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The Alco C415, An Innovative But Failure Of A Design

The one and only switcher model of the Century series was the Alco C415, a bulky and boxy design that seemed massive for a switcher (it also produced a hefty amount of horsepower), much larger than EMD's sleeker SW line. The C415 was produced in the mid-1960s but by this time the American Locomotive Company's (Alco) credibility as a locomotive builder was dwindling and the model found little success. Additionally, the idea behind the model was somewhat perplexing; Alco attempted to market it as a combination switcher/road switcher. However, railroads were losing interest in switchers by the mid-1960s opting to save their money (and rightfully so) to employ first generation diesels in secondary, branch, and yard services. Due to the C415's poor sales it's amazing that any of these locomotives survive today. However, four are currently preserved, two of which are located here in the States.

The Alco C415, a center-cab design, began production in June, 1966 and offered a staggering 1,500 horsepower for a switcher using Alco's 251F prime mover (the builder's latest, and final, engine design). While Alco by this point typically sold its locomotives in a standard model, as EMD had been doing for years, the C415 did come with a few options such as differing cab heights for either clearance or increased visibility and two various truck setups (AAR or Alco's Hi-Ad). Built through the end of Alco's time as a locomotive builder the C415 seemed to epitomize the company's troubles. Just 26 units of the model were sold with the Rock Island and Southern Pacific accounting for 20 of those orders (ten apiece).

For whatever reason, Alco decided that there was still a demand for a switcher model in the latter 1960s even though by that time both General Electric and the Electro-Motive Division were concentrating most of their resources to new road switcher models. Of course, Alco intended the locomotive to be a dual purpose unit used in yard and main line freight service. Unfortunately, despite its rugged horsepower rating, improved prime mover, and hefty tractive effort (60,000 pounds starting, 42,000 pounds continuous) railroads were simply no longer interested in such a model considering they had entire fleets of first generation units to perform the very same functions.

Remaining loyal to Alco through the end, the SP and Rock both found multiple uses for their C415s and employed them in a wide range of various tasks. Additionally, the Chehalis Western, Columbia & Cowlitz, and Monongahela Connecting Railroad all picked up one apiece with the Spokane, Portland & Seattle picking up two (Alco also built one demonstrator, #415, which was eventually sold and shipped to Australian firm Hamersley Iron). Alco removed the C415 from its catalog by December, 1966 as the builder was simply having no success in remaining competitive with either GE or EMD.

By that date the company had fixed most of its reliability issues but simply could not earn back the respect of much of the industry. Additionally, Alco wasn't offering anything innovative or revolutionary, merely reacting to models being introduced by EMD and GE. Today, at least four Alco C415s remains preserved today with two located the United States; the Monongahela Connecting Railroad's #701 is located at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania while the Chehalis Western #684 is preserved at the Fife History Museum in Fife, Washington. For a total production roster of Alco C415s please click here. Also, for technical data on the model please click here. Also, for more information about the C415 and all Century series designs please refer to the chart below.

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Century Series

Model Type	Units Built	Date Built	Horsepower
C-415	26	1966-1968	1,500
C-420	131	1963-1968	2,000
C-424	190	1963-1967	2,400
C-425	91	1964-1966	2,500
C-430	16	1966-1968	3,000
C-628	186	1963-1968	2,750
C-630	133	1965-1969	3,000
C-636	83	1967-1968	3,600
C-643H	3 (Built For SP)	1964	4,300
C-855	3 (Built For UP)	1964	5,500

For a comprehensive look at the American Locomotive Company and all of the motive power types it built from steam, diesel, to electrics consider the book Alco Locomotives by Brian Solomon. Covering more than 175 pages Mr. Solomon's book details the history of Alco from its esteemed 4-6-4 Hudsons and 4-6-6-4 Challengers to vaunted RS and PA series diesel locomotives. If you have any interest in Alco this book is a must have!

Also consider Mike Schafer's Vintage Diesel Locomotives which looks at virtually all of the classic builders and models from Alco PAs to early EMD Geeps. If you’re interested in classic Alcos, or diesel locomotives in general, this book gives an excellent general history of both. If you're interested in perhaps purchasing either (or both) of these books please visit the links below which will take you to ordering information through Amazon.com, the trusted online shopping network.

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