Getting Rarer to See and this was pure luck - NS SD80MAC #7220 on a Gondola Loaded Steel Train + KCS Oil

I see a train like 60B parked on a siding in Woodbury, NJ. The gondolas always look empty and I have never walked up to look in. Did 60B have the slabs lying flat in the gondolas?

I am not quick picking up the engine make visually. I usually have to check the marking near the cab. We get some SD70MAC. It is a low speed run from Camden to the customer locations, but they still MU engines for the direction change. Usually with the smaller looking GE DDxx engines.

The switch work for the new siding was cool. The switch was delivered built. Looked like a Ross #4.

Thanks again, I always enjoy your rail fan posts.

Wrawroacx posted:

This afternoon I went to railfan between Geneva & Perry Ohio. Well NS was very busy with train traffic, but for about an hour or tad more, an NS eastbound Gondola with loaded steel slabs was stopped at Davis Rd on the main track do to MOW working on a switch. Well I drove down to Davis after seeing the train was stopped for some time and holy smokes was I shocked. The trailing unit was not an ACU, but an SD80MAC!!!!  #7220. These units are getting far and in between seeing as they are going to eventually be converted to an SD70ACU. But with him doing only 5 to 10MPH restriction made it easy to get a photo.

So afterwards I followed the train towards Geneva, but 60B, which was the steel symbol, went into the siding in Madison to wait on an NS westbound Oil with 2 BNSF & 1 KCS ACe and so after they were going through with that 67Z oil, I drove down to Geneva to see 60B one more time.

They are not being converted into 70ACus, they MIGHT become SD80ACus. They will keep the same numbering sequence of 7200s. Not 7300 to follow the 7300s of the 70ACus. Saw two 80macs pulling a coal train into Enola a few weeks ago. They aren’t that rare yet if you know where to look.

NS6770Fan posted:

They are not being converted into 70ACus, they MIGHT become SD80ACus. They will keep the same numbering sequence of 7200s. Not 7300 to follow the 7300s of the 70ACus. Saw two 80macs pulling a coal train into Enola a few weeks ago. They aren’t that rare yet if you know where to look.

 

Well maybe down your way they're not rare, but the last time I saw one was in August 2018 on a Freight near Hudson Ohio but was trailing 3rd and I couldn't get a good photo. Now up along Lake Erie, it's been many many years. So to me it's rare.

As to the SD80ACu, yes being honest I forgot about those. But still before that happens, #7220 is still an SD80MAC.

And Moonman, well for me, how I knew it was an SD80MAC, is the size, the engine number & the flared radiators fins where as SD70MAC's don't have those unless an SD70M on NS. On CSX, flared radiator SD70's, are still SD70MAC's. And how I knew it was loaded was I was told by a freind, as they started up, it took them about 8 to 10 minutes to get up to track speed. And as each car passed, the track from the wheels really went down. 

Now if I'm wrong, I repost on here with the correct info. But I will for sure look into it.

Moonman posted:

I see a train like 60B parked on a siding in Woodbury, NJ. The gondolas always look empty and I have never walked up to look in. Did 60B have the slabs lying flat in the gondolas?

 

Ok, I got messages recently from Railroad People letting me know, that the Gondolas were loaded. They had loaded steel slabs for Ferrell PA. Westbounds are empty.

Any Petroleum, Crude Oil or Ethanol trains you see through Lake County on NS, come up the NS Youngstown Line into Ashtabula and head west in regards to the lead unit does not have a cab signal.