O.k Leon,set em up old thing-
good man,right,one page at a time-
TOM-Your reminicences of Staten Island struck a chord-new ground for me,had only previously heard of the ferry,but looking deeper it`s more about not being able to cross the same river twice-Like you,I grew up in a village that should have been part of a city,because we were on top of an 800ft hill the roads and railways passed us by,as did the expansion that follows that,ironically the village was there a long time before-9th century,according to established records......where we are now is apparently a viking settlement from the 8th cent. but I digress,what I am driving at is-hold those memories close-one day a sticky little hand will tug at your leg and ask " Grandpa-where did we all come from..?"............and you will need to come up with an answer
BTW-lovely pix of the Hudsons-fine looking beasts,as to the temperence league-VERY scary....but what a choice-night out with the lads or a lifetime shackled to Boris`s auntie.....Hmmmmmmmm,
PETE-will load in some pix of the Westerns in all their varied colours as soon as poss. Duchess looks very fine
ROB-loved the weird tales-and I confess-it was me that obscured the posters,I am a recent convert to the Alaskan church of total purity.................
PETE-Russell looking very fine,looking forward to seeing her out on the long road rather than just shuffling around Portmadoc-now the Darjeeling engine-did it come to Wales from France ?-recall a tale of some lad that had a nice little slim line number worked out down in Normandy ,but the locals bombed the track and generally forced him out-he also had a `Russell` and a couple of other nice 3/4 scale engines.....The L.N.E.R baltic-that was the #10,000 `hush hush` was it not ? -seem to remember we have had a pic of it before-poss. crossing the Forth bridge
O.K-thats the fist page
back soon
Good evening all,good to be here (ref-particle accelerater,potential pros & cons of........)
Leon,a tray of cold ones for the company please to celebrate our continued existence
At TOM`s request,a quick `bookmark` post & pics,whilst I am doing my catch-up notes-b.t.w-Mentor classifieds:- extreme -had that appalling ring of truth.........
Now PETE-several hits here,1st-will look up the translation of Llanfair P.G -I seem to recall it`s something about" The little chapel with the red roof down in the valley by the stream" or some such....
As to engine I.D`s-Quarry Hunslets are a rare old can of worms-will have to delve into the east wing annexe sub-basement for this one,first thoughts are-yes ,fairly sure Elidir still extant and running,when we visited only engine around was `Tomas Bach`-(little Thomas)...............
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Here she is at Llanberis (the lower pic is from the previous day-we also took in the W.H.R-certain parties were moved to comment that the next weekend break we take will be spent at garden centres and the like )
So-on to the Tal-Y-Lyn-Get the feeling you are passing the ball from 5 yds out with a clear run under the posts here....bless you -will put my money on ex Corris #3 `Sir Haydn`(Falcon wks ,Loughborough-later Brush-Falcon etc)-the green livery is deceptive,makes her look like #1 -more used to seeing her in Corris red-but the boiler barrel width and lower set cab and generally less sit-up-and-beg proportions swing it-for the detail freaks,the 1st coach is the Corris bogie saloon (the first coach I rode in on that line-pulled by that engine...) behind it appears to be `limping lulu`the Lancaster C&WW 3rd followed by the re-gauged Glyn Valley Tramway 1st
For comparison purposes here is #1 (b.left)
N.B-in the t.right shot,lulu is behind the GVT coach
And onto the next one-this is former Corris #4 `Edward Thomas`,a Kerr-Stuart `modified tattoo` class-in the b.right shot ,she is in her original Corris colours,at the top of the line-note also `Tom Rolt`,rear of `Tal-Y-Lyn` and shameless posing by public nuisance
Right-gonna go do some catch up now--TOM -LOVE those steamers mate -get some varnish hooked onto them...--P.S-thanks for pouring me into the rickshaw after ROBS party-for future reference my CORRECT home address is tattooed on the back of my neck-it was a very difficult morning.................................
Thought for the day,-it would seem we have 340 some submissions to this thread and 22,000+ views-would somebody please pull the drapes......
back in a bit
Hi Tom and all.
A pint of Holden's please RUTH.
TOM Many thanks for the Fallen Flag and the Drumheads on the Milwaukee Road. I see they still had 93 electric locomotives on their books in 1963. I wonder if anyone got confused with the ‘Hiawatha' named trains serving different cities.
Glad you enjoyed the link to the Wisbech & Upwell Tramway.
Don't forget when I am in the pubs back in England I will be with professionals.
I think I will give the car and the Kittens a miss, if I may.
Great present from Fergie, really like the design of the Keith's badges on the caps. Great slogan for the M.E.S.S.
The B&O Santa Fe and the Mikado look really at home on the Can-Am especially in the snow. The locomotives are looking great in the display cabinet as well looking forward to seeing them in person. They look good quality boxes they came in as well, like the railroad heralds on the box.
ERIC I wonder if the LNER got the idea of the classification of their steam locomotives from Sweden.
I guess the 9Fs got their ‘Spaceship' name as they were being built at the time of the first Sputniks and the first space travel. I think too they were good looking and very successful locomotives it is a shame they had so short lives, they could certainly handle freight trains a relatively high speed.
I am not sure whether the WD locomotives had their number on the front end when they were in WD service, some preserved WD locos have the number on the bufferbeam like No. 600 ‘Gordon' on the Severn Valley Railway. A lot of industrial locomotives did not have a number on the front end and most were known by the works number of the manufacturer, although the National Coal Board numbered their engines.
I will post some more of Alan photos from Germany probably Saturday, which features the diesels on a run past with the special train they were hauling. Looking forward to seeing the photo of your painting.
Many thanks for the photos from your trip. I have not been on a plane with a TV that shows a view from the front of the aircraft.
CM3 Mazda was a brand of electric light bulbs that was made at one time at the Factory I worked at and gave the name to a steam switching engine and later to its diesel replacement. This was a time when the factory made anything from a small resistor to a massive transformer.
Today's photos are from North Wales. This is a board from the station just into the Isle of Angelsey with the large name, it was taken at a museum near Bangor.
Two photos from the Llanberis Lake Railway. The first one is of Hunslet 1922 built 'Dolbadarn' the loco worked at Port Dinorwic Harbour before working in a slate quarry at Llanberis. The station is near the foot of Mount Snowdon. I see on their web site the railway have extended the line nearer to the center of Llanberis since I was last there.
At the other end of the line. I think this other 'Quarry Hunslet' is ELIDER, perhaps Nick can help. The LLR runs on the trackbed of the former Padarn Railway .
On to the Tal-y-Lyn Railway, perhaps Nick can help indentify this locomotive as well.
'Peter Sam' at Towyn Wharf station. I think the loco is normallyTR No.3 or 4. Peter Sam appeared in a series of children's books in the 1950s and 60s.
TR No 7 named after the author and preservation pioneer Tom Rolt.
.
They should enlarge.
Well RUTH a round please..
Pete.
Good afternoon Barkeep and all Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox.
Not only was I here earlier, I made some allusions to ancient modeling practices as well since it is Wednesday. The lights are still with us, so we're back for a quick stop.
OSP - Nice set of trinkets from the north country. A lot of what passes for wearables of mine is torn up (and has a lot of dirt on it that will never come out) but not deliberately. In line with "aging" items, I may take a page from one of mom's decorator catalogs and see if I can sell my car as a "distressed" auto. I know, it's all about marketing and product placement. Boris put the sledge down - the car still runs and it's all mine - anyway your idea of cosmetic sheet metal work is too much like demolition. Simple tools, indeed!
Fine pictures of your B&O power - particularly the one of the 2-10-2 in the snow - it looked right at home. The 2-8-2 looked good as well. Now you need a President class Pacific and some hw cars (blue and gray, of course). Also liked the shot of the stack of boxes - there's a lot to be said for that "new locomotive" smell. I have an Erie PA and a New Haven GP9 which have never been out of their boxes since I bought them.
work safe
G'day Gents!
Shane has been "in" so at least we have "justification" for this from Moi!
Steam Locomotives for the Can-Am Trainroom #3
Just a few random shots of the first 7 of 10 steamers and the display case . . .
(1) The first seven . . .
(2) Test run of the B&O "Santa Fe" 2-10-2
(3) Test run of the B&O "Mikado" 2-8-2
(4) Seven on display awaiting cabooses!
(5) Steam Engine Cove!
(6) NYC "Mikado" ‘n PRR "Santa Fe" <sweet>
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Enjoy!
Tom
Something SPECIAL for this morning . . .
(1) Two Keiths caps AND his model RR coffee mug!
(2) Without a doubt, the finest looking model RR herald I've seen!
(3) A vintage label of my favorite Canadian brew!
(4) Another version!
(5) Nova Scotia Provincial flag!
Note: Those "fray" marks on the bills of the caps apparently are the way they are made! <geesh> Wonder what mental midget came up with that idea But of course, I'm so <censored> old 'n out of "fashion" that perhaps the younger generations - for whatever the rationale - think it's "cool" to look shoddy. Hmmmm.
Many thanx to Fergie - Enjoy!
Good Morning Barkeep and all Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox. The Mazdaites are on our floor again today doing more electrical work but they promise that "your circuit will not be touched," whatever that means. Things are getting back to normal in my quarters as the boxes are all unpacked, material on shelves, etc. However, it still has to be organized. Weather here this a.m. is cool (50s) with heavy fog again. Gas went up to $3.85 again yesterday (simultaneously at all stations in the area - 'nuff said!)
Let's see what we have to day.
Pete was in with comments as was Rob.
Eric sent some fine picutres - as OSP said, I also liked the nighttime shot from the window. I know, we fly because we must, but it's not the same as it was. I see that you did have a plane named after you - not too shabby (lol).
OSP - Good MILW stuff and drumheads as well. Glad to hear that the cabs are on the way and also to hear how you plan to display them with the locomotives - good idea. Why is Boris's vehicle for sale (Hunchback)? Is he missing payments again?
Also since today is model rr day - new issue of RMC has some fascinating material on balsa wood trains from back in the day as well as some notes on the early days of S scale. Modeling was a lot more hands-on back then and the article gives some good insight about this.
Well, I'd better post this b4 the lights go out again.
<CP Rail M-630 at ExpoRail - personal foto>
Wednesday's Witticism
Many a man would rather leave his hide on a fence than stay in a corral.
Mid-week in mid-continent USA ‘n it's mid-month <already!> . . . time for breakfast, coffee ‘n pastries!
Comments from the Proprietor
Tomorrow is Sep 11th . . . need I say more
Thursday is our Monthly Anniversary . . . Since the Larsman departed the scene, I don't recall anyone mentioning the 12th - unless "prodded" of course.
It's "You Post, I Post" at the Bar by the Ballast!
Customer Acknowledgments (since my last narrative):
Tuesday - September 9th <all times Central daylite>:
Page 17 - Pete <pwolfe> at 3:10 PM: And our Bar Chandler arrived with chat ‘n good cheer!
Between Boris ‘n "his" moose - and - Wolfman ‘n "his" buffalo at the TrainWreck Saloon - they'd surely make quite a pair trying to "sneak" across the border! <yikes>
Interesting link to the tramway ‘n locos . . . cow catchers looked rather strange for Brit locos.
You sell yourself far short, Mate - a Pub Man you are ‘n there's little doubt you'll hold your own over in Merry Olde . . . <uh oh>
Some good comments to eavesdrop - thanx for the inclusive Post ‘n visit!
Page 18 - Eric <EricX2000> at 6:14 PM <4:14 PM Sandbox time>: GREAT having you aboard during daylite - that really, really HELPS!
Some super-fine fotos <as always> especially that nighttime shot of "somewhere" over the Atlantic. An equal is the foto of YOUR aircraft - now something like THAT just doesn't happen - but it did for YOU!
I KNEW you'd catch-up rather quickly - just the way of a serious minded guy! Comments all on point ‘n appreciated! Was hoping you'd catch the remainder of my Dallas trip aboard the TREs RDCs . . .
A heated frost free oven Hmmmmm. Perhaps that's something ONLY available in Mentor Village's Flea Market ‘n 24/7 Garage Sale Outlet Store!
I do believe you were the only one to make comment on those ads . . .
Just received notification by Email that all of my cabooses (10) are en route . . . The steam locomotive display case has 8 shelves ‘n should hold a total of 16 locos w/tenders ‘n cabooses. Thus far it's taking shape quite well . . .
Caught your comment in a previous Post where you said this was your last vacation. I surely hope that doesn't include Rendezvous IV . . . but I think I understand what you meant.
Many thanx for your visit, chat, fotos ‘n return to the bar with meaningful stuff!
Reminder: Ruth has the bar from 9 AM until Leon the Night Man comes in at 5 PM ‘til closing.
Thursday is Fish ‘ Chips Nite!
Friday is Pizza ‘n Beer Nite! - and - Steak ‘n Fries Nite!
Saturday is Steak ‘n All The Trimmings Nite!
Dinner begins at 5 PM so come early ‘n often!
Cindy is our Saturday bartender!
The Mentor Village Gazette - Classifieds
1988 Toyota Hunchback, $2,000.
Wanted, somebody to go back in time with. This is not a joke. You'll get paid after we get back. Must bring your own weapons. Safety not guaranteed. I have only done this once before.
Free-farm kittens, ready to eat.
Lost cat. Last seen at the Park County Rod & Gun Club shooting range.
Main Street Pizza: We deliver, or pick up.
Boris, serve ‘em all of the "spiked" OJ they can handle!
Good afternoon Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!
Hello Leon! Just a cold Tuborg Gold, please!
Tried to get here earlier today, but had to take care of some other things.
Tom – You are right, I had a lot of fun the last two weeks! I couldn’t control the weather, but it wasn’t that bad. Got wet a few times, but I survived. I got some time in the forest picking mushrooms! Very relaxing. Interesting about your new locos and (soon to arrive?) cabooses! I was actually reading about Milwaukee Road last night. Tried to find some info on the type of pantographs they used on their electrics. Thanks for the rest of those photos from your RDC-trip with TRE! Good looking international ads from yesteryear! Scandinavie is kind of strange spelling of Scandinavia. Maybe that is how they spell it in Holland? Lapland - Sweden shows a famous view in the background, Lapporten, the Gate to Lapland.RPO’s! I like those detail photos, like the one of the mail hook and the interior shots.I saw the ads from the Mentor Village Gazette! That frost free oven sounds very interesting! Is it heated? Fallen Flags and UP?? Didn’t sound right until I read the entire headline and found Passenger Operations. Nice drumheads! City of Cheyenne is the best looking one!I missed some good movies at the Emporium while I was gone! Like As Good As It Gets and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid! Rob – I missed Boris’ ABBA things because I was too tired to go to the pool room last night. I have to apologize to him. he certainly did a great job! Thanks for the round!What happened to photobucket? Did they change something, making it harder or impossible to link to photos on their server?Interesting reading, #35 Mail the Electric Version! Too bad about the missing photos. Pete – Sweden used a similar scheme for their steam locomotives when they classified them. Class Y1 was a 0-4-0. I am going to scan my “home made” painting this week. How come a steam engine is named Spaceship? A good looking locomotive, 2-10-0, should have a better name (in my opinion). I don’t see any number on the front of the W D Austerity 0-6-0 saddle tank. Did it have a number on the sides only?You asked about the temperatures where I was near the Arctic Circle. It was in the low 50’s during the days and in the 40’s during the nights. The moose hunting season started a few days after I left that area of the old country. Some nice photos from Germany! I like that class 44 locomotive. I’ve seen them live several times working freight trains in Germany.Allan – Greetings from the ABBA girls! The brunette (Frida) called me when I arrived in Sweden! Or was that just a dream? Hmm, I don’t remember right now. I am sure she called though. Hmm. CM3 – Yes, flying ceased to be fun a long time ago. But it is a good alternative if one has to cross the Atlantic. The service during the flights is not even close what it used to be.
Finally, some photos from my trip to the old country.
Waiting at O'Hare. SAS was kind enough to use a plane with the same name I have, Eric Viking.
Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean in the middle of the night.
Stockholm from the north just before landing. It's 7:20 AM.
The runway through the nose camera of the plane.
More next time.
Eric
Been watching the "pwolfe" log-in for well over an hour ‘n he <finally> came "in" <geesh> - wonder what was so interesting "out there," compared to "in here" Anyway, good to see our Interim Governor General on this bright, sunny 'n comfortably cool day in mid-continent USA!
Also saw "EricX2000" earlier in the day, but nothing from our returned Desert Swede . . . daylite help is definitely needed 'round the Bar by the Ballast.
Anyway, now it's time for me to make my Post . . . perhaps the finale for this day . . .
The Passenger Railroad Fallen Flags of "Our" Place #16
The Milwaukee Road
<A form of this was initially Posted 05 Oct 2005, on Page 128 at "Our" Place I>
http://cs.trains.com/forums/128/991587/ShowPost.aspx
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific (CM&StPP) -
Passenger Trains of note: (not all)Afternoon Hiawatha (Chicago-Milwaukee-St. Paul & Minneapolis) Arrow (Chicago-Omaha & Sioux Falls) Chippewa-Hiawatha (Chicago-Channing, MI) Copper Country Limited (Chicago-Green Bay-Calumet, MI jointly with DSS&A railroad) Midwest Hiawatha (Chicago-Omaha & Sioux Falls) Morning Hiawatha (Chicago-Milwaukee-Minneapolis) Olympian (Chicago-Twin Cities-Seattle & Tacoma) Olympian Hiawatha (Chicago-Twin Cities-Seattle U& Tacoma; replaced Olympian) Pioneer Limited (Chicago-Milwaukee-St. Paul & Minneapolis) Sioux (Chicago-Madison-Rapid City, SD) Southwest Limited (Milwaukee & Chicago-Kansas City Tomahawk (Chicago-Minocqua, WI) Varsity (Chicago-Madison) Of note: From 1955-1971, Milwaukee Road operated the Chicago-Omaha segment of UP's "Overland" streamliners including the City of Denver, City of Portland, City of Los Angeles, City of San Francisco and the Challenger.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Some drum heads of the Milwaukee Road
A pint of Bathams, which is on Eric today I believe please RUTH
NICK Yes BORIS got quite attached to that moose, tasted good though.
Many thanks for the Irish railcars. What great stock there is in the train in the first photo the coach looks very continental.
ROB Sounds you had a great.
Thanks for the information on the ‘mystery' trolleys in Tom's photos. The 100 seater is certainly a large car.
I believe one reason the Sentinels were popular was they could raise steam very quickly.
It seems I going to miss the Enthusiast's Day at the Crich Tramway Village by one weekend. The ad I saw says it features work cars working, intensive service and behind the scenes workshop tours amongst other attractions.
I think I will stay out of the Pool Room for a while until BORIS's creations have had their full pressure test.
ERIC Thanks for the beers today. Glad you made it home safe and sound and glad you had a good holiday. Like I said before, looking forward to my trip to England but not the flying part of it.
Many thanks to link showing the Swedish Y class locomotive, although it is a small engine I see it has a large cab. The reason the Sentinel locomotive in my photo yesterday had the letter Y in its class type was the LNER used letters to donate the wheel arrangement of a class of locomotive. e.g., A4s were 4-6-2s C1s were 4-4-2s and J27 were 0-6-0s. Did Sweden use a similar scheme for their steam locomotives.
CM3 We have had the cold front pass through yesterday evening but not with the storms and rain they said we would get, I believe they had the rain and thunder about 40 miles north of us here.
TOM Unfortunately I am not the man I was in regards to pubs. I will have to get in training for next month.
I thought too that Australia had some good-looking railcars. I could not find any info on what locomotives or railcars are running today in Cuba, but I guess it must be on the web somewhere. Perhaps Allan can get us an Australian railfan in the bar while he is there.
I have found a link to an English tramway showing some tramway locomotives.They must have been some of the very few British locomotives that were fitted with a cow-catcher.
http://www.lner.info/co/GER/wisbech/wisbech.shtml
7 locomotives arriving in one day, it sounds a great time testing them out on the Can Am. It would be good to see photos of the locomotives on the Can-Am.
It seems as you got the weather that just missed us yesterday..
Well RUTH this free beer from Eric sure tastes good so another Bathams please..
<MoPac caboose at StL Mot - personal foto>
Let's get right to it this morning . . .
But before I do - must make mention that ALL DRINKS are "on" Eric today! Ring that bell, Boris - ‘n ring it in Swedish tones! <huh?>
Page 17 - CM3 Shane <coalminer3> at 8:11 AM <9:11 AM EDT>: A report from the hills of southern WVA indicates the rip-roaring system that passed our way last evening most probably is what you experienced during the wee hours . . . seems more like spring storm systems than late summer, eh Hmmmmm - wonder what the "blame the humans for everything crowd" will call that one
Yeah, I was a bit surprised to learn it was going to take a duo in order to provide me with a recommendation ‘n estimate for the work needed. So, I'll definitely be on guard . . . maybe someone's being broken in - who knows <or cares> . . . just as long as this <censored> nightmare comes to an end.
Now I've heard it all - what but a computer could've come up with a ‘due date' of Christmas Day I'd change that in a heartbeat if for principal's sake alone. <barf>
Was nice to see those steamers moving along the Can-Am right-of-way. I didn't assemble any freights - just tested ‘em ‘n put ‘em on the shelves. I do plan to "do" a special run now ‘n then - but that's to come. Just wanted to ensure that I received operable units before my return-date-without-cost expired . . . Not sure what the next batch of road names will be - for I really enjoy sticking to roads that I have some attachment to . . . and when it comes to steam, it's all a stretch. But they surely do look fine.
Many thanx for the visit, chat, ROUND ‘n QUARTERS!
Page 17 - Rob <trolleyboy> at 9:16 AM <10:16 AM EDT>: Good to see our Manager aboard in mid-morning - full o' good cheer ‘n enthusiasm.
The ExpoRail book is just that - hardly a phamphlet AND in English at that. <There are two versions, of course in both of YOUR OH-FISH-UL languages!>
As much as I thoroughly enjoyed my spring visit with you in Ontario - aboard the train to Montréal along with my solo round trip aboard the Chaluer - I would have dearly loved to have seen you "in operation" over at ExpoRail. Methinks there'd be cause to make a call for the Gendarmes . . . just musing of course! <grin> I'd hate to think that "rude" is restricted to that area. If you believe that - you shudda lived in Boston when I was there for 5 years. They made New Yorkers appear mild in manner by comparison. Anyway, I'm really hoping that before I check out from the traveling for pleasure "thing," that there'll be one more chance to get together. Surely doesn't appear as if YOU'LL ever make it down here. <geesh>
I just can't imagine any population tolerating such an imposition as to have to go to a motor vehicle office on one's birthday. Why we revolted against the Brits over taxes on tea - of all things! <grin> Of course when I say "we," I'm not referring to anyone in my lineage - far as I know, they were doing their "thing" in Germany ‘n Ireland . . . ¾ German ‘n ¼ Irish according to what was passed down the line to me. Anyway, I'd definitely be avoiding spending my Natal Day in some government office - I'd go for the early option.
Comments regarding that "T" brings to mind that Eric's shot was of the former CP RDC that they sold to the Boston Bunch. Here's mine also taken at Stl MoT during Rendezvous III . . .
Spent the morning making sure the steamers run properly - they do. Really surprised at how light they are - but that's plastic for ya, eh Expected ‘em to be much heavier ‘n these aren't cheap-o units by any measure. All are DCC-ready, so I suppose that's where the bucks are. Great detail ‘n they look fine in the case. Seven on the shelves with roadbed ‘n track - three more coming. Then I figure - over time - there's room for 6 more. That will fill up the spaces quite nicely ‘n also give me something to plan for . . . w/cabooses of course! <grin>
Not sure about Toy ‘n Model Trains Day <formerly Pike Perspective's Day> - might or might not put up the steamer shots. But they've all been seen just a few days ago - manufacturers fotos, but still seen. We'll see . . .
But of course there's no price fixing when it comes to gasoline at the stations - nah, why in the world would anyone think that <barf> Prices still haven't dropped from when they zoomed upwards by 20 cents because of a THREAT to the Gulf oil platforms from Gustav. Hmmmmmm - seems that was then ‘n this is now. Hmmmmm.
Do appreciate your visit, chat ‘n support for the bar!
Morning Ruth, when did you dye your hair blonde Wait a minute, Boris get out from behind the bar and take off the moose's wig <sheesh>n Note to self do not let Nick dress up Boris even to fool the customs guys, he has a hard time getting back out of character <groan>
Ah Ruth there you are just a number three and my usual well spiced thermos of coffee I'd leave money for a round but Eric's being kind so just take the cost as a tip
Tom-Two more guys eh Hopefully they don't play the good cop bad cop thing when they are estimating the repairs As you said though lets keep our fingers crossed that they can fix it teh way you want them too
Soooo got your new tea kettles eh . Tomorrows Pikes Perspectives shots I'm guessing I wonder if the pages in the French language pamphlet include the descriptors of those itemsperhaps a job for the inspector.
Yes the Natal day is when all licences and licence plaet stickers ( and every other year the "e" tests are due.You can do them early but you have to wait until the paerwork arrives usually a week before sometimes two if your luckey ) they are supposed to be there a month early but you know what government offices are like.
Eric-Good to see you back and thanks for the PCC shot.How did you miss the life size ABBA infaltables complete with battery operated voice boxes that Boris made for you, they are sitting in the pool room.I think he went through two 55 gal drums of latex for those babies.( he needed new chairs for his dinning room table )
Interesting info on the "T" logo and the wiki article The paint job on that cars front is identicle to one of CP's last paint jobs for their RDC's, minus the "T" logo on the door.
Shane-Hmmm I think I prefer the birthday "gift" from the Provincial governement as opposed to a Christmas one I noticed that our gas prices fell here yesterday.When I went out to do all the running around I paid $1.20.6 a litre.Came back two hours later to $1.19.3 then four hours after that when we went out for dinner it was $1.18.5 this is all at the same station but no theer is no price fixing or anything out there. Boris a round on me if you please sir.
Rob
Good Morning Barkeep and All Present; coffee, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox. Our clear weather has departed for awhile and we had a rip-roaring thunder storm from about 3 o'clock this a.m. until about 5 a.m. Lots of lightning and rain which is to be followed by more rain courtesy of a cold front from the northwest. Gas prices have not budged but they will doubtless go up later this week. we are still at $3.79 and holding.
Rob - Don't feel so bad; my car insurance is due on 12/25 - always nice to see Santa dressed as an insurance agent when he slides down the chimney.
Pete was in with comments and notes. Good to hear from you.
Eric has returned. IMHO, flying ceased to be enjoyable a loooong time ago. The flying machine companies have managed to turn it into an experience like that on many passenger trains yrs. back.
Nick - always fun to go through customs. Moose was a class touch, for sure.
OSP - Sounds as though the motive power dept. will be busy for awhile breaking in all sorts of new power. Two people do an estimate? Yikes! Maybe one of them is the air man for the other guy who wears the diving suit. Anyway, good luck. Also - I enjoyed the picture of the monstrous IT car. Too bad they're not around any longer.
And Tuesday has rolled ‘round once again. Best thing about the day BEFORE Wednesday is beginning things right here! Check out The Mentor Village Bakery case - fill up your coffee mugs ‘n order a <light> or <traditional> breakfast from our Menu Board!
Splendid nearly-fall day with temps expected to reach 70 (F) . . . yesterday's high was 84 . . . after a bout of some heavy rain 'n the arrival of a front, humidity levels dropped with the temps 'n all's near-perfect 'round here! Do have some heavy stuff moving this way for the week's end . . . so, best to enjoy this while it lasts!
Yesterday was kinda like Christmas as 7 locomotives arrived along with the roadbed needed for the display case. Today is test run day . . . other 3 locos to be shipped this week. Cabooses on the way as well . . .
Made contact with a company who says they do the kind of work I'm in need of. Person I spoke with was confident that they can do the job . . . we'll see as two of 'em are coming here on Thursday afternoon to assess the situation. <hope>
Rob's Day: Want to applaud each of you who answered the call to provide some traction shots <or close enuf> for our Manager's Natal Day!
My other Thread: I've decided to take leave from it for awhile . . . doesn't make sense to be providing info over there for the guys over here! Would much rather keep this bar up on the Forum's Page than that one. I'm not interested in maintaining dialogue anywhere but here . . . actually, anywhere BUT here would be nice - but we've discussed that "off-line," eh
Just getting tired of inviting people to the bar who aren't interested . . . getting mighty old.
Gang of Regulars <GoR>: Reduced by one - Dan <DL-UK> has returned to our Legion of the Lost. <groan>
PLANNED ABSENCES:
(1) Allan is in Aussie-land ‘n should be back with us soon.
(2) Rob will be gone for the last week of September . . .
(3) Pete will be gone for the month of October . . .
Monday - September 8th <all times Central daylite>:
Page 17 - Rob <trolleyboy> at 9:53 PM <10:53 PM EDT>: Man, you surely know how to plan a great time - going to the motor vehicle office on your B'day is hardly what I'd call good planning. Surely this could've been done in ADVANCE! <geesh> Fun times in Brantford. <grin>
Aside from THAT, glad to know that you had a full-day ‘n enjoyed it all. Wish I could've been there to let you buy me a Blue at the St. George Arms! <grin>
Figured you'd come up with the descriptions for those "mystery" trolleys. There were several exhibits like that - not listed in the souvenir book. I've always wondered why errata sheets couldn't have been slipped into the pages with updated material. But then, one would have to THINK to do that, eh Yeah - pay the high price for the nicely put together book, but don't ensure that the contents are current. <barf>
My pleasure regarding the spreads on the trolleys ‘n transit. Glad you enjoyed ‘em . . .
Spanked by H&H, eh Hmmmmmm, my guess is you LIKED it! <uh oh>
Thanx for swinging on by on YOUR day!
Tuesday - September 9th:
Page 17 - Eric <EricX2000> at 1:54 AM <11:54 PM Monday, Sandbox time>: Our Resident RETIRED Desert NOCTURNAL Swede is home again ‘n back at the bar! Ahhhhhhhh, two weeks of bliss with either of the ABBA gals would be the capstone to most men's lives . . . <grin>
Good to know that all went well during your two weeks away . . . one cannot control the weather, but one surely can direct activities in order to have FUN - which apparently you did!
I'm sure the guys were all appreciative of your efforts to check in with us from Sweden - four times as a matter of fact!
As you will see when doing your catch-up, we've had some mighty slow times ‘round here during daylite . . . so whatever you can do to help out surely will be appreciated!
I'll have to yield to Rob regarding the description for that bus - but my experiences tell me that if he says it - it's true!
Nice traction from the StL MoT!
Glad to have you back amongst the crew ‘n take your time in catching up in terms of travel fatigue ‘n the bar!
Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!
Leon, I'm back! Yes! Boris? I don't know, what is he doing? No, no, don't tell me, hopefully he will forget about it. A ham sandwich would be great! A Tui, please!
Finally back home again! It is no fun to fly any more. Too much hassle and poor service, especially on the domestic flights. Kind of tired today, I'll probably need this week to catch up on everything.
Before I forget it, all drinks on me this Tuesday!
Tom – Good movies at the Emporium this week! I like to laugh and Get Shorty will make me do just that! Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper guarantee that Hoosiers is a movie worth seeing too! Very nice Traction photos! Obviously ExpoRail is a place well worth visiting! And so is Halton County Streetcar & Electric Railway Museum! Including the old 1957 GMC bus! Was that really the first city bus with automatic transmission? It certainly is a good looking bus!Nick – I like the photos from your layout! Looks promising. Are you following the track plan you showed us earlier or have you changed some of it? I think it is a good idea to use those watercolors to create backscene mateial! Very nice images! Rob – A belated Happy Birthday to You!!! I hope it was a good one with a lot of presents!A PCC for you! Museum of Transportation, Kirkwood, MO.I am not surprised at all that my two weeks went that fast! It was my very last vacation! I am not sure if I want to know what Boris’ surprise is. ABBA? Hmmm. CM3 – Thanks! Yes I had a good trip, except for too many rainy days! But I was able to go mushroom picking, meet some old friends, spend some money, loose some weight and have fun! Very good story about the subway in Boston! I guess you know where the logo comes from? Stockholm, Sweden. T = stands for the Swedish word for subway, Tunnelbana, and this logo is used in Stockholm to show where the entrances to the subway system are located.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_MetroPete – Wow, that was i tiny locmotive! Class Y1. Kind of strange, the Swedish State Railways used to have a class Y, 0-4-0, also a tiny locomotive.
http://www.abc.se/~m10039/lok/litt-y.htm
SJ class Y, 0-4-0, built 1909.I like those Irish railcars! Especially the red one! I think I have seen the green one before, maybe a few years ago. I guess most of them are gone by now.
Eric.
Well good evenign Leon. I see that ( and hear ) Nick and his merry minstrals are banging away at some very fine musical renditions from my native country.So I think several Blues will be needed.
Tom-Thnaks for the birthday wishes mate Had a busy day today first my family came up and suprsed em with lunch went to the 50's diner where we had the breakfast during rendezvous number 1.Then I had to do the the "Provincial birthday presant"Licence plate validation stickers are due on your birthday.Every notice that as you get older things like licences and licence plates expire on your natal day Then when Heather got home from work she took us out for dinner to a wonderfull local Chinease place,I must say I'm won ton'd out at this point.
Thanks for the two new feature bits for moi , I'm truly touched,(that and the birthday spankings from H&H and I'm set for another year ) Nice shots from exporail.Your mystery photo's I can help you with some what. Not sure about the significance of the first car, other than it's a regular deck roofed steel car built in the MTC's shops several hundred copies.It's green paint job indicates that it is a two man car.The second shot is also a home built car it was a one off extra large car designed to hold 100 seated ! Two deck roofed cars essentially were spliced together making that monster a good 15 feet longer than the standard also it was a heavy beast 50t !The alst shot is a "coffee can fare box " carried by the conductor on teh early casr and open cars, kind of like passing the offering plate at church,the other is a keroseen rear marker used on the MTC's more rural lines.
Great deal on the steamers and cabooses 's you are a "super shopper" sir I hope the news on the basement front is a good one,not bad. Be carefull swinging the spade as well, you don't want to create any more problems for you or the foundation.
Shane-Thanks for the greetings and the read on the MTA's transit it was a good read again.Hopefully the movers get all the stuff in order sooner as opposed to later for you guys.It's never fun working an office out of card board boxes.
Pete-Again thanks for the birthday greetings.It's good to ehar that your repired walls holding up,not good that the water found another entry into the basement though.It will find the route of least resistance though. Loved the shots of those little transit loco's.The chain drives must have been bumpy and noisy.alot of the first streetcars oevr here 1880's-90's vintage also started out with direct chain drives from their electric motors. That was until the traction motor and gearing concept was hammerd out and installed in the revenue cars of the day.
Nick-Thnaks for teh Irsh trams "n' rail bus but more importantly thanks for teh birthday wish and the liquid part of the party,not to mention the musical part you picked some great selections of music tonight.We need some hits from The Band as well as they also have a heavy Canadian content.I won't even attempt to keep up with you in the beverage department best I could do is one to your four most likely but it's all good none of us will remember tonight tomorrow.
<IT #122 - courtesy: donsdepot.donrossgroup.net - foto credit: unknown>
Don't know what the ‘morrow may bring - so I'm on-line at the moment, might as well get to the acknowledgments . . .
Page 17 - CM3 Shane <coalminer3> at 9:14 AM <10:14 AM EDT>: It was a marvelous weekend ‘round these parts, with Saturday the "pick day." Temps were in the mid-70s (F) with just a little drizzle here ‘n there on Sunday . . . nice all ‘round for early September in mid-continent USA.
Rams Turned it off immediately following the first Eagle's score. I'm NOT a fan of either team, but the Rams are surely in a sorry state of affairs ‘n it surely appears they are headed for an abysmal ‘n dismal season of foo-ball. Didn't watch any of the NFL on the tube - not a game. Was pleased to learn that the Jets won <not a fan of theirs either, but was hoping the QB would have a good game> - sorry that the Pat's lost their QB - a shame. And I guess the biggest surprise was Indy dropping their opening game at the new digs.
College foo-ball - didn't watch any of that either . . . as mentioned a few times <too many> - I'm not big on sitting on my caboose during daylite ‘n whiling away the hours staring at the boob-tube. Would rather be outdoors with Juneau - working in the yard <under supervision of course from Carol> or down in the Can-Am Train Room, pondering my next project ‘n the one after that . . .
That was an excellent choice of topics for Rob's B'day at the bar! A good read - anytime - ‘n I do recall the first time.
My only experience with Boston transit was back in the late 60s-early 70s - every now ‘n then I'd take the train in from Hyde Park <after we moved to Dedham from Melrose>. Other than that, can't recall any other lines . . . Driving to ‘n from the base was a nightmare - actually got many laffs <pucker factor #10> in the traffic ‘n absolute mayhem at intersections with the "jumping" of the traffic lights. <yikes> Never saw anything like it before or since . . . "aggressive drivers" is an understatement!
Anyway, should I ever return to Beantown, I'll be sure to sample whatever happens to be left of a fine transit system. And I'll lament the passing of those B&M RDCs that used to whisk me to ‘n from Melrose from North Station <after some fine times at the Iron Horse!> But that's another story . . . <grin>
Ain't no way the basement is going to be subject to jack-hammering, etc. Blasting Hmmmm, now there's a thought! I'll have to check our insurance policy . . . <uh oh>
Huge thanx for participating in Rob's Day ‘n of course the ROUND ‘n QUARTERS are expected mean a lot!
Page 17 - Pete <pwolfe> at 11:29 AM: And our Interim Governor General arrived with an armload of fotos for the B'day Boy!
Appreciate your picking up on my request for support - but then again, you do READ what's Posted!
That lil' loco sure looks to be a powerful MoSheen - bet it was HOT in warm weather for the engineer . . . Curious though, what kind of work did it do on the tramways
Thanx for the visit, fotos ‘n business! KaChing> <KaChing>
Page 17 - Pete <pwolfe> at 4:32 PM: Don't know how you do it - but I suppose when it comes to Pubs ‘n Brits, there's just no equal.
Do appreciate the return visit, thereby keeping a bit of life in this joint during daylite.
Good links - both. If that RDC info is correct, then all of the ones consigned to countries previously mentioned aren't in operation. Thought I had seen something a couple of years back regarding Cuba's passenger rail system still using ‘em. Hmmmm. Anyway, the Aussie's have some fine looking equipment - can see the Budd in ‘em as you mentioned.
Just a thought - wish we had at least one Aussie in here as a regular.
Another all-inclusive Post from our Bar Chander - thanx for the effort ‘n the ROUND!
Page 17 - Nick <nickinwestwales> at 7:01 PM <1:01 AM Tuesday GMT>: What remains of our GoR <not on planned absence> has made it "in" - <being typed at 8:30 PM CDT> . . . Anyway, there's a huge laff in that comment regarding Boris ‘n the moose in the blonde wig! <grin>
Appreciate your picking up on the call for "stuff for Rob" on his B'day! Irish MoSheens "work" . . .
B.T.O. - yeah, I can dig that!
A pity we haven't the numbers to host a B'day Bash . . . but without the man of the hour - would kinda be a flop. Hey! It's the THOUGHT that counts, eh Youbetcha.
Many thanx for the good cheer ‘n liquid fortification for one ‘n all!
Well good evening ladies and gentlemen all-please excuse the delay but I have been backstage with the band working through our renditions of populist Canadian songs for this evenings show.........So far,the running order is:- You aint seen nothing yet by B.T.O,Echo Beach by Martha and the Muffins,Sweet Reputation by Moxy,Misguided Angel by the Cowboy Junkies,Diamond Mine by Blue Rodeo,anything by Frank Marino,everything by Jeff Healy and most of 2112 by Rush.....I think I could use a pint about now..
Leon-Here you are dear boy,have a large amount of money-sort out 3 drinks for everybody who walks through the door tonight,an extra 2 for the company,and I don`t expect ROB or HEATHER to put their hands in their pockets all night-now I trust that Boris & Copperkettle have got the moose-roast well under way...( The memory of driving the `Our Place` panel van through customs with Boris on the seat next to me `necking` with a moose carcass dressed in a blond wig and cocktail frock is one I will take to the grave ) The bar is fully stocked with ice cold `Blues` ideally temp. `Keiths` and several Zeppelin-fresh kegs of Guinness-and keep some rum,single malts and the 3x vodka for later
So here we are .................................
ROB-HAVE A MASSIVELY HAPPY BIRTHDAY...........
Afraid I have nothing in the vault that fits the streetcar bill-how about some Irish railcars in lieu...
O.K -I`ve just started getting warning messages from P/Bucket...
ROB-Have a wonderful day mate-in a perfect world you will be reading this tomorrow morning after a night of wild passion ---ENJOY !!!!!!!!!
A.T.B to all,
Just gonna go check the galley-see you later,
A Bathams please RUTH to celebrate Rob's.
TOM Great selection of Random photos for Saturday Photo Day. It is great to see those dome cars on the Denali Star and that is a really clear photo of the stored locomotives near St Louis, as it was taken while the Texas Eagle was on the move.
Yes it was an early start at Pat's on Saturday good job he opens a late as 3PM, it was an early finish as well.
I will pass your comments on to Alan thanks; yes I think the LMS Jubilees were good-looking engines looking so much better when they are in clean condition.
I found a couple of sites on the RDCs, this one lists where they can be seen working
http://www.budd-rdc.org/rdcwhere-lines.html
I found this site with some great photos of Australian Railcars some of the Budd type.
http://www.freewebs.com/australianrailcar-railmotors/index.htm
Glad you found a source for your cabooses, it sounds a great deal, and I shall look forward to seeing them. I see there is a good selection of coaches to go behind the British models.
Good words for Nick about memories.
Two good films on at the Emporium this week, featuring Gene Hackman, a great actor. I have not seen Get Shorty and Hoosiers is one of the bride's all time favorite films, and the Stooges get hypnotized.
I sure Rob will enjoy those great trolley, subway cars and bus photos. From ExpoRail and the Halton Museum. In photo 6 from Halton 5 of the buses look very much like the Leyland National type that was a very common type in the UK.
NICK Thanks for the round and many thanks for the photos from your layout with the French and Swiss locomotives also the Austrian cars.
Really hope you can get those great watercolours as a backscene. I can see how those paintings can bring back the good memories what luck having an artist producing a book of paintings from the area your mum grew up in.
ROB Hope you are having a great.
We did have the basement fixed from the front wall that is underground and this wall is OK, I hate to think what it would have been like before with the amount of rain this year but a small amount of water is getting in from a different place.
Many thanks for the kind words on the photos.
Yes keeping H&H happy has it bonuses; they are the only ones who are prepared to make mushy peas to go with my fish n chips Can't wait to see what Eric's ‘surprise' is.
CM3 Thanks for the round and the kind words on the photos. I think it would be a great article in Classic Trains on those tank engines that used to work the suburban trains on the Boston & Albany.
Glad the weather behaved for the WV game pity the score was not more favorable for WV though. Yes I had a look at BBC news on the web and it said town of Morpath near Allan's old area was practically cut off.
Really enjoyed reading your trip in Boston in the old days although from Our Place I a lot came back to me as I read it. Many thanks indeed for re-running it for us..
Well RUTH another round please.
Pete's been "in" ‘n provided a little something in the form of a foto spread for our B'day Boy, Rob! - but HE's not been "in" . . . . hmmmmmm. Anyway, good to see our Bar Chandler stepping up to the plate . . .
Now Arriving on Track #3
Classic Traction ‘n Transit #2
Halton County Streetcar & Electric Railway Museum
Rendezvous I 2006 - The Extra Day!
<Descriptions from Rob in May 2006 at "Our" Place I>
(1) The original TTC subway cars made in Glouchester England as delivered in the vibrant red scheme for the first TTC subway line on Yonge St, these cars were retired in 1974. Very heavy all steel cars this set of 2 weigh 40t <L-R: Ted - Rob - Heather>
(2) A set of TTC M cars. These subway cars were built by Bombardier in the MLW plant in 1964 and are all aluminum cars opened the University and Bloor lines in Toronto These were retired in 1984
(3) Subway flatcars MOW RT 28 and RT 29 these run on G car power trucks and control systems ( red subway cars ) these were built in the early 70's by Hawher Sidely in Thunder Bay. arrived at the museum in 1993 we are converting them to overhead power RT 28 already is RT 29 has had it's rear cab removed and we are going to convert it to a maintenance crane (once we find a suitable crane)
(4) Locomotives at the Front gate. Box cab is L&PS L2 ab English electric built unit BW power and controls built in 1915 retired in 1955 arrived at the Museum in 1976 currently non operational (still set for 1500v over head) The second (front locomotive) GRR 335 a BW class B clone. It was built by Preston car and Coach to Class B designs in 1917 ran on the GRR till it was dieselized in 1961 arrived at the museum in the late 1970's. Currently non operational due to being stripped of it's copper by CPR before it was donated. Will run again as all the spares have been found for it !
(5) Our crew sleeper VIA sleeper former NYC Dorcas Bay and CPR wide vision caboose our crews home away from home if they stay over.
(6) Line up of transit busses in our parking lot all but one are electric trolley busses from Brill and Flyer all the trolley busses are HSR or TTC units.
(7) My caption: Tom's bus
(8) Toms bus is a 1957 GMC first automatic transmission city bus. This one is from the city of Brampton, still runs as well.
A coffee and the bacon sarnie and a round please RUTH.
Some great posts and photos today
Called in to say ROB and to drop off a couple of photos of a type of locomotive that worked on some tramways in Britain. Taken at a gala on the Middleton Railway in Leeds.
The loco is a Ex LNER class Y1 built by the Sentinal Wagon Works of Shrewsbury in 1927, a vertical boiler, chain driven locomotive. In 1950 No. 68153 was a railway works switcher at Darlington.
Enjoy and have a great day.
Back later.
Good to see a return to normalcy 'round here as Shane as begun the work week in fine fettle <whatever that means!> Do appreciate the info on the Boston transit - good beginning to "Stuff for Rob's Day"!
Classic Traction ‘n Transit #1
ExpoRail 2007
(1) MTC #1959 <blt 1928; CC&F - as a one-man car>
(2) MTC #997 <blt 1911; Ottawa - first all steel car in Canada>
(3) TSR #8 <blt c. 1895; P&C - open streetcar>
(5) M&SC #611 Interurban <blt 1917; Ottawa>
(6) MTC #3200 Tool car <blt 1928; MTC - as a fare box car; converted 1929>
Challenge for Rob - identify these <not in guide book>:
BONUS for Rob!
(9)
Good Morning Barkeep and all Present. Coffee, -please round for the house, and $ for the jukebox.
Nice day here today with temps in the 50s and cloudless skies. Gas is still at $3.79 although I can't wait to see what it does later this week. I can see over the stack of boxes in the office so maybe we'll get things unpacked today - organization will come a bit later.
First full weekend of football is in the books. WV played as bad as I have seen them in probably 5+ yrs. How about those Rams! Tough situation in New England.
OSP had some on-the-mark reflections on pay-per-view. I had MLB package for yrs. on the cable, so they took it away and put it on satellite. Mom said, "I'm not having the house look like a !@#$ spaceship," so that was that (plus the expense). However, I can get 15 shopping channels, etc., etc. Boris, unhand me, I'm done talking about this for now!
Pete was in with comments and some excellent pictures - tank engines remind me of the ones that handled suburban trains on the Boston and Albany years ago.
BTW, the weather was good at East Carolina because the storm blew through there quickly. As mentioned above, it didn't help WV any. Old People's MTV yesterday said that there was a lot of flooding in Northumberland.
Eric - Guess you're home by now - hope you had a good trip.
Nick - Thanks for the layout pictures. Your remarks about locations were well taken - much of my childhood is either under Interstates or has "gone condo."
OSP - Nice choice of movies, especially "Hoosiers." Glad to hear your showcases arrived in good shape and that your cab hunt was successful. Good luck with the basement. Remember, resist all urges to blast - it's too close to the house.
Today is Rob's birthday so herewith a rerun of an item from the first iteration of Our Place. This features, buses, trackless operations, subways and PCCs.
Subway
Riding the subway was always an adventure. The Boston subway was old when I was growing up. There were not as many stations then (sit and read the stations marked on the glass map in the holder beside the car door; Harvard, Central, Kendall, Charles, Park St., Washington, South Station, Broadway, Andrew Columbia, Fields Corner, Shawmut, and Ashmont - that was it), and the trains only ran as far as Harvard Square, although the streetcars ran out to Arlington, but that's another story for another time.
Most of the time we rode the bus to get to Harvard Square. This involved a walk to the corner, crossing there and waiting at the bus stop. There was not much of a sidewalk to stand on as the concrete, or what had been concrete was pretty well broken up. There was a lot of dirt and sand and a few tree roots sticking up, but that was about all. The traffic was much more interesting than trying to write my name in the dirt with the toe of my shoe and getting yelled at by my mother for "scuffing up your good shoes." Trucks were, of course, smaller and noisier. I always looked for Macks, especially the ones with chain drive since they made a glorious racket as they rolled past. The bus would come in time and we'd get on, pay the fare and sit down. There was a fare box at the front of the bus which automatically counted the money as the passengers dropped it into the slot on the top of the box. It made a neat "chinka-chinka-chinka" money-counting sound.
After awhile, we'd cross the bridge at Fresh Pond that went over the Boston and Maine's four-track main line. There was always something to see there, even if it was just a cut of freight cars, but usually I'd get lucky and see at least a switch engine pushing cars around, mostly for Bethlehem Steel which had a fabricating operation to the north and west of the bridge. Past the bridge was a rotary, and the bus slewed around there, thumped across a railroad siding that served a coal and lumber yard, and headed into Cambridge.
A little closer to the end of the ride, we'd see the wires for the electric buses or "trackless trolleys" which ran through the center of Cambridge. The trackless trolleys were noiseless, but every so often a blue cracking arc of electricity between the overhead wire and the poles on the bus would remind me of what they ran on. Traffic was always heavy through here, but even a metropolitan Boston driver respected a Twin Coach product. Squeezing through a narrow space between a dark blue Plymouth station wagon, two bright yellow Checker taxis, and a coal truck, the bus braked to a stop, the driver opened the door and we were at Harvard Square.
The subway station was in the middle of Harvard Square. It was a low gray stone structure with a metal roof and some ornamental iron work. In red letters above the doors was a sign which said "Rapid Transit to All Points - Eight Minutes to Park Street." People were always in a hurry there and it was hard to get a chance to take in all of the activity. You had a choice of walking down the stairs or riding a narrow wooden escalator to get to the station's "lobby." Here was a change booth and turnstiles. The process was quite simple - shove a dollar bill through the slot in the glass window and get some subway tokens and some change pushed back to you by the bored looking man sitting inside. Then take a token, put it in the slot in the turnstile and push your way through. Little kids rode for a nickel and had to reach up to drop their nickels into a change counter which was pretty similar to the one on the bus. That done, we went down the stairs to the platform and waited for the train.
Harvard Square Station was on two levels. The upper level, which allowed passengers quick access to buses and trackless trolleys without going outside, was for trains coming from Boston. Inbound (to Boston) passengers boarded their trains on the lower level. There was a single track on each level. The upper level went to the car barn (actually an open area for car storage) which was occupied a space near the Charles River between the Harvard University campus and Memorial Drive.
I could hear trains approaching the station from Boston as they pulled in above me and the entire station rumbled and shook with a deep, menacing, growl which was almost deafening because of the confined space in the station. Just about all of the old Harvard Square station was ripped out in the late 60s and early 70s when the subway was extended from Harvard Square to Alewife, so what I'm about to describe no longer exists.
As I mentioned, the subway line was single track with a high level platform to let people board and leave the trains quickly. The track resembled that of a regular railroad, except that a third rail was mounted outside the right rail. The third rail carried the electricity which powered the subway car's traction motors. Every so often on the third rail was some white lettering which said "DANGER - THIRD RAIL DO NOT TOUCH!" I was concerned most of the time that I might fall off the platform, touch the third rail and be instantly fried, so I never got too close to the edge of the platform. Everyone knew of somebody that had been fried because they weren't paying attention - never mind that there was no hard evidence of anyone ever being fried, except for a drunk in South Boston or some despondent person who threw themselves onto the tracks as the train pulled into the station, the thought of being electrocuted frying, swelling up and bursting into a million fragments was enough.
The track was not really ballasted but sat in what appeared to be deep layers of grime, oily dirt, dust, candy wrappers and old newspapers; I suppose there were ties underneath that mess somewhere. The walls were dingy white porcelain tile and there were brightly colored advertising signs attached to them at intervals. Most of the signs I remember advertised Wrigley's gum. Behind me was a brightly lighted newsstand which sold Boston papers, candy bars, cigarettes and cigars (in those more innocent days), and magazines. The station itself was not well lighted. Rather there were a few bulbs that tried ineffectually to pierce the darkness. I found that I could see pretty well once I got used to it. I tried to get close enough to the edge of the platform so I could see up the track to where the tunnel coming from the car barn curved away, but not close enough so that I might fall off, wind up against the dreaded third rail and be fried - INSTANTLY!!!
After awhile I could hear a train coming. It sounded differently than did the ones on the upper level as the noise was not as deep. I could hear the wheels squealing around the curve from the yard and hear the hollow whistling sound of the brakes being applied as the motorman brought it closer to the station. Then, there it was - four red lights marking the corners of the lead car, the blue-uniformed motorman sitting in the cab with one hand on the controller. The train of dirty, green painted, steel cars clomped into the station and screeched to a stop. The wooden doors banged open and the passengers began boarding the train.
These cars were utilitarian in the best sense of the word since they had been built to last through years and years of hard service. The windows would be open if the weather was warm and I could smell the pungent sweet scent of oil and warm traction motors. A compressor cut in under one of the cars with an urgent "lunga, lunga, lunga" sound, and then cut off with a harsh snap of air under pressure. It would be time to leave pretty soon and I made sure to try and get a seat near an open window so I could see everything. One feature of these cars I remember was a map of the MTA system in a glass panel by the door. I wonder now and then how much one of those would bring if offered at a memorabilia auction. Enough of that, though, it was time to go. The doors banged shut, "snuuffaaa," went the air brakes, the traction motors groaned into action and the train began to move forward; slowly at first, then much faster. I don't think we were really went all that fast, but the fact that the windows were open and we were in a tunnel gave the illusion of really moving rapidly. Central was the next stop, just a short distance from Harvard Square. The section of the line from Central to Kendall was about the longest stretch between stops and the train really moved along here. The noise was thrilling, palpable, and altogether wonderful. The racket was redoubled whenever we met a train. The other train roared past us in a blur of lights. This was what it was all about - going some place fast.
Years later I read a passage in a novel by Thomas Wolfe in which the hero, tormented by a desire to be everywhere, see everything, and absorb all of life's experience in the process, would ride the subway from Cambridge to Boston and see if he could hold his breath between stops - I did this when I was five years old and enthralled by Little Golden Books rather than the Sage of Asheville. The run from Central to Kendall was a long one, whether I held my breath or not.
Peering ahead I could see it was getting lighter as we got closer to the tunnel portal. A rush and a clank and we were out of the tunnel for a little while and back into the daylight. Up we went across the bridge to the Charles Street station. A brief stop there and then back into the tunnel underneath the storied streets of Beacon Hill. The train swung around a right hand curve before plunging back into the darkness. On the left was the frowning hulk of the infamous Charles Street jail; an ancient facility even when I was young. A roast beef sandwich stand was on the street right beside the prison walls. Legend had it that their sandwiches were so bad that the inmates would throw them back over the wall when kind hearted folks tossed a bag of them into the prison yard. A quick glance out the window allowed me to sort of see into the jail before the train plunged back into the tunnel. Park Street Under was the next station and we often got off there to transfer to another train, but sometimes we rode to Washington Street which is where the big department stores were. Still other times, we rode to South Station when we were going to ride the New Haven Railroad; always a great adventure. Beyond South Station lay unknown territory. I explored that later when I was older and started riding the subway by myself.
Park Street was about the biggest station on the MTA system. It had two levels. The subway was on the lower level and streetcars ran on the upper level. Historically, the oldest section of the entire MTA system was the one that ran into the upper level at Park Street. Some of the old Type 5 cars were still around when I was small, but mostly I remember riding on PCC's. The PCCs were painted traction orange with a stripe separating the orange-colored lower half of the car from the cream-colored upper part of the car. The PCC's ran from overhead wire so there was no danger of getting fried on the third rail. The PCC cars also did not run from a high level platform as did the subway cars. Park Street was a little better lighted than some of the other subway stops. The PCCs ran underground and on the surface and would take you virtually anywhere you wanted to go in the city.
A smile to begin the week!
"Cluster bombing from B-52s are very, very accurate. The bombs areguaranteed to always hit the ground."- USAF
Best thing to say about today is it's ROB's B'day!
Coffee is ready, pastries too - ‘n of course our <light> ‘n <traditional> breakfasts are ready for serving . . .
B'day Rob
September 8th (Rob - 37)
GRITS (Aug 24 - Sept 23) Your highest aim is to be with others like yourself. You like to huddle together with a big crowd of other Grits. You love to travel though, so maybe you should think about joining a club. Where do you like to go? Anywhere they have cheese, gravy, bacon, butter, or eggs and a good time. If you can go somewhere where they have all these things, that serves you well. You are pure in heart.
Let's provide trolley stuff for Rob on HIS DAY! C'mon - even though we're small in number, we surely should be able to come up with some fotos ‘n narrative for the man who has been with the bar since the beginning!
<MP&IR #1046 at ExpoRail - personal foto>
Eric returns to the bar TODAY!
Sunday - September 7th <all times Central daylite>:
Page 17 - Rob <trolleyboy> at 10:54 PM <11:54 PM EDT>: Most Happy Birthday to you, my friend ‘n friend of the bar up in Ontario!
Our Manager made it "in" to square away the paperwork . . . what dedication!
With the 10 steamers on the way for my new display case, I figured 10 cabooses to match ‘em in road names would be a nice touch. So, I found ‘em on the net - all new ‘n all for about $75 including shipping <no tax, of course!>. I think that's a good deal, especially when the leading sources were priced way, way higher than that. Just gotta keep looking ‘n who knows what will turn up . . . what in the world did we do before the internet
I called a foundation repair place on Thursday morning - no call back from the "estimator" <yet> - so this looks like another round of exasperation coming up. I'm going to begin excavating myself - just a bit at a time, but first have to ensure all's healed to permit such a thing. Will be leaving messages for the doc this AM . . .
Appreciate the visit ‘n chat - hope you have a Grrrrrrrrrrrrreat Day!
Good evening folks.Just in to finish of the weeks paperwork and make sure that Boris and his critters haven't destroyed anything.I was going to leave some cash for the pot in the morning but Nick's century note should keep us going for a while .
Tom-Too bad that the basement is still an ongoing problem,hopefully you will find that one guy who will do the repair your way.
Loved the mix of shots from your various rail adventures , always a wonderfull exposee to look at.Nice to know that you have found a good and relitivly inexpensive place to get your equipment from.( not that any of it is really cheap )
Pete-Sounds like you need to find the same basement repair guy as Tom ( once he finds one that will do it his way )
Great photo's again from Alan and yourself,some nice looking country and some even nicer looking trains.
It is indeed prudent to keep H&H happy, though I'm not sure that anyone can really build up an imunity to their cooking.Of coarse deep fried fish is hard to mess up,and Nick did teach them well.
Nick-looks like you are making some wonderfull headway on the layout reconstruction
Eric-Nice to see a pop in from our travelling desert dweller.It's ahrd to believe that your two weeks away is already comming to an end,I'm sure you notice that even more so.Still it's nice to know that you are enjoying yourself. Boris misses you and says he's making a supprise for you. I have noticed that he's been spending a lot of time in his shed's workshop. <uh oh >And he's playing alot of ABBA music while he's been working out there as well.
<personal foto at StL Mot, Kirkwood, MO>
"Our" Place is CLOSED on SUNDAYs
Starting TODAY at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre!
. . . September 7th thru 13th: Get Shorty <1995> Starring: John Travolta, Gene Hackman Renee Russo & Danny DeVito - and - ENCORE Presentation of Hoosiers <1986> starring: Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey & Dennis Hopper. SHORT: The Three Stooges - Hokus Pokus <1949>.
Get Shorty <1995>
PLOT SUMMARY John Travolta leads an all-star cast in the hysterical comedy that Time calls "smart, shrewdly crafted [and] hilarious!" Loan shark Chili Palmer (Travolta) is bored with the business. So when he arrives in LA to collect a debt from down-and-out filmmaker Harry Zimm (Gene Hackman), Chili talks tough...and then pitches Harry a script idea. Immediately, Chili is swept into the Hollywood scene: He schmoozes film star Martin Weir (Danny DeVito), romances B-movie queen Karen Flores (Rene Russo) and even gets reservations at the hottest restaurants in town. In fact, all would be smooth for this cool new producer, if it weren't for the drug smugglers and the angry mobster who won't leave him alone!
John Travolta leads an all-star cast in the hysterical comedy that Time calls "smart, shrewdly crafted [and] hilarious!" Loan shark Chili Palmer (Travolta) is bored with the business. So when he arrives in LA to collect a debt from down-and-out filmmaker Harry Zimm (Gene Hackman), Chili talks tough...and then pitches Harry a script idea. Immediately, Chili is swept into the Hollywood scene: He schmoozes film star Martin Weir (Danny DeVito), romances B-movie queen Karen Flores (Rene Russo) and even gets reservations at the hottest restaurants in town. In fact, all would be smooth for this cool new producer, if it weren't for the drug smugglers and the angry mobster who won't leave him alone!
Hoosiers <1986>
PLOT SUMMARY: One of the most rousingly enjoyable sports movies ever made, this small-town drama tells the story of the Hickory Huskers, an underdog basketball team from a tiny Indiana high school that makes it all the way to the state championship tournament. It's a familiar story, but sensitive direction and a splendid screenplay helped make this one of the best films of 1986, highlighted by the superb performances of Gene Hackman as the Huskers' coach, and Oscar nominee Dennis Hopper as the alcoholic father of one of the team's key players. As the drama unfolds we come to realize that many of the characters (including Barbara Hershey as a schoolteacher with whom Hackman falls in love) are recovering from disappointing setbacks, and this depth of character is what makes the otherwise conventional basketball story so richly rewarding. Like Rocky, Rudy, and Breaking Away, this is a quintessentially American movie about beating the odds and rising above one's own limitations. Just try to watch it without cheering! --Jeff Shannon
One of the most rousingly enjoyable sports movies ever made, this small-town drama tells the story of the Hickory Huskers, an underdog basketball team from a tiny Indiana high school that makes it all the way to the state championship tournament. It's a familiar story, but sensitive direction and a splendid screenplay helped make this one of the best films of 1986, highlighted by the superb performances of Gene Hackman as the Huskers' coach, and Oscar nominee Dennis Hopper as the alcoholic father of one of the team's key players. As the drama unfolds we come to realize that many of the characters (including Barbara Hershey as a schoolteacher with whom Hackman falls in love) are recovering from disappointing setbacks, and this depth of character is what makes the otherwise conventional basketball story so richly rewarding. Like Rocky, Rudy, and Breaking Away, this is a quintessentially American movie about beating the odds and rising above one's own limitations. Just try to watch it without cheering! --Jeff Shannon
SHORT: Hokus Pokus <1949>
PLOT SUMMARY: The Stooges have been taking care of Mary, their invalid downstairs neighbor who is confined to a wheelchair after an accident. What they don't know is that Mary is faking her injuries for the insurance money. The boys have jobs hanging posters at the theatre, where they run into The Great Svengarlic. They try to talk him into curing Mary, but instead they are hypnotized by him, and he instructs them to go out on a flagpole and dance, many stories above the street. They come to when Svengarlic is knocked out by a bicyclist, and find themselves clinging to the flagpole for dear life. When the flagpole breaks they crash through the window of the insurance adjustor, causing Mary jump to her feet and revealing her fraud.
The Stooges have been taking care of Mary, their invalid downstairs neighbor who is confined to a wheelchair after an accident. What they don't know is that Mary is faking her injuries for the insurance money. The boys have jobs hanging posters at the theatre, where they run into The Great Svengarlic. They try to talk him into curing Mary, but instead they are hypnotized by him, and he instructs them to go out on a flagpole and dance, many stories above the street. They come to when Svengarlic is knocked out by a bicyclist, and find themselves clinging to the flagpole for dear life. When the flagpole breaks they crash through the window of the insurance adjustor, causing Mary jump to her feet and revealing her fraud.
<from: threestooges.net>
Enjoy the weekend!
Reminder: "Our" Place is CLOSED on SUNDAYs
<but go ahead ‘n slip your messages thru the mail slots on the doors!>
It's that day o' rest here in mid-continent USA ‘n at the bar - yes, we're CLOSED on Sundays!
Next B'day: Rob TOMORROW !
Saturday - September 6th <all times Central daylite>:
Page 16 - Pete <pwolfe> at 11:24 AM: Most pleased to have our Bar Chandler aboard on a Saturday morning - BUT mention of Pat's Place surely was an indicator of nothing more for the day! <grin> My guess is you were "at the ready" upon opening hour! Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon . . . ‘n evening . . . ‘n night!
RDCs were ‘n are a most durable creation, so it wouldn't surprise me to learn of use in places mentioned. Then again, refurbishing them might be quite a challenge since the company is long gone ‘n the "know how" resides here, in diminishing numbers. Why not do a search ‘n let us know
The pay-per-view college football game that Mizzou played on Saturday should've been an indicator of just how disingenuous this is. The game was a total rout ‘n for shame on the schedule-makers for pitting a top ranked team against a far lesser competitive bunch . . . glad I didn't pay to watch it. <barf>
What's to say other than "good job" on Alan's part for those fotos of his exploits on the rails! Appreciate your bringing them to the bar, Mate! Really like the looks of that Kolhapur ‘n tender! Insights regarding the shed IDs ‘n so forth makes the fotos even more interesting.
I found a "source" for most of the cabooses wanted for my steam locomotive display case! Kinda like an oasis in the vast wasteland of jacked-up prices in model railroad-land. Figured I "saved" a bunch compared to ordering them from more established sources . . . Anyway, I expect there's a better than fair chance that the cabooses will be here before you arrive.
My guess is you'd be able to locate similar sources for Brit steamers ‘n vans. Just a matter of doing advanced searches ‘n of course being persistent - "it's" out there . . .
Always a pleasure having you amongst us, Mate ‘n we're NOT looking forward to your month away!
Enjoy your weekend . . .
Page 17 - Nick <nickinwestwales> at 9:12 PM <3:12 AM Sunday GMT>: I saw you logged in ‘n Posting over on "my other Thread" around 7 PM <1 AM Sunday GMT> - so, I waited - waited - waited for you to call in at the bar . . .
You surely do maintain some rather odd hours! <grin> Here it is 2:05 AM Sunday, as I type this - another insomnia experience! What is wrong with us, eh <geesh>
Your Post provided us with more insights into the things that Nick enjoys - most revealing fer sure, fer sure.
Fotos of your layout progress tells quite a story. Aside from the trackwork ‘n consists in the spread, I found your backdrops of scenery to be of interest. Nice blend ‘n well done! Something I seriously doubt that my talents would allow - most creative fer sure, fer sure.
Also the artist's renditions of scenes from your youth along with your thoughts adds to the whole of it when it comes to "understanding" our man in west Wales! Without knowing how one goes about reducing those book Pages down <or up> to scale - I'm guessing there'd have to be an awfully lot of "piecing together" in order to create a backdrop. Curious mind is waiting to know! <grin>
Very poignant thoughts come to mind when viewing those two sketches of street scenes from back in the day . . . those two could just as easily been from where I grew up. Staten Island, although one of the 5 boroughs comprising New York City, had the benefit of removal from the helter-skelter 'n wall to wall asphalt, concrete 'n masonry. It was a relaxing way of life with small town atmosphere dotting the landscape of the 15 mile long - 7.5 mile wide island located 5 miles south from Manhattan. In "my day" there was NO bridge connecting us with the rest of the city . . . it was ferry rides or the long way 'round through New Jersey . . . 3 bridges connected us to the "mainland." Yeah, brings back some good thoughts!
Appreciate the cuisine from India - although I'm here to tell ya, I've never sampled food from the sub-continent. Further, the continuous flow of beer didn't hurt a thing <I've sampled that a time or three!> ‘n the good cheer ‘n company helped to keep things alive at this rather quiet gin mill of ours. Hoping to see a resurgence - sooner rather than later.
By the by, there's been more than a few comments directed your way - hope you'll be able to catch up from your weeks away . . . otherwise all of the "good stuff" gets lost in space! <no connection to the long-gone TV series!> . . .
Given there was nothing to the contrary sent by Email - the RR BOOK RELAY 2008! should be well on the way to Shane in WVA . . .
Here's to ya, Mate - ‘n that century note you provided was thoroughly checked by our onboard scanner - Boris, our Cloven Foot Cyclops as an "eye" for things like that! <grin>
Well good evening gentlemen all-back after a couple of days of fairly impressive weather-if it keeps up like this I think the locals might have the annual `wicker man` ceremony early-assuming anybody can find any dry kindling........
Right Leon-Not sure how the previous donation is holding up,but heres a century to cover beer for the company ( to include a quick round of shorts as an apology for political observations.....,some hot snacks for anybody who has been out in it and an endless stream of all the best that Herr Wurlitzer has to offer for the house as a whole
O.K:-Gonna do it backwards tonight,pictures first,`cos it`s easier to re-type a word than find a lost picture.......
So-finally ,some new pix from the partially rejuvenated layout......
French & Swiss Expresses await the green light-note,-both church lane and station rd. have aquired new `British` buildings
Down in the yards
"Sh`el be coming round the mountain....."
The night train glides up the hill...
-O.K-shut her down now.....
French express snakes through the yard whilst Austrian local set waits for the next call
Still much progress to be made before it looks like anything........-camera flash doesn`t help.....
Now then-it occurs to me that as I have hi-jacked the evening with model pix some form of expiation might be due,so how about I go and do a turn in the galley and for once we enjoy the great British tradition of a few beers on a saturday night ,after the first rugby matches of the new season,followed by an Indian meal and-yes-more beer...any takers ??
Lovely job-right since we are not yet at full strength,lets just cook for one table,--how about trying a beef Madras,a lamb Bhuna,chicken Tikka,king prawn Jalfrezi,4 portions of vegetable Biriyani,garlic & herb nan breads,mango chutney,lime pickle & tomato & onion salad........plus,of course,LOADS MORE BEER................................
Right-where were we-ah yes,crawling around the floor,smelling of garlic & onions & beer-no sorry,that bit comes later..............
Well-as I was pursuing a modelling groove earlier,have had a bit of a `hit` this week-remembered that I had bought mum a book of rather good watercolours of the Norward/Crystal Palace area where she grew up-only a 50c bus ride from Greenwich,from where I spoke last week....Suddenly occured that these would make great backscene material if I can get them into scale-scanned a load in-lets see what might be done......early impressions are good on many levels-
Now this looks like a perfect road to disappear behind a building on the right.......
Now this book proved to provide an unexpected bond between mum & me `cos we both have strong memories of the area-she grew up there and many of my earliest memories are there,for one reason or another-all good,-both of us found we had favourite pictures and the same response-we can both smell the smoke and fumes,hear the noises-actually place ourselves in the pictures.
Mum`s choice of picture is the public library,mine is this otherwise completely forgettable corner house -but I can recall with total clarity standing in exactly the spot where the artists point of view is ,with one hand held by gran and the other by mum,waiting for the lights to change so we could go back to grans house for lunch -I was about 4 at the time...........
All the best
It's just the Wolfman ‘n Moi keeping things together during daylite at the Bar by the Ballast . . . Some fine fotos from our Interim Governor General in mid-Missouri!
(1) "Our" TTC streetcar <Rendezvous I>
(2) CNR FPA-4 #6765 at ExpoRail railway museum <2007 Canada Rail Adventure w/Pete>
(3) Northbound ARR Denali Star w/cruise ship cars at the rear <2006 Alaska Rail Adventure>
(4) Eastbound VIA Rail F40PHs #6418 & 6427 at Halifax, NS <Nova Scotia trip 2002>
(5) Locos for sale or rent from the northbound Texas Eagle <Rendezvous II>
(6) Interior of Amtrak's northbound Lincoln Service to Chicago - Business Class seating <2007 trip w/Pete>
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