BNSF 4258, a GE B23-7, on February 15, 2005 at Commerce, CA.
(By Matthew J. Brown (User:Morven) - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1443742, cropped)
GE B23-7 DIESEL-ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE
The GE B23-7 is a diesel locomotive model that was first offered by GE in late 1977. Featuring a smaller 12 cylinder version of the FDL engine, it is the successor to GE's U23B produced from early 1968 to mid 1977, but at 62 ft 2 in (18.95 m) long is exactly 2 ft 0 in (0.61 m). longer. It competed with the very successful EMD GP38-2. General Electric also produced a variant, the BQ23-7, No. 5130-5139, for the Seaboard Coast Line. A total of 537 B23-7's were built for 9 U.S. customers and 2 Mexican customers.
A B23-7A is a 12-cylinder B23-7 with horsepower boosted to 250 per cylinder or 3,000 horsepower. In 1980 the Missouri Pacific ordered three B23-7A's (Nos. 4667-4669, later UP Nos. 257-259) and tested them system-wide. The result was the GE model B30-7A, B30-7 with a 12-cylinder FDL prime mover. They were not renumbered into the B30-7A series on the MP because they lacked Sentry Wheel Slip and had different engine governors.
13 B23-7's were built by GE of Brazil in Dec.1979 for United South Eastern Railways (FUS) Nos. 522-524 and National Railways of Mexico (NdeM) Nos. 9130-9139. 17 B23-7s were built from GE kits in Mexico as Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México Nos. 10047-10052 and no.12001-12011.
Southern Railway's 54 units had Southern's "standard" high-short-hoods.
Southern Pacific GE B23-7 5111 at Tucson, Arizona, circa January, 1986. Photographer: Craig Garver.
General Electric B23-7's were common, but not on the Southern Pacific, which bought just fifteen in December, 1980.
This and the 45 EMD GP38-2's were bought for secondary trains in Texas and were never common this far west. But, all good
things seemed to come to Tucson on SP, eventually. SP 5111 was assigned UP 196 in the merger
but not actually renumbered. It became UPY 2644 on April 29, 2007.
(Craig Garver, Public domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalrailartist/50334240302/)
Original owners
| Owner | Quantity | Numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway | 69 | 6350-6418 | 6405-6418 last B23-7s builtTransferred to BNSF |
| Conrail | 141 | 1900-2023, 2800-2816 | 2800-2816 first B23-7s builtThree sold to Metro-North, others split between CSX & NS. |
| Ferrocaril Unidos del Sureste | 3 | 522- 524 | |
| Louisville and Nashville Railroad (Family Lines) | 15 | 5115-5129 | Transferred to CSX |
| Missouri Pacific Railroad | 85 | 2289-2358, 4670-4684 | 2289-2358 renumbered to 4600-4669Transferred To Union Pacific |
| Ferrocarriles Nacionales de México | 122 | 1-01-1-08, 9130-9180, 10001-10052, 12000-12011 | |
| Providence and Worcester | 1 | 2201 | Transferred to Railroad Museum of New England for parts |
| Seaboard Coast Line Railroad (Family Lines) | 29 | 5100-5114, 5130-5139 (BQ23-7), 5140-5153 | |
| Southern Railway | 54 | 3970-4023 | High Hoods. Transferred to NS |
| Southern Pacific Railroad | 15 | 5100-5114 | |
| Texas Utilities | 2 | 3306–3307 |
Conrail GE B23-7 1944 at Neff Yard on the Union Pacific, Kansas City, Missouri, March, 1989. Photographer: Craig Garver.
(Craig Garver, Public domain, https://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalrailartist/51693598369/)
Overview
Type and origin
Power type: Diesel-electric
Builder: GE Transportation Systems GE de Brazil
Model: B23-7
Build date: SEP 1977 – DEC 1984
Total produced: U.S. - 412 units; Mexico - 125 units.
Specifications
Configuration: AAR B-B
Gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge; 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in), Brazil
Length: 62 ft 2 in (18.95 m)
Prime mover: GE FDL-12
Engine type: V12 diesel
Cylinders: 12
Performance figures
Power output: 2,250 hp (1,680 kW)
Career
Nicknames: B-boat
References
