroad 1026, an EMD GP7 -- on permanent display in Duluth, Georgia.

Numerous GP7s have been preserved on tourist lines and in museums. Holders include:

• List of GM-EMD locomotives
• List of GMD Locomotives

Wikimedia Commons has media related to EMD GP7 locomotives.

• "The History of EMD Diesel Engines". Pacific Southwest Railway Museum. Archived from the original on July 22, 2014. Retrieved December 14, 2005.
• "Illinois Central Railroad 1969 locomotive diagram book". icgphotos.com. Retrieved September 2, 2008.
• "Northern Pacific Railway diesel locomotive diagrams". Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association website. Retrieved September 2, 2008.
• Dorin, Patrick C. (1972). Chicago and North Western Power. Burbank, California: Superior Publishing. pp. 106–107. ISBN 0-87564-715-4.
• Ephraim, Max Jr. (June 1995). "The Beloved Geep". Trains. 55 (6): 44–47. ISSN 0041-0934.
• Kristopans, A. J. "EMD 567 road switchers serial number webpage". Retrieved September 1, 2008.
• Kristopans, A. J. "General Motors Diesel Division (Canada) serial number webpage". Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2008.
• http://utahrails.net/ajkristopans/GMEXPORT2_22-Sep-2015_update.txt Export GP7 serial numbers
• Marre, Louis A.; Jerry A. Pinkepank (1989). The Contemporary Diesel Spotter's Guide. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing Company. ISBN 0-89024-088-4.
• Pinkpank, Jerry A (1973). The Second Diesel Spotter's Guide. Kalmbach Books. pp. 12, 26, 52–56. ISBN 0-89024-026-4.
• Schrenk, Lorenz P.; Robert L. Frey (1988). Northern Pacific Diesel Era (1945–1970). San Marino, California: Golden West Books. ISBN 0-87095-102-5.

EMD Product Reference Data Card dated January 1, 1959 has the 567BC and 567C engine data used in the as-built roster.