Katy's "Texas Special" train No. 1, southbound, is headed by Frisco's No. 2006 Traveller EMD EA7 (edit: E8?) diesel unit as it departs from Dallas. Plummer, Roger S.["Texas Special" departing from Dallas], photograph, April 14, 1952; (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth28799/: accessed April 11, 2018),University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Museum of the American Railroad.
Ken, What E7's where modified to look like E8's? Where the side windows round instead of the stock square? and whatever else they did? John
All of them were converted... Ken posted this article from June 1950 All Aboard http://www.frisco.org/shipit/index.php?threads/e7s-made-into-horses.6760/ Aside from the cosmetic changes, they were re-geared from 100 mph to 85 mph, and the electro-pneumatic brakes were disabled.
John - Karl is correct (as always!) in all he posted above about the conversion of the six Frisco E7's (two originally for the Texas Special, SLSF 2000 & 2003, and four for the Meteor, SLSF 2001, 2002, 2004 & 2005). Among other details, the top E7 exhaust grills for the E7 cooling fans remained unchanged, and the side panels were different. The E8's had four round portholes on each side, the first located immediately aft of the side cab door. The modified E7's had the bottom half of the E7 vertical side grill remaining, located immediately aft of the side cab door, then a round porthole just behind the grill, then three other portholes spaced along the side. The radiator exhausts and this half grill behind the cab are the telltale signs of the modified "Racehorse" E7's (or EA7's and "Redbirds" if you prefer). They all were wonderful looking locomotives! And boy, did they sound good when they started up and accelerated out of Rolla, MO on #9 when we used to take a study break and go down to the depot to watch the Meteor come in from St Louis around 8:20pm! Ken