Division Point Division Point North

Diesel Project
~ Ongoing ~
Fairbanks-Morse logo®

Fairbanks-Morse
Yard and Road Locomotives

In the early 1930s Fairbanks-Morse (F-M) began development of a medium-speed heavy-duty diesel engine, for light weight and minimum space requirements. The effort resulted in the opposed-piston (O-P) diesel engine. First used in a small group of motor cars, during World War II, the F-M engines powered over half of the U.S. Navy's submarine fleet. After the war, F-M re-entered the railroad market, with yard switchers and the Erie-built cab road locomotives. In 1947, F-M released the H20-44 and the H15-44 road locomotives. These were followed in 1949 by the Consolidation line (C-Liners) cab-type road locomotives for freight or passenger service.

Introduced when cab units were falling out of favor, the C-Liners sold poorly. The H15-44 was upgraded to the H16-44 in 1950, with the CN&W's first six-axle H16-66s being delivered in 1951. The next effort was the 2400-hp six-axle H24-66 "Train Master", first demonstrated in 1953. All during the late 1940s and early 1950s, Fairbank-Morse continued turning out H10-44 and H12-44 yard switchers.

While most of the F-M products were were built at their Beloit facilities, their subsidiary Canadian Locomotive Company also built many locomotives. CLC also produced the unusual H16-64 A-1-A-trucked locomotives for the Canadian National. The Canadian locomotives came equipped with differing appliances than their U.S. siblings

Having already produced the H44-66, the Division Point will further offer a wide range of the Fairbanks-Morse locomotives. We will be listing most of the roads' variants for your consideration, and we await your feedback! Target delivery is 2008 for the H16-66s. Just as our EMD F-units, this will be an ongoing project! Call your Division Point dealer!

We are indebted to those folks who publish the information and photos we need. We urge you to buy their books and photos. Dave Sweetland's book has terrifically helpful!
  • Train Master: The Most Useful Locomotive Ever Built by David R. Sweetland (Withers Publishing; Halifax, PA)
  • H15-44 and H16-44: Fairbanks-Morse's Distinctive Road Switchers by David R. Sweetland (Withers Publishing; Halifax, PA)
  • Erie-builts and H20-44: Fairbanks-Morse's 2,000-Horsepower Pioneers by David R. Sweetland (Withers Publishing; Halifax, PA)
  • Fairbanks-Morse Locomotives in Color by Jim Boyd (Morning Sun Books; Edison, NJ)
  • The Diesel Builders (Vol. 1): Fairbanks-Morse and Lima-Hamilton by John F. Kirkland (Interurban Press; Glendale, CA)
  • The Second Diesel Spotter's Guide by Jerry A. Pinkepank (Kalmbach Books; Milwaukee, WI)