A Big Mac with Fries!

Seems as though I created some Internet traffic when I found dozens of photos on a posting site incorrectly identifying ALCo S1’s, S2’s, and so forth. There is no mystery in being correct about what type of early ALCo switcher you are looking at. Look at the trucks and wheel sets. And look at the front radiator: Is it narrow or square? The Blunt truck, seen in this example, was proprietary to ALCo - no other locomotive rides on this truck. Period.

Blunt truck? S-1 or S-2. AAR truck? S-3 or S-4. See how easy that was?

Well don’t feel bad if you’ve misread some units. Heck, nowadays, I don’t know if I’m looking at a “Big Mac” or an SD90MAC!