Switcher Saturday: 2015-Jul-25

The LI Switcher is good but that well used gondola takes the cake. Good work SIRT.

Lionel / LCCA NS vulcan switcher.

 

 

     Bill T.

Here is my RMT S4 in NYCTA paint on a work train. Because I work odd hours I often see these early in the AM from the platforms. It is a blessing and a curse because usally it means it will take longer to get where I am going but I do get to look at these interesting units.

 

Here are are some prototype snaps to compare.

 

D&H RS-3. Great looking loco that leads the Lionel Coastal Freight Set (a Service Station Special).

 

 

MTH's C&NW FM H10-44

 

 

The prototypical Canton Railway in Baltimore is still in operation.  teHere is a Canton switcher on the Free State Junction Railway.

1990 version of the Postwar bell-ringer is Espee livery.

 

 

 

 

It's SWSAT time!!! 

 

Late to the party: Had to earn a living this morning. (Up at 4:30 am, rolling light engines by 6:40, hooked on and loaded 32 sand, came into the yard w/32 LD's 2 MT's behind a trio of Alco C420's. Off duty at 1030 hrs. That's 4.5 hrs on duty, paid for 8!. Wham, bam, thank you m'am!)

 

ANYWAY...

 

The usual Disclaimer: Imagination required! No layout scenery!!

 

(Scale HO)

 

"A pair of KC&G RS-3's chuggin' away at idle as they await the crew to arrive and climb on board. Soon they'll be spewing ALCo smoke as they get a handle on a long transfer headed for the Santa Fe. Judging by the paint condition, seems like the trailing unit #269 has faired better in life than the #255!"

 

 

 

In other news...

 

Received the first NEW model to become a KC&G engine in DECADES: An undecorated Atlas "Gold" ALCo HH600 with factory DCC/Sound. I have tweaked the mythical KC&G dieselization history, and its roster, to allow for ONE ALCo HH660. (Many roads only owned one ALCo HH.) The Atlas undecorated HH660 arrived Thursday. Here's a pic before I add all the goodies and start the painting/decaling/weathering procedure:

 

 

 

 

 

In keeping with typical diesel switchers back at the start of dieselization, KC&G's ALCO HH660, #D10, will be painted in an "as delivered" black original paint scheme. The scheme will be similar too, but not identical, to the Rock Island's HH, #730, but with a bit more "use" (weathering effects) on it:

 

 

 

Looking forward to getting the HH660 finished up and ready for service!

 

All fer now!

While working on the new station area And moving boxes around I can across this so decided to place it on the track............pics............paul

the NYC 0-6-0 that was damaged by a run away car this week.

 

 

This plied the streets of Exchange Place, Jersey City, when I worked there in the late 1950's.

A 1991 Weaver brass 0-6-0 (PS2 with supercap) and a WM 44-ton GE that will grace my layout when MTH ships.

MTH Railking LIRR RS1 & RMT LIRR sand hoppers.

Pick up this little beauty at the LCCA convention this week. A little blurry but..

 

  

N I C E !

 

 

 

     More sand on the way!

 

A follow up to the above comment about the newly arrived undec unit slated to become a KC&G engine...

 

Here's what I've been dinking with off/on this afternoon:

 

As mentioned in my previous post above, this Atlas "Gold" ALCo HH660 is gonna' become KC&G number D10... their first diesel back in 1938 or so.

 

Boy, the wire grab irons have been kicking my butt. Of course, one of them went "SPROING!" and that was that. Seeing as Atlas ships ZERO excess grabs... I've made a new one out of .012" brass. Sort of sucked though to see the original grab iron disappear before my eyes from between the pinched tweezers and head off someplace into inner space.

 

Oh well... I shall overcome.

 

CIT SW and Norfolk Southern high-hood round Horseshoe Curve in 2014.

Great stuff guys. This thread made me realise I don't actually have a switcher. Have to get one on the shopping list!

As usual, late again.  Had to dig deep to find the topic buried on the 3rd page.

 

No, not his PW 624 again!  Not quite...

 

 

 

It's seems one is never enough. 

 

Being roughly the same age as me, if only I ran as well and looked so good.

 

Bruce

An update to the HH660 update...

 

Got almost all the detail goodies applied. While installing the side handrails I noted that the long rail has shrunk, pulling the stanchions inward from both ends. This will never do. Two options:

 

* Contact Atlas and see if replacement side handrails cast in more stable plastic/Delrin are available.

 

* Cut the stanchions free of the shrunken handrail, drill them, and make my own handrails out of .19" brass rod. (Made many handrail sets over the decades.)

 

I will probably opt for the latter as it would likely be quicker even if Atlas does have replacement handrails.

 

Anyway, here's where I'm too on my HH660 project now...

  

 

 

All fer now!

Lionel made the set for the LCCA. even nicer than a regular production piece!  LCCA still has the set on the website.

Thanks Chris,

  Way too nice to go repainting to suit.  Will probably end up bashing a victim that deserves a repaint.

 

Bruce

Definitely way too nice to do a repaint! I'm going to take some better pictures and do a short review on it.

I don't have any switcher photos to share; but, I thank Murnane for this regular, weekly thread and to all who post their photos.

I've got to get some switcher pics on here soon. Great thread. I look forward to this every week. 

Great pics this weekend....the Coastal Freight early 90s SSS is one of my favorites.

 

Peter

Thanks to everyone for participating!  I had family visiting the house this weekend and wasn't able to keep up with all the posts, but I'm super grateful you all are liking this new weekly tradition.

 

The LIRR pics really make me a bit homesick as I grew up in Long Island (LI), spent 5yrs commuting to NYC via LIRR after college, now in Maryland.  The next time I am up there I'll need to spend some time taking pictures of all the incredible rail sites I took for granted while I lived there.  It's hard to even imagine how much LIers have been influenced by rail, it was just plain part of our lives when I lived there.

 

The C&O 624 is on my wish list, even though I'm mostly steam (I only have two non-steam engines).  If anyone out there ever has one they want to part with let me know.

 

It's a shame about that runaway NYC 0-6-0, it's a fantastic looking engine and I hope it all gets squared away soon.  I've had the weaver version of that engine on my wish list forever.

 

The "rubber tire street tractor" switcher thing is fantastic, what a beast and what a cool contribution!  I'm going to have to see if I can find more pictures of that thing.

 

BTW, I think "Laming" should get some sort of "most enthusiastic" award for his contributions each week!  It's been really fun wondering what he's going to put up each week.

 

"Silver Lake":  I used to see that work train on occasion in the subway and I can very much appreciate your "blessing and a curse" comment, most people got upset but I'd love seeing this or the other work trains come through.

 

To everyone else who contributed, thank you very much, and please keep the switchers rolling!

 

Best...Rich Murnane

p.s.  Found this link about the "rubber tire switchers"

http://prr.railfan.net/RubberTiredSwitchers.html

Murnane, the PRR also had stored in a lot the street switchers that preceded that.  They had cast iron wheels whose spokes were tangent to the hub, rather than perpendicular, to allow for contraction as the castings cooled.  The hub could rotate slightly rather than the spokes cracking.

 

These were steered with a large ship's wheel in the center of the cab.  They served the Colgate soap plant, moving boxcars along the streets.

 

I also have a Lionel 624 converted to PS2.  Runs very smoothly but lacks the traction that tires would provide.  The conversion was described in a thread on the DCS forum several months ago.