41:
Alco management was very disappointed with the progress of the 241 engine tests at Auburn. Alco created a new diesel engine engineering team at
Schenectady, New York and began a new diesel engine design. This new diesel engine was called the 244 and it would have the same 9 inch by 10.5 inch bore and stroke as the 241 engine. To avoid the problems caused by the expensive to build 241 engine, the 244 was rushed into production at Auburn, New York without an extensive and lengthy testing process. Alco began negotiations with the government to purchase buildings 144, 145, and 149 at Schenectady, New York. These buildings were built in 1941 for war production. Alco needed these additional facilities to begin diesel engine and diesel locomotive manufacturing at Schenectady.
52:. Based on testing of the 241, General Electric redesigned their turbocharger used on the engine. In August 1945, the first completed engines were released for testing. The first Auburn built 12V-244 engine was shipped to Schenectady on October 22, 1945. The second engine followed on November 13. One of these engines was put on a 600 hour test inside Building 37 at Schenectady. The test started on November 23 and concluded on December 17 with six shutdowns to fix minor problems. Positive test results were reported at an Alco sales meeting conducted December 17th through 20th. Production of the first FA-1s and FB-1 commenced before the testing of the 244 engine was completed.
80:
crankshafts, the new forged versions continued to fail, particularly in the 12-cylinder engines; this problem was traced to metallurgical flaws in components from a supplier. Flaws in welding main bearing saddles to the engine block resulted in about 600 blocks replaced, while both the saddles and bearings themselves required redesign and replacement. GE air-cooled RD-1 turbocharger assemblies also required repeated redesign of both manifolds and turbines. By early 1948, ALCO had spent $ 4.3 million on field repairs and modifications of 244 engines. In 1950, the first engines with upgrades new from the factory, dubbed the 244D, were installed in locomotives, beginning with the
76:. The Gulf Mobile and Ohio RR had a standing order with Alco for 80 freight diesels. The 244 engines that were first installed in locomotives for testing were V12 designs of 1500 horsepower for the first FA-1s and FB-1. The January 1946 production of the first three demonstrators and another FA-1 was halted by a steel strike by mid month. Additional FA-1 locomotives were not completed until May 1946. The 16 Cylinder 244 engines installed in the first PA-1 and PB-1 were delayed until late June 1946. The new road switchers, the RS-2 and RSC-2 were delayed several months while the hi-rise manifold was redesigned to allow for a lower long hood.
84:. In 1953, the RD-1 and RD-2 turbochargers were replaced with GE water-cooled RD-3 and RD-4 models, followed the next year by ALCO-designed and built 510 and 710 turbos. This corresponded with the refinement of the 244 to versions 244G and 244H. The Alco 244H engine is also known as the Alco 250 engine. This was done by Alco to disassociate the 250 from the troublesome 244 engine. The 250 was produced for a short time from 1955 into 1956. It was also used as a standard to rebuild older 244 engines at Schenectady.
63:. Friday January 4, 1946, was the date the demonstrators were photographed at Alco's Schenectady Assembly Plant. The demonstrators units were released for testing on the D&H Railroad on Wednesday January 9, 1946. In mid-1946, the cast iron crankshafts used in the initial run of engines were replaced with a new forged steel crankshaft.
40:
In early 1944, with the 241 engine undergoing testing, design work began on the 244; later that year, ALCO management appropriated the program separate funding, and subsequently chose to commit to bringing the 244 to production as soon as possible, dropping plans to use the 241 in commercial service.
79:
Due to the speed with which the 244 engine was moved from design to production, engines failed in service with high frequency in 1946 and 1947. For example the first 20 of the 244 engines installed in GM&O freight units had to be rebuilt with new forged crankshafts. Despite the redesign of
28:
diesel engine, it powered ALCO's first generation of production road locomotives. The 244 engine was developed to create an engine capable of being used in railroad freight and passenger locomotives. The 244 engine was also used in a very limited basis as a
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In 1949, in the midst of continued failures of 244 engines, ALCO engineers began work on a clean-sheet diesel engine. After an extended testing period, in 1956 the company introduced a new line of locomotives powered by the new engine, named the
71:
Six new Alco road diesels were introduced in 1946 built around the 244 engine. These were the FA-1, FB-1, PA-1, PB-1, RS-2 and RSC-2.. In late 1945, the 244A went into production with the 12 cylinder at
111:
The 244 engine was still used in higher-end power generation packages until it too was replaced by 251-engined power generation equipment in 1956.
496:
Extra 2200 South Issue #38 January
February 1973 "Technifocus In Logical Progression . . . . The FA1 by W. A. Cuisinier (Preston Cook) pp. 20-23.
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Initially, major differences between the 241 and 244 included an engine block modified for mass production, redesigned
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108:(1,190 kW) version of the 244 engine was used in Alco's high end power generation for a short time.
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510:
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were completed in
January 1946, followed in June by the first 16-cylinder versions for the
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The first 12-cylinder 244 engines destined for commercial service in the
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The
American Locomotive Company: A Centennial Remembrance
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482:. Warren, NJ: On Track Publishers, LLC.
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20:was a diesel prime mover built by the
92:, marking the end of 244 production.
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24:(ALCO). An evolution of the earlier
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499:Andy Inserra's Alco Export List
478:Steinbrenner, Richard (2003).
1:
538:American Locomotive Company
22:American Locomotive Company
631:
563:McIntosh & Seymour 538
558:McIntosh & Seymour 531
405:Steinbrenner, page 283-284
387:Steinbrenner, page 253-261
360:Steinbrenner, page 250-251
342:Steinbrenner, page 330-331
35:stationary power generator
615:Diesel locomotive engines
67:Alco's 1946 Diesel Line
61:PA passenger locomotives
547:McIntosh & Seymour
464:Steinbrenner, page 354
455:Steinbrenner, page 351
446:Steinbrenner, page 299
437:Steinbrenner, page 288
428:Steinbrenner, page 284
419:Steinbrenner, page 283
396:Steinbrenner, page 254
378:Steinbrenner, page 245
351:Steinbrenner, page 226
104:designs of 1,600
57:FA freight locomotives
115:244 locomotive uses
33:in ships and as a
31:marine power plant
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48:, and redesigned
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96:Power generation
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255:, MLW DL-500.
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128:Locomotive(s)
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50:main bearings
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550:(Subsidiary)
489:0911122-07-9
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472:Bibliography
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253:ALCO DL-500A
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122:Engine type
325:References
249:ALCO FCA-3
125:Power (hp)
579:ALCO 539T
330:Footnotes
609:Category
594:ALCO 251
589:ALCO 244
584:ALCO 241
18:ALCO 244
540:(ALCO)
486:
245:RSC-24
143:RSC-24
316:RSD-7
299:RSD-7
241:RS-10
237:MRS-1
233:RSD-5
229:RSD-4
225:RSC-3
217:RSC-2
209:RSD-1
172:RSC-2
572:ALCO
484:ISBN
312:2400
309:244H
307:V-16
295:PB-2
291:PA-2
287:2250
284:244G
282:V-16
274:PB-1
270:PA-1
266:2000
261:V-16
221:RS-3
213:RS-2
205:RS-1
201:FB-2
197:FA-2
193:FB-1
189:FA-1
185:1600
182:244C
180:V-12
168:RS-2
164:FB-1
160:FA-1
156:1500
151:V-12
139:1400
134:V-12
102:V-12
100:The
82:RS-3
16:The
263:244
153:244
136:244
90:251
26:241
611::
410:^
365:^
318:.
301:.
297:,
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276:.
272:,
251:,
247:,
243:,
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207:,
203:,
199:,
195:,
191:,
174:.
170:,
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162:,
145:.
106:hp
37:.
526:e
519:t
512:v
492:.
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