Who's Loco Did I See?

[bbrant]

Yesterday (2/2) a train went westbound though Pittsburgh on the CSX (ex-P&LE) line with an unmarked loco on it. The unit looked like it was a C40-8 and was light blue/baby blue with a solid orange strip along the frame. The side of the engine had a white block (patch job) painted over where railroads normally have their name.

At first I thought it was a former Conrail unit but the blue was too light and Conrail units don't/didn't have the orange stripe that this one did. Anyone have an idea who this loco belongs to?

Brian

[csxengineer98]

hey brant....
you missed the rail grinder that went thourgh...went past mckeesport at about 4am... grinding away...
csx engineer

[bbrant]

Hey csxengineer -

That railgrinder would've been something to see, espcially at night. But at 4:00AM I'm just pulling out of Somerset heading for Pittsburgh. Will the railgrinder be anywhere on the Keystone Sub within the next few days? Day or night, it'd be a different picture to get.

Brian

[Modelcar]

...Wow, Brian...Your schedule sounds demanding....Is that a 5 day requirement you do each week. Don't know how you have time to do the railfaning.

[CShaveRR]

Your description sounds a little like the last paint scheme of the National Railways of Mexico before it was broken up.

[bbrant]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Modelcar

...Wow, Brian...Your schedule sounds demanding....Is that a 5 day requirement you do each week. Don't know how you have time to do the railfaning.

There's always time for railfanning!! [:D]

The nice thing about my job is that I get a decent look at the CSX (former P&LE line) and the NS Port Perry line. Normally can hear CSX trains blowing for the crossings on Pittsburgh's South Side so I can go to the window and get a look at them. That's how I saw the unit in question yesterday. I use weekends & days off to make trips to Rockwood to see what's happening on the S&C.

Brian

[bbrant]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CShaveRR

Your description sounds a little like the last paint scheme of the National Railways of Mexico before it was broken up.

I've never seen a picture of any locos from the National Railways of Mexico. Did they ever have any C40-8's on their roster, assuming that was the type of locomotive I saw.

Thanks for your reply. I'll have to go on the web and search to see if that was what I saw.

Brian

[chad thomas]

NdeM at one time (mabee still does) had a bunch of locos they called super-7s that were rebuilt C30-7s (I think) that looked like C40-8s. If memory serves, those units were rebuilt with new dash-8 cabs from GE.

[BaltACD]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bbrant

Hey csxengineer -

That railgrinder would've been something to see, espcially at night. But at 4:00AM I'm just pulling out of Somerset heading for Pittsburgh. Will the railgrinder be anywhere on the Keystone Sub within the next few days? Day or night, it'd be a different picture to get.

Brian

It should finish up on the Keystone around McKeesport tonight, then it will be grinding on the Pittsburgh S/D tpwards New Castle.

[BaltACD]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bbrant

Hey csxengineer -

That railgrinder would've been something to see, espcially at night. But at 4:00AM I'm just pulling out of Somerset heading for Pittsburgh. Will the railgrinder be anywhere on the Keystone Sub within the next few days? Day or night, it'd be a different picture to get.

Brian

It should finish up on the Keystone around McKeesport tonight, then it will be grinding on the Pittsburgh S/D tpwards New Castle.

[M636C]

NdeM had "Super 7" units built new, as well as rebuilds from U30C and similar units. The main difference between those and the early standard cab C40-8 was they lack of the Dash dynamis brake assembly behind the cab.

But light blue with an orange frame stripe does sound like NdeM, whatever model it is!

Peter

[Glen Ellyn]

I saw Union Pacific and Green Oak in 2003.

[oskar]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bbrant

Hey csxengineer -

That railgrinder would've been something to see, espcially at night. But at 4:00AM I'm just pulling out of Somerset heading for Pittsburgh. Will the railgrinder be anywhere on the Keystone Sub within the next few days? Day or night, it'd be a different picture to get.

Brian

LORAM trains do not grind at night I followed a LORAM train in September and the crew put it on the siding at night and somebody said ( that I overheared) LORAM dose not ran at night because it is unsafe and one year the had a wreck of some kind.

I am not sure if this is true or false



kevin

[Anonymous]

That's what I call a serious RAILFAN!

[csxengineer98]

QUOTE: Originally posted by oskar

QUOTE: Originally posted by bbrant

Hey csxengineer -

That railgrinder would've been something to see, espcially at night. But at 4:00AM I'm just pulling out of Somerset heading for Pittsburgh. Will the railgrinder be anywhere on the Keystone Sub within the next few days? Day or night, it'd be a different picture to get.

Brian

LORAM trains do not grind at night I followed a LORAM train in September and the crew put it on the siding at night and somebody said ( that I overheared) LORAM dose not ran at night because it is unsafe and one year the had a wreck of some kind.

I am not sure if this is true or false



kevin

well.... its true that they do... saw it with my own eyes from about 60 feet away...and i have passed them on line of road grinding....
csx engineer

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bbrant

Yesterday (2/2) a train went westbound though Pittsburgh on the CSX (ex-P&LE) line with an unmarked loco on it. The unit looked like it was a C40-8 and was light blue/baby blue with a solid orange strip along the frame. The side of the engine had a white block (patch job) painted over where railroads normally have their name.

At first I thought it was a former Conrail unit but the blue was too light and Conrail units don't/didn't have the orange stripe that this one did. Anyone have an idea who this loco belongs to?

Brian

Is this what it looked like?- http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=19502

[bbrant]

The body looked like that but the paint was a much ligher blue (possibly faded) and, as far as I could tell, it didn't have the yellow/orange/red stripes. The stripe along the frame was solid orange without the white "background". Bodywise, it does look the same.

Thanks!
Brian

[csxengineer98]

ohhh..it took a bit to for me to picture it in my head..but i bet you where looking at a GE leaser...
http://www.jefflubchanskycpa.com/GECX3003-OI-MA11-02DGI7.jpg
did it look like this
csx engineer

[CShaveRR]

Brian, try this one:

http://gelwood.railfan.net/ndem/ndem13022v.jpg

[bbrant]

QUOTE: Originally posted by csxengineer98

ohhh..it took a bit to for me to picture it in my head..but i bet you where looking at a GE leaser...
http://www.jefflubchanskycpa.com/GECX3003-OI-MA11-02DGI7.jpg
did it look like this
csx engineer

csxengineer -

Bodywise it did look like the picture you sent but the paint was like the schemes in the link that CShaveRR included in his post.

[bbrant]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CShaveRR

Brian, try this one:

http://gelwood.railfan.net/ndem/ndem13022v.jpg

That definately looks more like the paint scheme I saw. The only difference was the entire engine was the light blue. It had the solid orange stripe along the frame, like the pictures in your link show. The "N M" was covered with a patch job paint job. Combine the loco with that csxengineer had a link to with the paint job on the link you provided and I think we got it.

So who exactly is NdeM? I've never heard of them.

Thanks for your reply.

Brian

[espeefoamer]

I saw an engine just like the one you described, but the patch was in blue, lettered FNM.
N de M was the Nacionales de Mexico,or National of Mexico.This was once one of 5 railroads in Mexico.In the late 70s all other railroads were merged into the NdeM. Several years ago, with privatization,NdeM became FNM.This railroad is closely aligned with KCS.

[bbrant]

espeefoamer -

Perhaps you saw the same engine I did but I don't recall seeing any markings on it. It was part of a westbound freight so who knows. Thanks for the info on N de M.

[tatans]

Brian: It's the National Railway of MEXICO.

[Anonymous]

I think this may be it:

http://mexican.railspot.com/fnm14011.htm