Prototype for the Santa Fe and BNSF?

[jonwil]

Does anyone know what locomotive models the Santa Fe and the BNSF are based on?

 

[Modeltrainman]

The BNSF loco is a GP-38-2, the Santa Fe Super Chief is, I believe, an E unit.(Thanks, Wikipedia.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Chief (I personally wanted to say an F unit, but I'm not sure how to tell. More of a steam guy.

[dr_spock]

2 hours ago, Modeltrainman said:

The BNSF loco is a GP-38-2, the Santa Fe Super Chief is, I believe, an E unit.(Thanks, Wikipedia.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Chief (I personally wanted to say an F unit, but I'm not sure how to tell. More of a steam guy.

E units have 3 axle trucks. F units have 2 axle trucks.

 

[zephyr1934]

The BNSF was numbered for this locomotive.

While the Super Chief was numbered for an F3

and an F7

All of the A units of the F series had two porthole windows on one side while the A units of the E series were longer and had four porthole windows.

[ivanlan9]

While 301 is certainly an F7, No 27 might have been built as an F3, but its side panels are bog-standard F7.  The F3 (which indeed came in phases) is perhaps best exemplified by GM&O 800B: 

Personally, I rather prefer the industrial look of the F3s, even though the F7s and 9s in warbonnet are seemingly more popular, possibly because of the more streamlined appearance.  I'll take what I can get, of course.

[zephyr1934]

Oh yeah, that's right, Phase I of the F3a's did have 3 portholes (as per the GM&O picture), while Phase IV F3a's were delivered with stainless steel grills that looked very similar to F7's (more general f unit info here). The middle porthole was replaced in the F3a Phase II with vent holes to improve cooling in the A units, but for some reason the need never arose in the B units, so the F7b's still had the three portholes. Somewhere I have a link to page that has an exhaustive list of minute difference between ATSF f units.