Western Railroad Discussion > Identification Help: UP SD9043MAC

To clear room for new orders, UP has renumbered their remaining SD9043MAC's into the #3470-#3775 range, ending just 3 numbers below the lowest-numbered SD70M, the #3778 (ex-#4141 [1st]).  Now, I did some searching, but I couldn't find the former #8xxx-series number for one of these renumbered units which I saw at Viento State Park (on the ex-OSL Portland Sub) the other week: the #3733.  If anyone knows the former number for the #3733, this would be very helpful!  Thanks in advance!

UP8305. 
 

Rainier_Rails Wrote:
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> To clear room for new orders, UP has renumbered
> their remaining SD9043MAC's into the #3470-#3775
> range, ending just 3 numbers below the
> lowest-numbered SD70M, the #3778 (ex-#4141
> [1st]).  Now, I did some searching, but I
> couldn't find the former #8xxx-series number for
> one of these renumbered units which I saw at
> Viento State Park (on the ex-OSL Portland Sub) the
> other week: the #3733.  If anyone knows the
> former number for the #3733, this would be very
> helpful!  Thanks in advance!

The renumberings ended up covering UP 3470 up to UP 3777, although not all the numbers in between are used, and renumberings did not occur in numerical order.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/30/15 11:55 by ble692.

And most of the lower new numbers have now gone to NS.

Bill Miller
Galt, ON

Thanks for all the info!

While we're at it, would anyone happen to know what numbers UP 3612 & UP 3657 used to be? 

wesleygreer Wrote:
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> While we're at it, would anyone happen to know
> what numbers UP 3612 & UP 3657 used to be? 

UP 3612 is ex-UP 8143
UP 3657 is ex-UP 8251

The renumbering plan originally was going to keep the units for a particular order in a block, although not in order within that block. For example, the 1997 order of SD9043AC's, UP 8075-8178, was to be renumbered to UP 3544-3646. Within that particular group of units the renumberings were going to be all over the place in no real order, but at least the 1997 order would still be in a single block when it was done. Well all that was a good plan, and they did follow it for a while, but then it went out the window and they just started throwing them where ever there was a convenient number without any real thought of grouping similar units together. As it stands now, what was originally the highest numbered SD9043AC on the roster, UP 8308, has ended up being renumbered to one of the lowest numbered units as UP 3557, while the next lowest originally numbered unit, UP 8307, has become UP 3754. Go figure that plan out.

Does the UP see these units for the long term? I maybe think not, which possibly explains this rather haphazard renumbering. Of course, they are in the process of offloading 100 to NS, which should help create a few more gaps