Switcher Saturday 5-6-23

This K Line Chessie System diesel (I think it's a GP 38) is such a smooth, quiet conventional runner. Perfect when my wife is asleep:

Arnold

TALES OF THE DOCKSIDER

Good morning SwSat fans!  Your Yardmaster noticed lots of interest in Docksiders and Beeps last Saturday, so showing my examples of these mighty mites (again!) is in order today.

RMT NYC BP7 no. 5903 is seen with famous NYC shop switcher no. X-8688 hauling a short cut of Sunoco tank cars from the local refinery.  This is an easy job for these guys!  

Note how a little bit of paint applied to the Beep’s “chrome” handrails really improves the appearance of this model.  The Beep is also equipped with an ERR sound kit.

John

Good morning and happy SWSAT @jhz563, @Arnold D. Cribari, and @Steam Crazy.

It looks like the Docksiders are in action today.

Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal was a waterfront railroad that handled freight cars floated on barges across New York harbor from New Jersey to Brooklyn and back. The railroad had 11 miles of track at its peak and operated until 1983, when it was acquired by the New York Cross Harbor Railroad.

The prototype of Lionel’s LionChief LC+ 2.0 model of BEDT 0-6-0T switcher #15 (SKU 2032020) was built by H.K. Porter in 1917 and retired in 1963. It ran at 180 psi boiler pressure and produced 25,817 pounds of tractive force at a weight of 128,000 pounds. The locomotive was rebuilt in 1998 and ’99 and runs as Thomas the Tank Engine at Strasburg Railroad.

The photos and videos of BEDT #15 show it running smoothly with three MTH double-sheathed wood-sided boxcars that I purchased recently. They are of the same era as the locomotive.

MELGAR

Arnold, I love modern sound systems, but, like you, I also enjoy running “smooth, quiet, conventional” engines.  I sometimes run them even when my wife is awake!

John

Good Morning SWSAT people. Here’s mine for today have a great weekend.

Good morning fellow switcher fans!  JHZ563 thanks so much for getting us out on the running track this morning!   

The company photographer, I.C. Thrulenz snapped these pics earlier this morning.  Have a terrific weekend everyone!!

B&O GP9 with F3 B unit on the main.  

Washington Terminal #63 and Pennsy 44 tonner or busy with switching duties.  

All wonderful to see, jhz563, Melgar, Steamcrazy, Lee, and Patrick.

It was also love at 1st sight when I saw that adorable BEDT steam switcher in Melgar's post and, of course, it was a must have and I have it too.

Later, I will post a photo and video of mine, as I have done in the past.

Although I doubt it, I wonder if the real Brooklyn Eastern District steam switcher ever hauled Brooklyn Dodger passengers. Arnold

At a soccer game in Melbourne, KY and found this little guy.  It is a siding off the CSX mainline.

Happy Switcher Saturday!

@trumpettrain posted:

Good morning fellow switcher fans!  JHZ563 thanks so much for getting out on the running track this morning!   The company photographer, I.C. Thrulenz snapped these pics earlier this morning.  Have a terrific weekend everyone!!

You, Patrick, are a master nicknamer as well as a master trumpeteer (sp?) and master model railroader.

Happy Switcher Saturday!  Here are some shots of my RS3 switching on the south side of town -

Happy SWSat!

As I had mentioned last week, I was able to diagnose the running issues with my BEEPS on 027 switches. I determined where the short was occurring and came up with a fix. So now I can finally run them without the fireworks and flashing lights. Here's the details.

So a couple recurring themes today. My Chessie BEEP and B&O MTH 0-4-0 tank engine.

I was running a few different trains last week too.

Have a great weekend!

Bob

Wow, you'all are up early this morning!

Someone say saddle tanker?

                                                 Test shots of the new layout...

@SIRT posted:

                                                 Test shots of the new layout...

Gorgeous

Have a good Switcher of a Saturday! God and Country! nice photos all U36B working hard

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Although I doubt it, I wonder if the real Brooklyn Eastern District steam switcher ever hauled Brooklyn Dodger passengers. Arnold

Highly unlikely in my opinion. It was a terminal railroad that received freight cars on barges. I will check later to see if they even had cabooses, but I doubt that too.

MELGAR

Clinchfield used their GP7 for switcher service more than mainline work.  Mr Muffins custom run is getting some work this morning.

@MELGAR posted:

Highly unlikely in my opinion. It was a terminal railroad that received freight cars on barges. I will check later to see if they even had cabooses, but I doubt that too.

MELGAR

Although I admit I'm a bit disappointed that the Brooklyn Dodgers and their fans probably never took a train pulled by the BEDT steam switcher, I'm delighted to know that  that Switcher was involved with freight cars on barges.

I'm big time into marine model railroading. Arnold

Good morning SWSAT crew!

AC&Y H16-44 202 (Lionel) switches a produce warehouse:

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Tom

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Although I admit I'm a bit disappointed that the Brooklyn Dodgers and their fans probably never took a train pulled by the BEDT steam switcher, I'm delighted to know that  that Switcher was involved with freight cars on barges.

I'm big time into marine model railroading. Arnold

I searched on “Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal Railroad” and found a roster of non-revenue/miscellaneous equipment of the BEDT. It lists the following:

1) four tank cars (X6 X7 X11 X12) from the 1930s to 1983

2) one derrick car (X11) in the 1970s

3) one idler/reach car (X14) in the 1960s

4) one wood box car (tool car) in the 1960s

5) one bicentennial boxcar - 1976 and 1977

6) one N5 caboose – 1972 to 1983.

Over its existence, the BEDT owned 16 steam locomotives – all tank engines. BEDT #14, 15 and 16 (built by H.K. Porter 1920, 1917, 1923) are listed as the same type of engine (type 18-24-C-S-I) and similar to Lionel’s model.

Operating in Brooklyn, a place where it was visible to a large population, the BEDT seems to be quite well documented online. Check “Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal Railroad” and see what you find.

Based on the roster, I don't think any Brooklyn Dodgers ever rode on the BEDT, but it is an excellent prototype for a model railroad.

MELGAR

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

You, Patrick, are a master nicknamer as well as a master trumpeteer (sp?) and master model railroader.

WOW!!! Thank you for your very kind words Arnold!

Extra, extra, read all about it.

It's 1951 and there are riots in the streets of New York City.

A Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal (BEDT) switcher was seen hauling a boxcar with a photo of Yogi and a Ballentine Beer advertisement on it.

An enthusiastic model railroader local to me known as Rusty Rick recently gave me that  MPC boxcar he weathered and decorated with Yogi Berra and Ballentine Beer because he knows I'm a lifelong Yankee fan. Arnold

Arnold

@MELGAR posted:

I searched on “Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal Railroad” and found a roster of non-revenue/miscellaneous equipment of the BEDT. It lists the following:

1) four tank cars (X6 X7 X11 X12) from the 1930s to 1983

2) one derrick car (X11) in the 1970s

3) one idler/reach car (X14) in the 1960s

4) one wood box car (tool car) in the 1960s

5) one bicentennial boxcar - 1976 and 1977

6) one N5 caboose – 1972 to 1983.

Over its existence, the BEDT owned 16 steam locomotives – all tank engines. BEDT #14, 15 and 16 (built by H.K. Porter 1920, 1917, 1923) are listed as the same type of engine (type 18-24-C-S-I) and similar to Lionel’s model.

Operating in Brooklyn, a place where it was visible to a large population, the BEDT seems to be quite well documented online. Check “Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal Railroad” and see what you find.

Based on the roster, I don't think any Brooklyn Dodgers ever rode on the BEDT, but it is an excellent prototype for a model railroad.

MELGAR

This is awesome, thank you Melgar!

Lionel New Haven switcher donated to our club.

Step into my time machine, once again, and let me take you back to 1956 in upstate New York.

Suddenly, you feel the earth tremble, hear the roar of, and see, a New York Ontario & Western 44 ton center cab diesel with 3 passenger cars in tow:

The above model of that 44 ton diesel switcher is an MTH Premier Proto 3 locomotive that I purchased from one of our Forum sponsors, JR Junction Hobby Shop in Syracuse, NY. Arnold

Good afternoon fellow switcher fans!  My second post today is a tribute to the Kentucky Derby which takes place tonite at Churchill Downs.  Of course one of our beloved switchers played a part in this great event!  

Since I model the transition era we flashback to the 1950 Kentucky Derby  where a Western Maryland special train of horse cars, Pullmans and an observation carrying horse owners, friends, family and some press have just arrived in Hagerstown, Md. via the Pennsy.  The train is now under the charge of the Western Maryland Railway who will hand the train off to the B&O in Cumberland.  The B&O will take the train to Kentucky. BL2 #81, relatively new to the WM,  is assigned to switch into the waiting train, a horse car loaded with horses headed for the Kentucky Derby.  

Early this past Wednesday morning WM 81 arrives at the team track where the horse car is still being loaded. Hopefully this car will carry the potential winner of the 1950 Kentucky Derby.  The crew is excitedly watching the horses being loaded.  Engineer Buster Grimes, brakeman Drawbar Wexler, and conductor Laris Luber, all with eyes as big as saucers, focus on each horse being loaded.  All these men realize this moment will be a story for their grand children especially if this car is carrying the winning horse.  Conductor Luber tells the crew that a horse name Middle Ground is among the horses being loaded.  O'l Laris, who reads the Racing Form Daily, knows the ponies like the back of a knuckle coupler!      

Once at Churchill Downs the horses are carefully unloaded.   That's Middle Ground wearing the blanket.   Mr. Howe,  Middle Ground's owner is decked out in his usual vest, a staw hat, and puffs his signature corn cob pipe.  He keeps a close eye on Middle Ground. Sixteen year old jockey Bill Bowland wears his signature orange/red hat and whispers something in Middle Ground's ear.  We can only imagine he whispers " We're going to win this one MG!  We will race like lightening and cross that finish line into victory!  Then on to the Preakness!!"  

AND of course Middle Ground won the 1950 Kentucky Derby!!!  Young 16 year old Bill Bowland rode Middle Ground into history that day!   O'l Laris won $3000 bucks that day!!  Bought himself a new Studebaker too!!  Of course it was one of our beloved switchers that performed the ordinary switching tasks of that day.  The crew have told this story to their grand children many times over now.  

@trumpettrain posted:

Good afternoon fellow switcher fans!  My second post today is a tribute to the Kentucky Derby which takes place tonite at Churchhil Downs.

Patrick, are these scenes always on your layout or do you set them up for the appropriate topic?

Gene

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

All wonderful to see, jhz563, Melgar, Steamcrazy, Lee, and Patrick.

It was also love at 1st sight when I saw that adorable BEDT steam switcher in Melgar's post and, of course, it was a must have and I have it too.

Later, I will post a photo and video of mine, as I have done in the past.

Although I doubt it, I wonder if the real Brooklyn Eastern District steam switcher ever hauled Brooklyn Dodger passengers. Arnold

Thanks Arnold I your right that GP38 is a smooth runner and a great shot

@trumpettrain posted:

Good afternoon fellow switcher fans!  My second post today is a tribute to the Kentucky Derby which takes place tonite at Churchill Downs.  Of course one of our beloved switchers played a part in this great event!  

Since I model the transition era we flashback to the 1950 Kentucky Derby  where a Western Maryland special train of horse cars, Pullmans and an observation carrying horse owners, friends, family and some press have just arrived in Hagerstown, Md. via the Pennsy.  The train is now under the charge of the Western Maryland Railway who will hand the train off to the B&O in Cumberland.  The B&O will take the train to Kentucky. BL2 #81, relatively new to the WM,  is assigned to switch into the waiting train, a horse car loaded with horses headed for the Kentucky Derby.  

Early this past Wednesday morning WM 81 arrives at the team track where the horse car is still being loaded. Hopefully this car will carry the potential winner of the 1950 Kentucky Derby.  The crew is excitedly watching the horses being loaded.  Engineer Buster Grimes, brakeman Drawbar Wexler, and conductor Laris Luber, all with eyes as big as saucers, focus on each horse being loaded.  All these men realize this moment will be a story for their grand children especially if this car is carrying the winning horse.  Conductor Luber tells the crew that a horse name Middle Ground is among the horses being loaded.  O'l Laris, who reads the Racing Form Daily, knows the ponies like the back of a knuckle coupler!      

Once at Churchill Downs the horses are carefully unloaded.   That's Middle Ground wearing the blanket.   Mr. Howe,  Middle Ground's owner is decked out in his usual vest, a staw hat, and puffs his signature corn cob pipe.  He keeps a close eye on Middle Ground. Sixteen year old jockey Bill Bowland wears his signature orange/red hat and whispers something in Middle Ground's ear.  We can only imagine he whispers " We're going to win this one MG!  We will race like lightening and cross that finish line into victory!  Then on to the Preakness!!"  

AND of course Middle Ground won the 1950 Kentucky Derby!!!  Young 16 year old Bill Bowland rode Middle Ground into history that day!   O'l Laris won $3000 bucks that day!!  Bought himself a new Studebaker too!!  Of course it was one of our beloved switchers that performed the ordinary switching tasks of that day.  The crew have told this story to their grand children many times over now.  

Patrick the horses off loading is so cool. Thanks for sharing

@Tom Densel posted:

Good morning SWSAT crew!

AC&Y H16-44 202 (Lionel) switches a produce warehouse:

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Tom

Tom great pic nice little garden I got my real one started but I thing the ground is still too cold nothing is popping up. Thanks for sharing.

Trumptrain, maybe down the road (or down the stretch), you will show one of the Triple Crown winners on your layout.

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Extra, extra, read all about it.

It's 1951 and there are riots in the streets of New York City.

A Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal (BEDT) switcher was seen hauling a boxcar with a photo of Yogi and a Ballentine Beer advertisement on it.

An enthusiastic model railroader local to me known as Rusty Rick recently gave me that  MPC boxcar he weathered and decorated with Yogi Berra and Ballentine Beer because he knows I'm a lifelong Yankee fan. Arnold

Arnold

Arnold,

I know you're a big Yankee fan and, of course, I like Yogi too, even though I was a Brooklyn Dodger fan. However, the site I looked at today confirms that the BEDT serviced the nearby Schaefer Brewing Company - sponsor of the Brooklyn Dodgers (see below). According to the site, the BEDT also owned tugboats.

MELGAR

Melgar, I also have a Shaeffer Beer reefer, but mine is an Atlas scale reefer, which IMO is too big to work with our diminutive BEDT switcher.

Thanks, again, for all your historical input. Arnold

@Genemed posted:

Patrick, are these scenes always on your layout or do you set them up for the appropriate topic?

Gene some scenes are on my layout permanently and others come and go.  For 2.5 years I hosted a  thread here on the OGR Forum called  TEAM TRACK TUESDAY .  Every  week  I would create a new team track scene for each Tuesday and share photos & captions of it here on the OGR Forum.  I encouraged other OGR Forum participants  to share their team track scene photos on this thread as well ... which they did in abundance for quite some time!  

The purpose of the thread was to challenge my creative self and hopefully inspire others to change out their team track scenes regularly .. just as real railroad team track scenes change regularly.  I love running my trains, however, I like to play with my layout by more than just running trains.  After a while the same old layout scenes become stale.  Creating new team track scenes is one good way to keep things fresh on our layouts.  Doing so can take 10 - 15 minutes or if you are like me ... creating some of my scenes, thankfully not all,  would take up to 6-7 hours.    I feel the original mission of TTT  was accomplished as many who read, viewed, and participated in the TTT thread have reflected back to me.  Some participants were inspired to  build team tracks into their existing layouts for the first time!

After 2 years of weekly TTT posts  I began to run out of creative ideas and finally my creative well dried up 6 months later.     I stopped doing the thread at that time due to my lack of creative juice,  the dwindling number of  weekly participants ( at times toward the end there were only 2 -3 of us regulars including me ) and dwindling number of page views.  It was a great run and great fun!!  Never would I have created some of the scenes I came up with if I had not had the weekly deadline.  During that time  I learned lots, not just from creating and building my  own scenes, but from other participants creations too!  Seeing what other participants came up with would give me ideas!   Plus ... During those 2.5 years I amassed a ton of photos of my own team track scenes .... all of which I have archived.

The horse photos used in today's SWSAT are from a Team Track Tuesday post from early 2019. Btw- it was through my participation in Switcher Saturday way back when ( I've been contributing almost since the beginning of the SWSAT thread ) , that I came up with the idea to create Team Track Tuesday.  I'm grateful to both the original creator of SWSAT, Rich Murnane, and to John ... JHZ563 for keeping this thread going.    

@trumpettrain posted:

Thank you for sharing your well written explanation. As always, I enjoy and look forward to your posts.

Gene

@Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Melgar, I also have a Shaeffer Beer reefer, but mine is an Atlas scale reefer, which IMO is too big to work with our diminutive BEDT switcher.

BEDT #15 and the other 0-6-0T tank engines pulled loaded 40-foot boxcars - undoubtedly more than one at a time. #15 developed 25,865 pounds of tractive force due to its small 46-inch driving wheels and was rated to pull 2520 tons (5,040,000 pounds) at yard speeds on average level track. The loaded weight of a 40-foot wood boxcar is about 100,000 pounds (50 tons). So, BEDT #15 could theoretically have pulled 50 cars at low speed in a yard. BEDT locomotives did not pull that many cars at once but 0-6-0T #15 could have managed 10 cars. A large USRA 0-8-0 steam switcher developed about 50,000 pounds of tractive force - only about twice as much as BEDT 0-6-0T #15.

MELGAR

Edit 05/07/23: I corrected the theoretical number of cars that could be pulled to 50. (MELGAR)

@trumpettrain posted:

@Genemed- I was a TTT regular shortly after joining the forum. SWSat and TTT were top priorities each week. As Patrick said, I was one of the guys inspired to build a Team Track by his thread. I had lot's of fun creating scenes each week. I used to supplement my posts with historical TT photos, but when the copyright police got involved, the thread lost some of the fun we were having.
My Team track is still a busy place, often featured here on SWSat!

Thanks for asking about TTT!

And of course a big thanks to Patrick for starting TTT each week.

Bob

start of the build.....

Patrick, I always enjoy your posts, but you knocked the Kentucky Derby post out of Arnold’s ball park!  Well done!

John

@MELGAR posted:

BEDT #15 and the other 0-6-0T tank engines pulled loaded 40-foot boxcars - undoubtedly more than one at a time. #15 developed 25,865 pounds of tractive force due to its small 46-inch driving wheels and was rated to pull 2520 tons (5,040,000 pounds) at yard speeds on average level track. The loaded weight of a 40-foot wood boxcar is about 100,000 pounds (50 tons). So, BEDT #15 could theoretically have pulled 100 cars at low speed in a yard. BEDT locomotives did not pull that many cars at once but 0-6-0T #15 could have managed 10 cars. A large USRA 0-8-0 steam switcher developed about 50,000 pounds of tractive force - only about twice as much as BEDT 0-6-0T #15.

MELGAR

I used to run a Porter. Westmoreland Scenic Railroad out pf Scottsdale PA.  0-4-0 1934 saddletanker, converted to a 2-4-0 and tender.  It was designed for 200 psi but the relief valves were set for 180.  We pulled 4 coaches and a caboose up 1.5 to 1.8 grade for a little over 2 miles. We were going about 11 to 15 miles an hour from a dead stop. I was firing and the owner Hal was driving.   When we started out I had the water 3/4 high in the glass and spread fresh coal on the little 4' x 4' grate.  Hal looks at me and in his deep West by God Virginia drawl says,  " better lay on a little more."  Well I did.  We took off and all the fresh coal started to light off at once.  The water expanded and start to carry over so Hal kicked the drain cocks open.  The exhaust roared like a thunderstorm made of shotgun blasts.  For the first 1/4 to 1/2 mileage I couldn't do anything about the carry over because the water was already hitting the top of the glass.  When it got in a rhythm I began furiously adding fuel to the back edge of the firebox 'cause the draft would pull it off those grates.  The fire was white hot and the hottest fire I have ever seen in my life.  My adrenaline was pumping like mad and in two miles I think I looked out the window once and I remember the look of awe on the railfan we passed. The engine didn't slip, didn't stutter and the whistle was a scream I barely remember.   When we got near the top of the grade another qualified fireman that was riding in the cab had to put his hand on my shoulder to break my concentration,  because I was going to keep that fire stoked until we reached the moon!  One of my most memorable cab trips ever.  I think I kept the safeties from lifting when neared the top of the grade, but only because of the interruption.

So, do I believe a Porter can move a huge cut of cars at yard speed? Yes, yes I do. And thank you for the memory.  My heart is pumping just thinking about it!