Good day Tom and fellow barflies. Drinks on me and Guinness for the beer connoisseurs.
Per: I'm glad someone remembers "black and tan". My departed grandmother who was from Northern Ireland used to tell me stories about the black and tan and how she would hide the guns when they came looking for her cousins and nephews who were involved in the IRA.
I traveled quite a lot when I was employed by a naval architect firm in San Francisco. I traveled business class to anywhere ships could be found and 1st class on occasion. Although it was a whirlwind tour, I did manage to see a lot of the world, at least that which was worth seeing. I'm not what you would call a "sightseer" or tourist. I would take off on my own from the crowd and explore the countryside. That way, I would see things tourists didn't. My trips were therefore very satisfying. I tried new foods in restaurants that the average tourist would never experience and a few other things I can't mention on a family oriented web site. I saw a lot of trains in my travels and regret never having taken pictures of them. I rode a narrow gauge train in Perth, Australia, but alas, no pics. I was working most of the time and didn't have enough time to explore and take pictures.
Eric: Your passport should arrive in about 3 weeks according to what I got from the passport service. That foto of the rail line in Sweden has unusual ties. I wonder what keeps them from spreading apart? Must be some sort of tie under all that ballast?
Jan: Nice coverage on the Henry Flagler railroad. It took a vision like Henry's to build in a troubled time. He is responsible for the success Florida enjoys today.
Nice quadruple engine foto. That sure must have been a chore to get all 4 engines synchronized.
CN3: According to a book "The Great Book of Trains" by Brian Hollingsworth and Arthur Cook, they quote "Pennsylvania Railroad Class GG1 electric locomotive in tuscan red livery. These noble machines could also be seen in black or dark green". This was my information source. Both authors are British and worked on various rail lines in the UK. They may have misquoted some other author during their research of American railroads.
Pete: The SF cable cars are indeed unique. Not only are they a tourist attraction, they serve as everyday transportation to work. I used to ride it for a year to work and whenever I had to go somewhere the cable car went.
Here are a few fotos of the NorthlandZ model railroad I took when I visited last year.
Greetings Tom and gentlemen....
Can I please have a refill of my extra cold Guinness, and top up with cigars for the lads....give them each a dram while you're at it too.....keep the change.
Just to correct the missing date and page on the encore of barndad's post....it was posted on 02-05-2007 and is on page 18....
$$$$ for the cigar box and Mr Wurlitzer....
ENCORE! Saturday ‘n Photo Posting Day!
at "Our" Place!
We are CLOSED on SUNDAYs!
G'day Gents!
Looks as if I made the 2,700th Post at our reborn bar ‘n grill . . . I seriously question the "counting" method being employed, for it surely appears to me that when people "edit" the numbers must change . . . hmmmmm. Anyway, wonder who will make the 2,800th and when
I see we've had a couple of visitors since my AM summary . . .
Ron (DD1) at 10:41 AM: A rare Saturday appearance with full participation from our Resident Southern Gentleman down in Ole Miss <aka: Transplanted New Yorker>!
Won't jump in on your interesting comments as they were directed to others . . . however, I will say those fotos of that teeny-tiny gauge model RR are terrific! Someone surely had more time on their hands than the average bear to construct that huge trestle. <triple>
Appreciate the Saturday call, fotos ‘n round!
Jan (JanOlov) at 10:48 AM: Housekeeping ‘n some goodies for all!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
And so the foto tour of my 2006 Alaskan Rail Adventure is finally winding down . . . here's 10 more before they run out! <grin>
As a memory jogger for those who have been following these fotos - our trip was aboard the ARR portion of the train and NOT the cruise ship cars at the rear. We were not a part of a tour group and opted for the ARR Gold Star service (1st class) seating in the ARR Ultra Dome directly behind the baggage car at the front of the consist. Beneath the all-reserved seating was our private dining area 'n galley. A truly memorable 'n most enjoyable experience . . .
(1) Northbound ARR Denali Star at Anchorage
(2) Baggage kiosk at Anchorage Depot - baggage car is to the right of the ARR UltraDome (double decker)
(3) ARR Anchorage Depot and baggage kiosk
(4) Cruise ship UltraDomes attached to ARR Denali Star
(5) Picturesque mountains near Anchorage
(6) All sorts of things to look at in Anchorage
(7) Fascinating!
(8) Cruise Ship UltraDomes attached to ARR Denali Star at Anchorage
(9) Last Cruise Ship UltraDome
(10) What a view!
Enjoy! More next Saturday . . .
Tom
Hi Tom and all.
A pint of Holden's mild please CINDY.
JAN It would have indeed been interesting to see what would have happened if the Big 4 had not been nationalized in 1948, although the railways were very run down after the war, but if the government had paid the money the railways deserved for moving all the wartime traffic they could have put the railways in order, but of course money was very tight in Britain in those post war years. I have heard talk that the privatized railways in Britain today may finish with 4 or 5 companies so the big 4 could come back.
Glad you enjoyed the photos and thanks for the round.
Many thanks for the great Atlantic Coast Line encore from DOUG and those great photos; there is nothing better than a steam locomotive working hard in cold weather. What a sound there must have been traveling on the California Limited up the grade at Lynn N.M. and a day an the Raton Pass in steam days would have been one that would stay in the memory.
FERGIE Stay safe with those hurricane force winds due to arrive, I see you are well stocked with the essentials though.
ERIC I see you are ruling your quiz with a rod of iron. I will share those codes with you if you like.
Did you get to ride the San Francisco cable cars while you were there. I think they have a cable car museum, which is on the route of the cable cars, but time was tight when I was there and I could not visit this time, another reason to go back there.
RON That is a great thing about the San Francisco cable cars is that they are still doing what they have always done being in public service. I suppose the residents get a little upset sometimes with the tourists, as there was a long queue to get on the cable car. I guess the streetcars have never stopped working there ether, they seem to have got some streetcars from other cities.
Many Thanks for the photos from NorthlandZ and those great Trestles.
TOM Real that we are not at Stone Hill on this lovely fall Missouri day, as you say I am on the upswing but it seems a rotten bug this that wants to hang on. Guess who is getting the blame for the bride catching it.
That is a great link to the material in the Barringer Library full of detail and up to date; I see they have the October 2007 issue of the Railway Magazine on the list.
I guess traveling on the SF cable cars has not changed a lot since the 1950s, although the drivers job is a lot harder today with the increase in car traffic, it must cost a lot to maintain the infrastructure but surely it would never be allowed to close.
I will look forward to more in the Patron's Pix series.
Good words for Lars and great to see his Southern Railway bookcovers Encore.
Many thanks for the Alaskan Rail Adventure great photos at Anchorage.
Those Wilderness Express Ultra Domes have a great mural on the sides and that is a great backdrop to those locomotives in pics 6 and 7. That looks like a similar car to the Amtrak business class car we travel to K.C. in sometimes. Noticed the steam locomotive on display in pic 10. Thanks for sharing.
Congratulations for post 2,700. I think we will get to post 2,800 on November 14th with Eric posting it.
I have some of Alan's new photos the first six were taken at the North Yorks Moors Railway Gala this fall.
The first is a 1904 Kitson built 0-6-2 tank, which worked in the North East at Lambton Collieries.
These next two are BR standard class 4 4-6-0 No 75029.
Note the observation car behind 75029 in this one.
BR Standard 4 tank locomotive No 80136 leaves Leversham in typical moors weather the car is a Gresley Teak.
Thse next three are of ex LNER K4 3-cylinder 2-6-0 the onl
This is for Bat Man Pete!!
http://www.creators.com/comics/speed-bump.html
<not sure how long this will stay "up" - I think it changes daily>
Good to see our Bar Chandler up 'n about the decks this fine day. With our Manager gone - things 'round here fall to the Bar Chandler to assume his duties. <yikes> Yeah - that's the way our Oar-Gain-I-Zay-Shun chart shows the "chain" . . . I'm sure you'll do fine! BUT, the Penthouse Suite is OFF LIMITS as is Ruth! <uh oh>
Wunnerful Pix from your Mate - Alan, once again! I couldn't find that observation car - what am I doing wrong??? Anyway, he surely has "the life," eh Guess the grass always looks greener, eh
There will be other days to rendezvous out at the 1847 at Stone Hill . . . important thing is to get over whatever got the both of you - surely sounds like the flu to me. You shudda been here when the Mentor Village Visiting Nurses 'n Go Go Dancers Association (MKVVNGGDA) gave out the shots . . . <geesh> Can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink, eh <grin>
Sent you two Emails this morning . . .
I thought the Railroad Magazine was DEFUNCT <as in out of print> but you said the Barriger Library has the Oct 2007 issue - now I'm really confused!!
Can't say for certainty that I recall any of the details of my SFran visit back in 1953. That was when I was 15 and we were returning to NYC from Santa Ana, CA from the Boy Scout Jamboree. The train took us up to Oakland/SFran - where we spent a bit of time for this 'n that . . . then on to the Muir Redwoods, and so forth. An adventure chronicled on these Pages a few times . . .
Many thanx for stopping by 'n providing us with a fine inclusive Post 'n Pix - round too!
Catch ya on Monday!
Greatings Tom and gentlemen....
Barkeep....could I please have a Gin & Tonic and the usual top up with cigars for the boys please....keep the change..
$$$$ for the cigar box and Mr Wurlitzer...
DD1, nice pics of that layout mate....never seen so much track in one place....
Tom, Anchorage, eh? The place which I'm from is higher up on this space shuttle of ours than that lovely town....winters...! Really enjoy your pics mate....looking forward to a follow up to this series....
pwolfe, being more of a LMS or LNER person when it comes to the british companies, I can't help but love those Castle and Kings classes of the Great Western, they were art on wheels....
Great pics as always mate!
The next round is on me lads.....Whisky all the way around!
Just passing by with another posting for our photo posting day...streamlined lassies sitting pretty.
NYNH&H streamlined 4-6-4 #1400 in New Haven, Conn., August 18, 1937.
NYC streamlined 4-6-2 #4915 in Toledo, Ohio, August 9, 1936.
C&NW streamlined 4-6-4 #4005 in Council Bluffs, Iowa, May 29, 1938.
NYC streamlined 4-6-4 #5450 in Harmon, N.Y., April 16, 1938.
Credit: All above Otto Perry and photoswest...
Reading streamlined 4-6-2 #117 The Crusader...
Lehigh Valley streamlined 4-6-2 #2102 in Allentown., Pa.
Credit: northeastrailfan, photographer unknown...
Starting Sunday at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre!
. . . November 4th thru 10th: TWO FEATURES: Horatio Hornblower - Loyalty & Duty (2003) Starring: Ioan Gruffudd, Robert Lindsay (II), Paul McGann, Lorcan Cranitch & Tony Haygarth. SHORT: The Three Stooges - Higher Than A Kite (1943).
Horatio Hornblower - Loyalty (2003)
PLOT SUMMARY: Dashing Ioan Gruffud stars as dashing Horatio Hornblower, unparalleled British naval hero, in two more delightful episodes from the A&E series. In Loyalty, a peace with France has left Hornblower decommissioned and short on funds. Only the help of his landlady's daughter Maria (heartbreaking Julie Sawalha, Absolutely Fabulous) keeps him from being kicked out into the street. Fortunately for our hero, Napoleon's armies are afoot, and Hornblower soon finds himself sailing to France in command of the Hotspur, grappling with Irish traitors and French skullduggery.
Dashing Ioan Gruffud stars as dashing Horatio Hornblower, unparalleled British naval hero, in two more delightful episodes from the A&E series. In Loyalty, a peace with France has left Hornblower decommissioned and short on funds. Only the help of his landlady's daughter Maria (heartbreaking Julie Sawalha, Absolutely Fabulous) keeps him from being kicked out into the street. Fortunately for our hero, Napoleon's armies are afoot, and Hornblower soon finds himself sailing to France in command of the Hotspur, grappling with Irish traitors and French skullduggery.
In Loyalty, a peace with France has left Hornblower decommissioned and short on funds. Only the help of his landlady's daughter Maria (heartbreaking Julie Sawalha, Absolutely Fabulous) keeps him from being kicked out into the street. Fortunately for our hero, Napoleon's armies are afoot, and Hornblower soon finds himself sailing to France in command of the Hotspur, grappling with Irish traitors and French skullduggery.
<from: amazon.com>
NOTE: This concludes the Horatio Hornblower series at The Emporium Theatre!
Horatio Hornblower - Duty (2003)
PLOT SUMMARY: Duty picks up where Loyalty leaves off; Hornblower marries Maria with some ambivalence, but the day after his wedding sails for the coast of France to find a missing ship. After rescuing a supposedly Swiss man and his American wife in a storm, Hornblower finds himself caught between an old foe in France and diplomats in England. Though the derring-do is sometimes melodramatic, Horatio Hornblower swiftly becomes engrossing and suspenseful. Credit is due to smart scripts, efficient direction, Gruffud's heroically curly hair, and a superb supporting cast, including Robert Lindsay and Paul McGann (Withnail and I). --Bret Fetzer
Duty picks up where Loyalty leaves off; Hornblower marries Maria with some ambivalence, but the day after his wedding sails for the coast of France to find a missing ship. After rescuing a supposedly Swiss man and his American wife in a storm, Hornblower finds himself caught between an old foe in France and diplomats in England. Though the derring-do is sometimes melodramatic, Horatio Hornblower swiftly becomes engrossing and suspenseful. Credit is due to smart scripts, efficient direction, Gruffud's heroically curly hair, and a superb supporting cast, including Robert Lindsay and Paul McGann (Withnail and I). --Bret Fetzer
SHORT: Higher Than A Kite (1943)
PLOT SUMMARY: The Stooges join the RAF hoping to fly, but wind up as motor pool mechanics instead. After they destroy a Colonel's car, they hide in a "sewer pipe" which is actually a blockbuster bomb being loaded onto a plane. After the bomb is dropped behind enemy lines, Moe and Curly disguise themselves as German soldiers, while Larry dresses as a seductive (?) senorita. Marshal Boring falls for Larry in drag, and the Stooges manage to steal the Germans' war plans.
The Stooges join the RAF hoping to fly, but wind up as motor pool mechanics instead. After they destroy a Colonel's car, they hide in a "sewer pipe" which is actually a blockbuster bomb being loaded onto a plane. After the bomb is dropped behind enemy lines, Moe and Curly disguise themselves as German soldiers, while Larry dresses as a seductive (?) senorita. Marshal Boring falls for Larry in drag, and the Stooges manage to steal the Germans' war plans.
<from: threestooges.net>
Enjoy the weekend - and - extra hour of sleep ! Tom
HI Tom and all.
Open bar still LEONGreat I'll have a Bathams XXX please
JAN Yes I consider myself a LMS man, but as you say, the Great Western Railway passenger classes did look superb when they were clean and the copper was polished.
When King George V was on the main line in preserved days one of the volunteers, among other jobs, would polish the buffers before each main line trip. On one trip he was unable to help and met the engine at the station, anyway as the engine approached the station we happened to be next to him and one of the support crew. He said "Look at the state of the buffers", which appeared to be very dirty indeed and was he getting very irate. It was only as the engine pulled along side him that he could see they had taped two black bin liners over the buffers, there were removed to reveal buffers you could see your face in.
Many thanks for those great looking Streamliners.
TOM. Many thanks for the link to that great, and this week, Oh so true, cartoon
ME in charge(YIKES) indeed.
It seems I have caused to you. It is the October 2007 British Railway Magazine they have at the Barringer on the list.
I wasn't clear about the car in the third photo which only the very front of it can be seen next to the locomotive, it appears to have windows in the end. I think looking at it again it is a railway officials car.
Two more great Hornblower films on the Emporium this week, great storys. .I see the Stooges get Higher than a Kite, a great play on words.. Just a little point though, they did not have Colonels in the RAF, but with Marshal Boring after them it is a minor thing..
Well LEON with the open bar I think the track gang are going to beat their previous record, so out with the empties and in with the full ones..
Pete.
Good Evening All
It's last call here and the lights are still on as the storm will reach it's apex in about an hour. So at the risk of leaving every one in the dark it's "Lights Out" see ya all Monday!
Fergie
http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=5959
If one could roll back the hands of time... They would be waiting for the next train into the future. A. H. Francey 1921-2007
Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!
Leon, my friend! Saturday night, it is time for that juicy Filet Mignon with all the mushrooms! A baked potatoe and an ice cold Keith's, please. Oh, don't forget, a round for the house!
A short Saturday, but nice! Also a lot of nice reading and pictures at the bar!
JanOlov – You picked a good one of barndad’s posts! Interesting reading and pictures!And a good mix of steam action in those pictures from the West. I especially like the one from above Raton, NM. A column of streamlined locos from a number of different railroads! Did all class 1 railroads have streamlined steam locomotives? Fergie – It seems like you are well prepared for “Noel”! Maybe you should add some more beverages? Hope the storm passed without any damages. Tom – No insomnia, just a lot of things to do and weekend! From the moment I put my head on the pillow it takes me less than one minut to fall asleep. No round ever? I guess you missed it again! Two days (11/01) ago you could read this:“Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!Yes, Leon, I know I am early. I would like to have my steak and bisquits with curly fries tonight. A round for the house!”I will remember your wishes about any future quiz.A bunch of Manager Lars’ nice book covers! The top one reminds me about my telephone (one of them). That phone is a model of the same locomotive! More nice Alaska pictures!! I found an interesting car in pix 6 and 7. Looks like an old Amtrak Metroliner car. Do you know anything about that car?Two more Hornblower movies at the Emporium! I guess I should go and see them. I’ve never seen a Hornblower movie! Ron – My passport arrived today! Exactly one week and $127 after I sent in my application. It is actually a very fancy passport with pictures on all pages, including one picture of a steam locomotive pulling a freight train! Very nice!The first generation of concrete ties in Sweden had a metal bar/tube that held the two concrete parts together. I’ll try to find a picture and post it in a day or two.Very nice pictures from the NorthlandZ model railroad!! Those bridges are something else!Pete – It would be nice to have those codes available. But we have to be carefully so Manager Lars doesn’t notice anything! I have been to San Francisco a number of times and been riding the cable cars almost every time. I have photos and video from those rides. There is a cable car museum on the route of the cable cars. I have not visited it yet.
Adding a few pictures.
Union Pacific in Nevada 1981.
Ottawa, ON, 1993.
RTL #158, track 16, Union Station, Washington D.C. 1992.
Refueling, Minot, ND, 1993.
Former Melbourne streetcar, Seattle, WA 1993.
Eric
<personal foto>
A smile to begin the week!
Thank you for making this day necessary.
<A Yogi-ism!>
What's to say It's Monday! Soooooo, let's make the best of it, eh Mugga Joe - pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery 'n a <light> or <traditional> breakfast from our Menu Board!
We made the most of Sunday as the "pick day" for the final weekend of fall brilliance in these parts. We spent a delightful day over at Pere Marquette State Park in Illinois (largest in the state). It's located at a picturesque spot where the Illinois River has its confluence with the Mississippi, just north of a river town called Grafton. Some outstanding scenery along the Great River Road on the Illinois side with the fall colors in absolute splendor. The lodge at the park is a place we've always enjoyed - rustic dining room, super comfortable setting and of course great dining. Takes about 75 minutes from where Juneau lives.
Some railroading along the way as there are several freight spurs at roadside in Alton where ConAgra has a huge rail ‘n barge facility. Just an all ‘round great day!
Comments from the Proprietor:
Customer Acknowledgments (since my last narrative)
Saturday - 03 Nov 2007:
Jan (JanOlov at 4:23 PM: Anchorage latitude ‘n longitude is 61° 13' North, 149° 52', West whereas Fairbanks <where the Denali Star was bound> is 64° 83'N, 147° 71' W.
Great looking shrouded monsters of steel!
Thanx for the support ‘n top ups, et al!
Pete (pwolfe) at 8:27 PM: I knew that cartoon would change - daily. Glad you caught it! For the rest of ya - it was a Bat Man cartoon showing the "caped crusader" sitting on a bar stool with "Guano Happens" on the front of his outfit. The guy next to him asks, "Bad day?" Very appropriate for our very own Bat Man Pete! <grin>
Here's a link that shouldn't change daily:
http://www.comics.com/creators/speedbump/archive/speedbump-20071103.html
I shudda noticed you said "Railway" vs "Railroad" in reference to the magainze. Thanx for the clarification . . . We'll be sure to check out the Barriger <no "N"> during our Rendezvous III - probably need to schedule a bit more time than last visit.
You can handle it, Mate - being in charge of this joint means keeping Boris out of trouble, Leon busy, Ruth <ahem> . . . well never mind, she's <off limits> ‘n order maintained in the place.
Thanx for the 2nd visit on Saturday - that helps too, especially with our Manager away for a bit.
Fergie (Fermiester) at 10:14 PM: Appears the southwestern portion of Nova Scotia got more of Noel than where you are. Glad you've weathered the weather!
Wonderin' if you "know" the guys who make up the "nucleus" of this joint . . . in no particular order here are our "lynch pins" . . .
CM3 Shane (coalminer3) - he's our Resident WVA Connection ‘n Everything Rail Aficionado Supreme. There's no finer individual at this bar ‘n he's been with us continuously during the week days since opening back in April 2005.
Pete (pwolfe) - (you met him!!) - he's our Resident Mid-Missouri Brit Connection who keeps me on my toes both in ‘n out of the bar! <grin> At the bar
Good Morning All I see The Captain is up bright eyed and bushy tailed this a.m.
EricX2000 wrote:Fergie – It seems like you are well prepared for “Noel”! Maybe you should add some more beverages? Hope the storm passed without any damages.
Fergie – It seems like you are well prepared for “Noel”! Maybe you should add some more beverages? Hope the storm passed without any damages.
We were suppose to have friends over for Rumoli but as it turned out they wisely opted out as the winds started to pick up at 7pm. So rumoli with the Mrs., The MiL and Son No.2 With beer and wine to temper the festivities
It was fairly quiet until about 2am and then the Freight Train hit! 4 hours of "house shaking" hurricane force winds" ( I live in a two story with tongue and groove boards). The only damage I sustained was the Trellis was knocked down. Knew it would happen anyway. 100,000 without power, 2 inches of rain, 4" in other locals wind peaked at 83mph and at present 60,000 are still without power and maybe for another day or two.
Tom: We were in Bedford Yesterday and saw your Rena-nonsence steam by, the whistle sounded good anyway... Also saw a 35' sailboat jammed into the little alcove under the CN bridge. High and dry and against the sea wall
BTW thanks for the intro I suspect I'll be buying the next few to keep everyone happy. And Vito at bay.
Well I have a busy day ahead of me so later (have to go look for a new vehicle)
Hello Tom and all in
Quick pint for me please.
Just a short message for Pete to say I've got hold of a copy of the Railway Magazine with the LMS supplment - looks good. Juts gotta find time to read it (plus my copy of Classic Trains not read either yet...)
Anyway - hope to respond with a more inclusive visit soon.
Tom - got your e-mails - noted and will reply in due course of course.
Regards to one and all
DL
In absence of our Manager Lars during the morning "slot," figured I'd drop something off to keep things going . . . here's a Blast from the Past from the "Our" Place archives!
PASSENGER TRAIN NOSTALGIA #61
<A form of this was initially Posted on 20 Jan 2006, Page 226 of the Original Thread>
Here's something to enjoy regarding the Union Pacific (UP) in a 1933 advertisement from my private collection:
The trail to "Wonderland" Union Pacific serves 15 of our National parks and more of the famous scenic wonderlands of the West than does any other railroad. Plan now to see the west this summer. We suggest: Zion-Bryce Canyon . . .Yellowstone-Grand Teton . . . . . .Rock Mountain-National Parks . . . . . . . . . Colorado California and Hawaii . . . Pacific Northwest and Alaska . . . . . .Western Dude Ranches . . . . . . . . .Hoover Dam All costs are down. Rail fares are the lowest ever offered. Sightseeing rates, hotels, meals - in fact, all expenses are reduced.
UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD OVERLAND
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Some drumheads of the UP
Enjoy! Tom
Greetings Tom and gentlemen...
May I please have a cup of black Java and the usual top up with cigars for the lads...? Keep the change....
EricX2000, great pics my good man...! I wouldn't know if every class 1 railroad had streamlined locomotives, but I'm sure that most had them anyway....we could always have a snoop around....
Tom, some nice UP drumheads you got going there.... I'd have loved to see those M-10000's and streamlined City trains in real life. But, that's what you get when you're born too late and all that....
Next round me fellas!
Now Arriving on Track #1
Six Pack Special Number Six
RR advertisements from the Classic Era
Montserrat - Euro
Orient Express - Euro
Main Line Flake - Euro
Pullman - Euro
Etoile du Nord - Euro
Exactitude - Euro
Enjoy!
Hello everybody at the bar! And welcome to a brand new week! Great, isn't it?
Ruth, it's a bit late for lunch, so a pint of Guinness will do just fine. I leave this portrait of Grant so the others can have something at the bar when they show up. By the way, I seem to have misplaced my James Madison, if you see it, please let me know, will ya'?
No news (at least no good news) on the PC front. I still write this from work, so it's short.
The weekend model railroading went really well. My club hosted three operating sessions with a fairly large group every time; at the most we had 10 operating guests. We still needed an engine hostler, so I gladly jumped in and tried that part for the first time. It was fun but a bit slow at times.
I keep forgetting to bring the memory cards to work so I can upload my pictures from Boston and surroundings. I will hopefully have them here before the end of the week.
Tom, Thanks for the repost of Trolleyboy Bob's articles from 2005. And a great big thanks for the library link. I had misplaced it and was looking for it a while back. It was really welcome!
I used to have mixed feelings about MR clubs. The one I belonged to in SoCal didn't work out too well for me. When I moved to Dallas I wanted to do some MR-ing but realized there wasn't much reason to build something myself. This area is very active in the MR with two big shows per year and each show has a home/club layout tour. That's how I found this place, and it has worked very well. It's all about chemistry, I guess, either you fit in, or you don't. This time I was lucky.
Comments about the round are duly noticed. Share the Madison with the rest of the crew.
Nice reprint of Manager Lars' SR book covers. Isn't that green engine a beauty! What's it called again? Ps-[something] (seems I can remember the letters but not the numbers anymore).
The baggage tent at ARR brings back memories of the "International Arrivals" tent at LAX in the 80's, brrrr. That's some nice artwork on the ultra domes! And, like Eric said, what's the Amtrak car doing there? And picture 10 sure shows a great view! If I had an office in one of those buildings, I think I better draw the blinds if I wanted to get something done!
Sounds like you had a great Sunday at the Pere Marquette park.
Nice UP drumheads. You are giving me some ideas for contributions here, once I get my PC up and running again so I can scan some of the UP stuff I have collected the last couple of years as I was gathering information on the "City of Los Angeles".
Those European posters that showed up after I refreshed are great! I wonder what an original of those would fetch these days? Way too much, I'm sure, after seeing some on "Antiques Roadshow" a couple of times.
Pete, I checked a bit more on the vertical steam engine you posted. It is, indeed, a "steam donkey", I just didn't remember the name last time. I have always seen it used in illustrations of logging operations, but Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_donkey) also lists maritime use of it. It was invented in 1881 and patented in 1882.
As I mentioned above, it was a great model train weekend. We had a large crowd and it seemed everybody were happy with the operation possibilities we have created on our club layout.
I tried to find a picture of the newer Green Line trolleys on the web, but I had no luck.
I liked your pictures of the cable cars. I visited that cable car museum many years ago. The strongest memory is of the drive mechanism and the way it was explained. The museum is in one of the power stations which is still being used.
Great story about the "buffer polisher".
Eric, picky, picky! I guess I have to dig deeper next time you have a quiz. But 75% isn't that bad, is it?
Nice pictures, especially the Nevada one. Those Melbourne street cars seems to have been distributed all over when they stopped running "down under".
Jan, that's some really nice pictures of the heavy weight Pullmans. Man, that was traveling in style! And the streamlined steamers are great too! It's interesting to see how many different designs there were. Does anyone know how long those engines were in use? I guess the streamline covers came off after the E-diesels came out and the steamers were used for secondary trains or freight instead.
Fergie, I'm glad you weathered out Noel with just a trellis damage. Hey, Tom's suggestion on how to replace your engines at a lower price isn't bad at all!
Ron, my first experience with "Black and Tan" was when my new bride and I went to Europe for a summer trip. My Father-in-Law recommended it, and the first pub we saw in Kensington became the testing ground. From that time, both of us really like it. The proprietor wanted to know where we found out about it and when he heard the story, the next round was on him.
It seems your travel habits are pretty much like mine. I try to take the less traveled route and to try the local food. Heck, if I want McDonald's I don't need to go half-way around the world to get that! I didn't find any narrow gauge in Perth but I found the RR Museum there. I was looking for information on an old line from Port Hedland to Marble Bar and they had some.
Nice pictures from NordlandZ! That must have been an experience to see that layout.
Well, folks, it's back to work again. Thanks for the Guinness and have another one on me!
Per
A pint of Bathams please RUTH.
ERIC Thanks for the drink.
I bet that is a great video of the San Francisco cable cars. Although I had seen those streets many times on TV and in films, it was not until actually riding the cars I realized how steep those streets really are.
Many Thanks for the photos.
I have not seen any UP locomotives with the number on the side of the loco and not on the cab, I wonder if it was common having the number on the side when the photo was taken in 1981.
The Melbourne streetcar looks quite a home in Seattle.
FERGIE That sounds a very scary night with the very high winds, glad you escaped with only the trellis damaged. Hopefully all the folks will have the power back on soon.
DL Glad you were able to get a copy of the Railway Magazine LMS special, not read all of mine yet but it would have been very interesting to seen what would have happened to the LMS if those large engines proposed by Sir Henry Fowler of the Midland had been allowed to be built.
PER Glad you had such a good time at the Model weekend.
Many thanks for the link to the Donkey Engine. The photo of the donkey engine in the link shows a similar one to the one at the Maritime museum. The one in at San Francisco looks in good condition.
Glad you enjoyed the photos of the cable cars. By the sounds I shall have to allow plenty of time to look round the cable car museum, it sounds an interesting exhibit on the working of the cable car system. I loved the safety talk we had on the cable car; the lady said, "If you see me jump off, you follow".
I shall look forward to the photos of the Boston area.
The landlord at our local Irish pub mixes a great black and tan it used to be made with Guinness and Bass.
TOM Sounds as though you had a great day out at the Pere Marquette state park, the weather was glorious for a day out.
It is very easy to spend a lot of time at the Barriger Library (sorry about the earlier spelling mistake) there is a great selection of railroad books as well as the magazines.
It was an easy weekend looking after the bar it seems free beer is way preferred than causing trouble and damage to the track gang. The tip jar was overflowing Saturday night as I heard the track gang had bet heavily on a 3-0 win by Our Place in the darts.
Many thanks for the Union Pacific ‘Blast from the Past' and the Drumheads. I see there is one where the Wabash teamed up with the UP.
Another great Six-Pack Special. The posters looks like from the 1930s and, as Per says, how much would an original be worth today. Loved the Wills one, I wonder what the artist based the locomotive on, it has got be beat. Wills used to produce some really great cigarette cards with railway themes. I was given some when I was a youngster, but sadly they disappeared over the years.
I could say something about the ‘Exactitude' poster and onefor the line through here, but I wont..
I have some streetcars in San Francisco, taken near Fisherman's Wharf.
These next two are from a PCC with Kansas City markings, I think it is the same type as the one on display by Union Station in Kansas City. It was great to see the car in use.
Leon, time for my Rumpsteak Café de Paris! Ice cold Keith's please!
After suffering from my allergy all day it is good to be able to stop by "Our Place" and relax and learn something new!
Tom – I passed the reading test?!!?!! Thank you, that makes me feel good! I am ready for the next test! The Buzzards lost again! It is a sad story and I don’t want to even think about it. Pathetic!The Metroliner car in your pictures is obviously a research car, owned by FRA, described on the link below. I can see the FRA logo to the left of the door at the rear end of the car. FRA obtained the car from Amtrak 1999.http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/Research/rr01_01.pdfPictures of that car in Alaska on this link.http://www.fra.dot.gov/us/content/1488Nice UP drumheads! I like the City of Denver and City of Cheyenne drumheads!Classic looking posters indeed! I would guess they are from the 30’s. I wonder what Wills’s “Main Line” Flake is? 9 1/2 d. per ounce??Fergie – Glad to learn that you survived the storm without any bad damage. A trellis can always be replaced. I guess you didn’t get much sleep with the house shaking in the storm. Hope you’ll find the vehicle you are looking for!DL – Come back soon! You are missed. JanOlov – You are probably right about class 1 railroads having streamlined steam locomotives. I’ll see if I can find out. Per – I found the answer about the former Amtrak car in Tom’s pictures from Alaska. See my response to him. 75% is not bad at all! No one was 100% correct! Pete – The streets in San Francisco are very steep! I have been thinking about transfering/converting my video of the cable cars to a DVD. Maybe after I retire in 45 days! I thought all UP locomotives have the number on the sides and front. At least the ones running through Arizona all have it. See picture below.
Thanks for the streetcar pictures from Fisherman’s Wharf! Very nice! Last time I was in SF they were building that line. Good to see they are running streetcars on it now!
Good evening Leon , seems all well here at the saloon by the siding. I'll pop for a round and nab a guiness for myself.Sorry for being a bit scarce the last three days folks, it's that time of year already and the stores been a bit on the busy side,on the upside that means job security for the forseeable future
Tom-Hmmm I seem to recolect those pictures , I'm glad you thought them highly enough to repost them.Lots of interesting posters pics the last couple o days (daze). I'm wondering did you get any colour in your trees this year ? We've had an interesting fall, we had temps in the 70's or at least high 60's for most of sept and october so the tree's basically dropped green leaves. Wierd year, even the maples in my backyard managed not to give us any colour.
fergie-I'm gald to hear that you weathered the storm,I had been thinking about the lot of you out there when I heard the report that Noel was headed in your direction.Good luck on your vehicle hunt.
Pete-Nice shots from San fran sir liked Alans nautical pics as well The streetcars in San Fran are intersting. The PCC line started out as a tourist thing and then miorphed into a full fledged year round transit hub. They were originally just going to preserve some old cars and have at it. Turned into a living and working museum of sorts,I never heard the story wwhy but the management decided to paint their cars for all the various PCC car using cities, makes for quite a conversation starter at any rate. I actually never heard if Al finished his book.I imagine if he had it would have been quite the espistal,I've always said that the guy likely has forgotten more about passenger trains and ops then the rest of us ever knew in the first place.
eric-107 is a big car 62.5' over the pulling faces front to back.The car is however narrow as with all MS&C equipment they were designed to share the narrow victorian era Victoria bridge accross the St lawrence River. It is a very elegant car right down to the stained glass in the clerestry.
Rob
Manager Lars (LoveDomes) will not be with us for awhile . . We'll miss his daily appearances, book ‘n video covers along with stewardship at the bar! Hurry back, Mate.
HELP WANTED! Surely would appreciate it if one or two of our customers would stop in on "my other Thread" - ‘n maybe drop off a comment or foto now ‘n then. Thanx, Rob!
Monday 05 - Nov 2007:
Fergie (Fergmiester) at 6:48 AM: Really hate to do this <grin> but a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do <uh oh> Grab your stern section - here it comes!
<tweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet> <tweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet> Rules Violations! Rules Violations!
Rule #1 - Failure to greet the barkeep upon entering! <grrrrrrrrrr> Rule #2 - Failure to order drink or food! <geesh> - and - Rule #53 - Suspected selective reading of the Posts! <for shame>! Penalties: Wire brush the scuppers - scour the slop chute ‘n swab the galley! <yikes> - AND - don't do that anymore! <uh oh>
Mentioning that you're going to buy a round isn't the same as DOING IT! <geesh>Vito said he'd be sending one of his boyz to fit you for some shoes <cement I think>! <ommmigosh>
Okay - now that we've <nailed> Skipper Fergie, let's see what's to say about his Monday offering:
So - you weathered the weather - which is good. The fact that you had some interruptions in socializing, et al - and perhaps some anxious moments - ain't. Happy to know all's well with you ‘n yours!
At Bedford Basin - looking at the CN trestle straight on from the water's edge the 2nd home to the left on the Basin ‘n the home 2nd to the right are owned by family members. a great place, fer sure, fer sure. Many a sailing vessel has wound up where you described. In fact one of my sisters-in-law lost her most prized possession as a result of Juan - put ‘er on the rocks big time. <groan>
Happy to see ya, in spite of the <tweetings>
Dan (DL-UK) at 11:07 AM: In ‘n out - but still good to see ya, Mate!
My issue of Classic Trains arrived late last week - it too is on the "stack" to read. Happens! <grin>
Jan (JanOlov) at 12:36 PM: Another with few words for the day - but the top up, et al means a lot!
Well, at least we can all enjoy feasting our eyes on the photo's ‘n graphics from "back in the day"! That's small consolation - but at least something to enjoy!
Per (marthastrainyard) at 3 PM: A mid-afternoon visit from our Resident Cowboy Swede! Nice inclusive Post with all sorts of good stuff to digest!
Keep in mind that if you want to provide us with fotos - Saturday is our Photo Posting Day <no limits - but reasonable!!> whereas during the week we try to stay within the six-per-visit limit. <thanx!>
Ps-4 I think is what you're looking for regarding that great looking green Southern steam loco - it's a Pacific "type" 4-6-2 - #1401 is at the Smithsonian in WashDC.
Regarding model RR clubs: I've really only recently gotten "into" the hobby <hook, line ‘n sinker>. Was most difficult to get serious with it during my career with all the moving, raising a family, limited bucks, etc. Now, of course the situation is far different. Once I began to seriously embark upon building "the layout of my dreams," I did so with pretty much limited help ‘n advice. Not that I wouldn't have accepted it, but I just wasn't looking.
A neighbor ‘n friend of mine offered to do the landscaping - which I graciously accepted. But as things turned out - he bailed out on the offer ‘n I wound up doing
Canadian Railways of the Past Number Six: Canadian National's Super Continental
<A form of this was initially Posted 30 Jun 2006, Page 367 on the Original Thread>
Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources. Route map of the Super Continental The Super Continental was a transcontinental Canadian passenger train operated originally by the Canadian National Railway beginning in 1955 and subsequently by VIA Rail Canada from 1977 until its cancellation in 1981. Service was restored in 1985 but was again eliminated in 1990. The original CNR train had a Montreal - Ottawa - Toronto - Winnipeg - Saskatoon - Edmonton - Jasper - Vancouver routing with daily service. CNR passenger service in the postwar era Following World War II, CNR's passenger fleet was in desperate need of modernization, and between 1946 and 1950 they purchased a total of 75 of new lightweight coaches and sleeping cars. However, post-war material shortages constrained the number of cars that CNR was able to procure commercially, leading to a significant programme of in-house refurbishment of older heavyweight equipment in the CNR carshops. Ultimately a total of 211 heavyweight cars were fitted out with new interiors, roller bearing trucks, and sealed windows. Nevertheless it quickly became apparent that refurbished equipment alone would not be sufficient to remain competitive, and in 1952 CNR placed a large order for new lightweight equipment. This order consisted of 218 coaches from the Canadian Car and Foundry Company in Montreal, as well as 92 sleeping cars, 20 dining cars, 17 parlour cars, and 12 buffet-sleepers from the Chicago-based Pullman-Standard Company. Inauguration of service Deliveries of the new cars were essentially completed by 1954, but CNR waited until 24 April 1955 to introduce its new transcontinental flagship Super Continental to replace its former flagship, the Continental Limited. Not coincidently, this was the same date that competitor Canadian Pacific Railway introduced its new streamlined transcontinental train The Canadian. However, despite the new and refurbished equipment and an attractive new black-and-green yellow-trim paint scheme, the Super Continental's mixture of equipment paled in comparison to CPR's gleaming all stainless-steel consist, produced for them by the Budd Company. An additional important distinction was that The Canadian featured scenic dome cars, which the Super Continental was prevented from using due to interference with electrification in Montreal. In 1964, CN started using dome cars on the western portion of the route. Although the CNR was not completely dieselized until 1960, the Super Continental was from the outset hauled exclusively by a variety of diesel locomotives, including Montreal Locomotive Works FP-2s and FP-4s, Canadian Locomotive Company C-liners in eastern Canada, as well as General Motors Diesel FP9 units in western Canada. Decline of passenger trains By the 1960s, Canadian passenger trains were in serious decline, largely thanks to increased competition from automobiles travelling the then-new Trans-Canada Highway and from airlines. However, the CN aggressively marketed its services, even while CPR was losing interest in operating The Canadian. To help combat the perception that the CPR route through the Rocky Mountains was more scenic, CN in 1964 acquired a set of six ex-Milwaukee Road "Super Dome" cars (rechristened "Sceneramics" by CN) that had formerly seen service on the Olympian Hiawatha. These were placed into service between Winnipeg and Vancouver. But despite CNR's best efforts, ridership continued to decline throughout the 1970s, and the train operated at a loss. VIA Rail takeover and first cancellation On April 1, 1978, a new federal Crown corporation called VIA Rail Canada formally assumed responsibility for the passenger services of CN. VIA Rail also assumed responsibility for CP Rail's passenger services on October 29, 1978, giving it two transcontinental routes: the Canadian and the Super Continental. VIA Rail reconfigured these routes, making the Canadian a Toronto-Vancouver train and the Super Continental a Montreal-Vancouver train. Sleeping cars were exchanged in Winnipeg between the two trains. The Canadian became the company's premier transcontinental train and the Super Continental was relegated to secondary status. Nevertheless, a confluence of astute marketing, high gasoline prices, and rampant inflation actually led to an increase in ridership during the early 1980s. However, the 1981 federal budget of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau's Liberal government led to fully 20% of VIA's route miles being eliminated. The Super Continental was among the trains immediately cut. Such reductions in passenger service proved to be politically unpopular, and following the election of the Progressive Conservative government of Brian Mulroney in 1984, service was restored on June 1, 1985, but on a truncated route from Vancouver to Winnipeg via Edmonton that no longer lived up to the 'Continental' name. The Toronto/Montreal to Sudbury segment was eliminated, and the Capreol-Winnipeg segment was reduced to a triweekly nameless remote services train. During this period, VIA Rail was also able to re-equip the Super Continental with modern GMD F40PH locomotives. Unfortunately, on February 8, 1986 human error resulted in VIA's eastbound Super Continental colliding with a CN freight train at Dalehurst, Alberta, near Hinton. Twenty-three people lost their lives in what is still the worst accident in modern Canadian railway history. The end By the late 1980's, federal budgets were under serious pressure, and the Mulroney government's 1989 budge
Good Morning Barkeep and all Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox.
Please excuse the silence from here but have been covered up for past few days with a family medical emergency. Person involved (not me but one of the younger set) is still in the hospital but doing better I hope you will bear with my brief visits for awhile.
work safe
Ruth, take the rest of the day off . . . I'll watch things 'round here.
Boris feed the critters 'n then you may have that jar of PPF!
This from Page 247 back on Feb 15, 2006 of the Original Thread . . .
RAILWAYS of EUROPE #1 - British Rail
British Rail Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources. None of this material has been corroborated.
British Railways (BR), later rebranded as British Rail, ran the British railway system from the nationalisation of the 'Big Four' British railway companies in 1948 until its privatisation in stages between 1994 and 1997. This period saw massive changes in the nature of the railway network: steam traction was eliminated in favour of diesel and electric power, passengers replaced freight as the main source of business, and the network was severely rationalised. History Background British Railways Eastern Region timetable for Summer 1963. The rail transport system in Great Britain developed during the 19th century. After the grouping of 1923 by the Railways Act 1921 there were four large British railway companies, each dominating its own geographic area. These were the Great Western Railway (GWR), the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS), the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) and the Southern Railway (SR). The London Underground and the Glasgow Subway were independent concerns and there was a small number of independent light railways and industrial railways, which did not contribute significant mileage to the system. Neither were non-railway-owned tramways considered part of the system. During the Second World War the railways were taken into state control. They were heavily damaged by enemy action and were run down aiding the war effort. Nationalisation The Transport Act 1947 made provision for the nationalisation of the network, as part of a policy of nationalising public services by Clement Attlee's Labour Government. British Railways came into existence on 1 January 1948 with the merger of the Big Four, under the control of the Railway Executive of the Briti***ransport Commission (BTC). The Northern Counties Committee lines owned by the LMS in Northern Ireland were quickly sold to the Stormont Government, becoming part of the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) in 1949. The emblem of British Railways, also called the "Ferret and Dartboard" British Railways The new system was split geographically into six regions along the lines of the Big Four:
These regions would form the basis of the BR business structure until the 1980s. The Eastern and North Eastern Regions were merged to form the Eastern Region in the 1960s, Anglia Region was split off from the Eastern Region in the 1980s. They retained a level of independence, though there was also some centralisation. ex-LMS Jubilee Class 45641 Sandwich at Chinley in 1954 [Wikimedia Commons] 1955 Modernisation Plan After the Second World War, Britain's railways fell behind others in the world. Countries like Japan, USA and France were experimenting with new diesels and electrics. However, Britain wasn't, and the run down network deteriorated even more because of painfully slow rebuilding. Finally, and lately, came the modernisation plan for Britain's railways. It cost the government much more than it should have, because of bad timing. The 1955 Modernisation Plan, detailed in the Briti***ransport Commission's (BTC) Modernisation and Re-equipment of British Railways, argued for spending £1,240 million
A pint of Bathams please RUTH, Oh it's not you but TOM instead.
ERIC Great work in finding out the Metroliner car in Tom's Alaska photo and thanks for links to FRA car T-16 and photos of the car at work in Alaska.
It will be a great DVD if you transfer those videos; I have heard I may be getting a scanner for Christmas.
Sorry I was not very clear about the UP diesel numbers, what I meant to say was the locomotives in your photo Saturday had their numbers on the engine compartment under the Union Pacific name all UP locos I have seen have had the number on the cab side.
Wills ‘Main Line' Flake was a tobacco, I think mainly for pipe smokers.
ROB Great to see you in the bar as the busy time at your work is fast approaching.
Glad you enjoyed the San Francisco photos. I had not realized until reading at Our Place that the trolley line in SF was fairly new. The car we caught, No. 1051, was full with people standing before arriving at Fisherman's Wharf. I guess they were quite lucky to have been able to find those PCCs to run on the system. I like the idea of having the cars painted in the colours of the cities that ran PCCs.
Next time I got to England a trip up to Blackpool to ride their tram system is a must.
CM3 Real sorry to read of your medical emergency. Glad the younger member is doing better. Best Wishes.
TOM I was going to take a photo of the Kansas City crest on the side of the Streetcar, but it was in shadow and by the car had moved round the sun had gone down further I ought to write a book on "Why my photos weren't taken or did not come out". I did notice the crest was the same as the one on the car by Union Station K.C.
On the poster, I was going to say, the one in the collection you showed said ‘Exactitude' if they done one for the passenger service through here it would have to be ‘Latetitude'
Yes that was a very informative link Per provided on the Donkey Engine.
Many thanks for the CN's Super Continental. It seems another great attempt to keep rail passengers in the face of improved highways and the competition for the Air industry. I think the Super Dome name is far better than the Sceneramics name used by the CN.
I see that they could not use the domes into Montreal owing to the electrification there.
Enjoyed reading Railways of Europe #1 again. An interesting article, the main thing I noticed about the lack of mainline diesels in the early days of nationalization there was no mention of something I have read, that no way did the government want to have to import fuel for a big fleet of diesel locomotives in the countries economic woes after WWII, we had plenty of coal.
Great photo of the Stanier Jubilee 4-6-0 ‘Sandwich' at Chinley. The loco was allocated to Kentish Town, London (shed code 14B) and it is probably a Manchester to London St Pancras express.
The photo of the Virgin class 87-hauled train is taken at ‘Cathiron' about 3 miles from my old home. I have spent many happy hours there from the days of steam to Pendelinos. Many of the tank locomotives photographed at Barry escaped the cutter's torch and some are running today on preserved lines.
Seeing the photo of Sandwich I have looked out a couple of other LMS locos.
Jubilee 5690 Leander at Bury on the East Lancs Railway
Also on the ELR a 'Jinty' 0-6-0 shunting tank engine Introduced in 1924 they were a development of Midland Railway design there were over 400 of these 3F locos built
A Stanier class 5 4-6-0 leaves Crewe on a main line steam tour.
These should enlarge
Well TOM another Bathams with you, LEON will be here in a minute.
Hzi Tom and all,
A round of Tui`s for all the crew please Leon.
Tom. Really enjoyed all of your great selection of posts`, awesome Alasks pics, all the UP and Canadian rail info, and the comprehensive BR nationalisation write up and pics as well, a veritable feast for the eyes`mate!
Pete. It was good to be in the NE at the end of the LNER, I was 13 when they nationalised rail and road transport in 1948, saw a great LNER exhibition at Manors Station [Newcastle] just prior to nationalisation, they had all of the main Gresley [Mallard of course!] and Peppercorn loco`s, the Silver Link and Coronation coach`s, pity I did`nt have a camera then! Enjoyed all your posts and pics, lovely to see those beautiful Gresley teak coach`s looking so well restored and well looked after, thank Alan for all his great photo`s for me. Your LMS pics were too!
Eric. Nice to hear you got the good news from your Doctor. Enjoyed reading all your posts!
Ron. Nice pics of the NorthlandZ layout, had a look at their site the other day, it`s a whopper of a layout.
Jan. Lovely pics of the steamlined steam loco`s, thanks mate!
Fergie. Nice to hear you weathered the storm OK.
Per. Good to see you in on a visit.
Dan. Glad you got your LMS "The Railway" special issue, I managed to get the LNER one last year, it cost NZ$15, about 5 pounds sterling, but it was really worth it! Saw HM the Queen open the St Pancras restoration live on BBC World last night, it must have cost a fortune for all that self cleaning glass on the main canopy.
CM3. Hope all is going well for your younger relation now, not too serious I hope?
Rob. Nice to see you on board again.
Have`nt seen Mike or James around lately?
See ya, Allan
Good morning Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!
Leon, still awake? Wednesday morning, how about a real good breakfast? Blackberry pancakes and a lot of whipped cream!
Kind of quiet day here at "Our" Place today. But that is how it is. BTW it is only 190 days until our 3rd Annual Rendezvous in May!
Rob – Thanks for the info on #107. Certainly a good size car. I understand that it is still operational. Tom – Sorry to hear that you have to stay on medication year round for your allergy! My allergies were really bad from my early 30’s until 2-3 years ago. I was on medication from early spring until late fall. The last few years I’ve been lucky and have had only mild reactions a few times. But last Sunday I mowed the lawn and it was very dusty and then hell broke lose. Enough about that. Yes, those diesels were working hard. Nice sound! Interesting to read about the Super Continental! Too sad it isn’t running today. But at least it is possible to take The Canadian instead! The article about British Railways/Rail is full of interesting facts. I made a copy of it and saved it for future reference. Thanks!!CM3 – Sorry to hear about the family medical emergency. I hope he/she will recover completely soon! There is no doubt that family comes first. Always!Pete – A scanner for Christmas!? That is a nice gift! I am trying to convince my mrs I need a laptop but it seems like she is having some hearing problems. I misunderstod what you said about the UP diesel numbers! You are right, now they put the numbers on the cab sides. Some nice pictures of British steam! To me #5690 Leander looks very much like the Stanier class 5! Same wheel arrangement and almost identical design. But I guess they represent two different classes. Allan – What kind of summer do you have in NZ? We still have warm weather here and that is what I need!
Amtrak's Sunnyside yard, Sunnyside, NY.
A round for the house!
Wednesday's Witticism
It's Money is like a drunk. The tighter it gets, the louder it talks.
Mid-week in mid-continent USA where the petrol is at $2.88 (rounded) but expected to ZOOM upwards any day now - temps are wunnerful for this time of year 'n the colors are still holding.
Time for a <light> or <traditional> breakfast from our Menu Board - a mug of freshly ground 'n brewed coffee <unleaded> or <regular> and of course our famous pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery.
Sunday, Nov 11th is Remembrance - Armistice ‘n Veteran's Day, all rolled into one - depending on where in the ‘free world' one resides. A tradition at the Tavern by the Tracks has been to Post material featuring the RRs and those who served in the Armed Forces during times of global conflict.
So, as an exception to our "CLOSED on Sundays" rule - we invite one ‘n all to provide your input on SUNDAY ‘n MONDAY!
HELP WANTED! Surely would appreciate it if one or two of our customers would stop in on "my other Thread" - ‘n maybe drop off a comment or foto now ‘n then. Thanx Pete 'n Allan!
Tuesday- 06 Nov 2007:
CM3 Shane (coalminer3) at 9:03 AM: Email received - thanx! Surely hope the situation gets resolved in a full ‘n speedy recovery for your youngster!
Pete (pwolfe) at 4:47 PM: Was beginning to think we'd pitch a shutout for the remainder of the day - but our Bar Chandler ‘n Acting Manager made it in. Even dropped off a little something over on "my other Thread"!
It's days like these that makes one THINK about just how few are really holding this joint together. With Lars ‘n CM3 Shane OOC (out of commission) it really makes a difference.
Like the look of that Stanier in your foto spread!
Received ‘n responded to your Email - thanx!
Too bad we no longer have a Montréal based "connection" at the bar for we'd probably find out which of the railway stations used to handle the Super Continental. I believe it was the same station we used - Gare Central - however, not being able to accommodate domes is a bit puzzling, for all the trains I've departed ‘n arrived on had domes <sans the all Renaissance> over the 18 or so years of rail travel there.
Figured that Brit ENCORE! would "grab ya"! <grin> I had to 'clean up' a couple of URLs 'n a foto that didn't come thru . . . they are at the END!
And a companion book to the "Why my photos weren't taken or did not come out" might be, "Why I NEVER empty that most precious black bag of mine! - Except when a bottle of soda spills in it!" A line from "The King & I - ‘tis a puzzlement!" <smile>
Allan (Gunneral) at 7:53 PM: Great to see our Resident Down Under <NZ> Kiwi Connection stroll through the doors - just in time to liven up the joint!
Glad to know that the Posts are keeping you interested - we've got a few ‘round here who enjoy providing some fine insights to the Classics on the rails!
Another Wednesday has rolled 'round which means OPTIONAL Toy 'n Model Trains Day! here at the Bar by the Ballast . . .
A selection from back on May 17th, 2006, Page 332 of the Original Thread:
Louis Marx and Company (courtesy: Marx Toy Museum) Louis Marx and Company was an American toy manufacturer from 1919 to 1978. Its boxes were imprinted with the slogan, "One of the many Marx toys, have you all of them?" The Marx logo was the letters "MAR" in a circle with a large X through it, resembling a railroad crossing sign. Because of this, Marx toys are sometimes misidentified as "Mar" toys. Marx's toys included tinplate buildings, toy soldiers, toy dinosaurs, mechanical toys, toy guns, action figures, dolls, doll houses, toy cars, and HO scale and O scale toy trains. Marx's less-expensive toys were extremely common in dime stores, and its larger, costlier toys were staples for catalog retailers such as Sears and Montgomery Ward, especially around Christmas. Although the company is now largely forgotten except by toy collectors, several of its toys remain well known. Rock'em Sock'em Robots, introduced in the 1960s, remained popular for years and has been reintroduced by several different companies. Its last hurrah was the Big Wheel ride-on pedal toy, which was introduced in 1969 and became one of the most popular toys of the 1970s. Founded in 1919 in New York City by Louis Marx and his brother David Marx, the company's basic policies were "Give the customer more toy for less money," and "Quality is not negotiable," which made the company highly successful. Initially the company had no product designs and no manufacturing capacity, so Marx raised money by positioning itself as a middle man, studying available products, finding ways to make them cheaper, and then closing a sale. Funds raised from these effort proved sufficient to purchase tooling for two obsolete tin toys-called the Alabama Minstrel Dancer and Zippo the Climbing Monkey-from toymaker Ferdinand Strauss, one of Louis Marx's former employers. With subtle changes, Marx was able to turn these toys into hits, selling more than 8 million of each within two years. Marx then bought the company it had subcontracted to manufacture the toys. By 1922, both Louis and David Marx were millionaires. Initially Marx produced few original toys, but was able to predict what toys would be hits and manufacture them less expensively than the competition. The yo-yo is an example: Although Marx is sometimes wrongly credited with inventing the toy, Marx was quick to market its own version, and during the 1920s sold an estimated 100 million of them. A Marx train set made in the late 1940s or early 1950s. (GNU Free Documentation) Unlike most companies, Marx's revenues grew during the Great Depression. By 1937, the company had more than $3.2 million in assets ($42.6 Mil. in 2005 dollars), with debt of just over $500,000. Marx was the largest toy manufacturer in the world by the 1950s. In a 1955 article, Time Magazine proclaimed Louis Marx "the Toy King," and that year, the company had about $50 million in sales. Marx was the initial inductee in the Toy Hall of Fame, and his plaque proclaimed him "The Henry Ford of the toy industry." At its peak, Louis Marx and Company operated three manufacturing plants in the United States: Erie, Pennsylvania, Girard, Pennsylvania, and Glen Dale, West Virginia. The Erie plant was the oldest and largest, while the Girard plant, acquired in 1934 with the purchase of Girard Model Works, produced toy trains, and the Glen Dale plant produced toy cars. Additionally, Marx operated numerous plants overseas. "Donald the Demon" figurine In 1963, they began making a series of plastic figurines called the Nutty Mads which included some almost psychedelic creations such as Donald the Demon: a half duck half madman, driving a miniature car. In 1972, Marx sold his company to the Quaker Oats Company for $54 million ($246 Mil. in 2005 dollars) and retired at the age of 76. Quaker owned the Fisher-Price brand, but struggled with Marx. Quaker had hoped Marx and Fisher-Price would have synergy, but the companies' sales patterns were too different. Marx has also been faulted for largely ignoring the trend towards electronic toys in the early 1970s. In late 1975, Quaker closed the plants in Erie and Girard, and in early 1976, Quaker sold its struggling Marx division to the British conglomerate Dunbee-Combex-Marx, who had bought the former Marx UK subsidiary in 1967. A downturn in the British economy in conjunction with high interest rates caused Dunbee-Combex-Marx to struggle, and these unfavorable market conditions caused a number of Briti***oy manufacturers, including Dunbee-Combex-Marx, to collapse. By 1978 the Marx brand disappeared, and Dunbee-Combex-Marx filed for bankruptcy and was liquidated in 1980. The Marx assets were then liquidated, with many of the patents and molds going to Mego Corporation, another famous maker of dime store toys, and a large number of them going to Canadian toy maker Aurora. The rights to some of Marx's toys are now owned by other companies, and some of its former products are still in production. Marx Toys, Inc., owns the rights to many Marx action figures. Marx Trains, Inc. produces lithographed tin trains, both of original design and based on former Louis Marx designs. K-Line produces plastic O scale train cars and scenery using former Marx molds, which it markets under its own brand name. Model Power produces HO scale trains from old Marx molds. Rights to the original Marx Big Wheel are owned by KidsWheels, Inc., and Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots is owned by Mattel. Marx's toy soldiers and other plastic figures are in production today in China for the North American market and are mostly targeted at collectors, although they sometimes appear on the general consumer market, particularly at dollar stores. The Marx name itself has changed hands several times as well. Despite the similar names, neither of the Marx-branded companies of today have any connection to the original Louis Marx and Company. The original Marx
Good Morning Barkeep and all Present; coffee, please (round for the house) and $ for the jukebox. Tried hard to snow here last night and is doing so to the north of us.
Let's see, there's a lot to catch up on.
Pete has been around with some interesting cable car and PCC pictures. Then what can I say about LMS 5690 - a "timeless" picture in that beautiful paint. I also liked the shot of 75029. Thanks for sending them along.
Eric has been here as well with pictures and comments. Know right where the shot at Sunnyside was made. BTW, have you seen the Citibank ad for the folks who went back to Norway to visit the old country? They had a good time until they went to the Hall of Records and found out that they were actually from Sweden. Ad closes with the lead character going to the window and asking for, "Two tickets to Stockholm." Hope you get a chance to see it.
Jan visited with FEC material and some interesting steam shots. ATSF 1792, IIRC, originally belonged to the N&W and went west during the WW2. They did not last too long after the war was over. The New Haven I5 is probably getting ready to head back to Boston. They handled Shore Line trains between Boston and New Haven at that stage of their careers. They were the last steam engines purchased by the NYNH&H. Next batch of power (right before the war) was DL109s. They ran in both freight and passenger service. Last, nice picture of the LV "John Wilkes."
Fergie - they had fun with the storm along the New England coast as well as I found out when talking to the home folks. Lots of rain and some wind but not like what you had. I remember Hurricane Carol which took the roof off of our house, followed by approx 2 weeks w/o electric. Good thing we liked to camp.
DD1 - Ah yes, the PRR color perplex. As I mentioned it all depended on the light as to whether the locomotives looked to be dark green or black. Tuscan Gs were beautiful when kept clean.
Now for today's quiz - what other paint scheme did PRR apply to some of their G motors?
The NorthlandZ bridge is incredible! Someone must have had a lot of patience.
Per stopped by and Rob visited as well.
Last but not least OSP is keeping us going - thank you, sir! Hornblower and Three stooges combination continues. Also thanks for the ARR shots, UP material, Super Continental, Brit Rail and a great 6-pack of Grafix Clasix!
Medical situation is stabilizing - thanks for everyone's thoughts. It has made for some long days.
Oh, almost forgot. For those interested in more Erie material, the following will take you to a copy of their employee magazine from December, 1955. Enjoy!
http://companypubs.elhts.org/ERIE_Dec1955.pdf
Work safe
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