Nathan P01235 and P3 Train Horns
The Nathan P01235 was one of the train horns that also used a low profile P-manifold evident among the P5's. The P01235 was introduced in 1974 at yet another client's special request. Amtrak's Don Tead needed a horn that will use the large O bell that would replace the #4 bell. The O Bell sounded pretty much the same as with the #4 bell. The only difference was that the O bell was an octave lower.
The train horn was intended for Amtrak's two large purchases; the E60CP and the E60CH locomotives. For the P01235, nobody knows of a shorthand. P-series O, 1, 2, 3, and 5 bells are used by the horn. It had an original tune of A major dominant 7th (C7).
Don Tead took a liking to the low profile manifold (or base) that was designed for P5a's and P5's just after the mid-1970. He thought that the design would be perfect for his two newly ordered GE electrics locomotives. The train horn could only be seen on the Amtrak E60's. Its uniqueness will undoubtedly vanish,after Amtrak will retire the last of the E60's.
The Nathan P3 Train Horn
Short for P124, the Nathan P3 train horn was first produced in 1952 as another alternative for the P5's. The P3 was very well known for its castings that took a rather innovative change over its development. This was to calibrateminimal variations in sound using only three bells as compared to the P5's. The P3 is usually found on Northern pacific, Southern Pacific and Illinois Central locomotives. Some of the P3's were also mounted on the Spokane Portland and Seattle locomotives, and commercially, on several other eastern railroads.
A few of its old castings can still be heard on older Southern Pacific, Illinois Central and BN trains. The new casting P3 train horns were usually found on former Southern Pacific and Illinois Central units. Known to be a Leslie train horn user, Union Pacific also installed a few over their trains. Union Pacific recently purchased an AirChime K3HA, but reversely, also bought P3's on some of its latest models. On its 4000-series line, the P3 were found on the SD70M in early 2000.
The P3 also boasted a usual physical design. The horn bells were arranged with the #1 bell reversed; because of this the architecture was called P24R1. The p3 also uses the P5 manifold as with its P5 predecessors. P5 used 5 bells with 5 openings, so we would assume that the P3 would have two of its openings blanked. A lot of the P3's were engineered in this fashion. The rest of its arrangement was fairly common.
The sound was fairly common with a factory tune of A Major (A). This key can be heard from several train horns including some of the P-series. But the newer casting P3's produced a completely different D Minor key (Dm) which was a slight variation from its original design. Generally, the P3 offered a relatively conventional design and sound that was popular in the early 50's and still commonly used today.
