Trains.com

Classic Railroad Quiz (at least 50 years old).

741847 views
7952 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    October 2014
  • 1,644 posts
Posted by Wizlish on Sunday, March 13, 2016 11:08 PM

Norfolk Southern's Berkshires - the little bitty ones, kinda like the MEC class D's were to Hudsons. 

Wound up on N de M and worked until the late '60s.

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • 487 posts
Posted by rfpjohn on Sunday, March 13, 2016 9:35 PM

Well, since Berkshires are in the forefront, as best as I can determine, these Berkshires were the last North American examples to see revenue service, though far removed from their original home. Name the original owner, final owner and what else was unique about these engines.

 

  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Friday, March 11, 2016 7:09 AM

rfpjohn

L&N's Big Emmas

 

Correct!  L&N's 1991 was originally scheduled to be the "last", but NKP 779 couldn't be completed due to a missing side rod, to replace which Lima had to call back recently laid off workers. 

  • Member since
    February 2012
  • 487 posts
Posted by rfpjohn on Thursday, March 10, 2016 4:56 PM

L&N's Big Emmas

  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Thursday, March 10, 2016 9:14 AM

NYC's (including B&A and P&LE) last steamers came earlier, with the last batch of Niagaras.

  • Member since
    June 2002
  • 20,096 posts
Posted by daveklepper on Thursday, March 10, 2016 7:06 AM

The A-2 Berkshire for the New York Central subsidiary that really wanted diesels but which was forced by NYC management to get these Berkshires instead.

Pittsburgh and _______?    I'll try to look it up and get back.   Probably because of light track in spots, they were lighter than most modern Berks.

The A-1s were the orginal Boston and Albany Berks.    

  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Thursday, March 10, 2016 6:26 AM

I'll stick with late steam.  The last of this railroad's last 22 Berkshires missed by two days being the last steam locomotive to leave a (U.S.) commercial builder, with NKP 779 getting that dubious honor.

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • 3,231 posts
Posted by NorthWest on Wednesday, March 9, 2016 9:38 PM

I have to step away from my computer for a couple of days. In the interest of moving the thread forward, I'll pass on the question to rcdrye, who got most of it. The locomotives in question are the second G-2 2-8-0s (built for PM) and, as noted, the K-8 2-8-2s. Both classes had water scoops for trackage rights on the NYC between St. Thomas, ON, and Buffalo, NY. All of the K-8s (USRA light Mikados) were purchased by PM secondhand, with some originating on the NYC.

  • Member since
    June 2002
  • 20,096 posts
Posted by daveklepper on Wednesday, March 9, 2016 7:12 AM

Bravo, rc.  Probably the K-6 Mikes were identacle to the C&O's  except for the water scoops, and maybe a few other minor details.

  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Wednesday, March 9, 2016 6:47 AM

C&O had three classes of ex-Pere Marquette 2-8-2's. PM operated over the NYC from Porter to Pine Jct. Indiana.  I would guess the later ones, C&O class K-6 and K-8, still had water scoops.

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • 3,231 posts
Posted by NorthWest on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 10:43 PM

No. As a hint, the locomotives were not built for the C&O.

One class of locomotives was the second use of that class designation on the C&O.

  • Member since
    June 2002
  • 20,096 posts
Posted by daveklepper on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 10:34 PM

So, I had the right locomotives, but the wrong location?

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • 3,231 posts
Posted by NorthWest on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 5:00 PM

Right railroad, wrong location. Look closer at the last sentence of my earlier post.

  • Member since
    June 2002
  • 20,096 posts
Posted by daveklepper on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 9:23 AM

Over the Central between Toledo and Detroit?

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • 3,231 posts
Posted by NorthWest on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 9:04 AM

Dave, your second hypothesis is correct. Look north.

Both classes didn't come to the C&O until very late in the steam era.

  • Member since
    June 2002
  • 20,096 posts
Posted by daveklepper on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 12:15 AM

I believe the C&O did not use track pans on its own lines, but possibly the Southern did between Orange and Alexandria, and F19 Pacifics and the Hudsons had the scoops for picking up water when running on Southern tracks.

I may be wrong on this, and there may be a location where C&O had trackage rights on either the   PRR or NYC, but I don't know where.   The     PRR and NYC were the greatest users of track pans.

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • 3,231 posts
Posted by NorthWest on Monday, March 7, 2016 10:59 PM

Only two classes of C&O steam power had water scoops for using track pans. Which classes and why?

  • Member since
    October 2012
  • 225 posts
Posted by DS4-4-1000 on Monday, March 7, 2016 7:27 AM

Of course you are right.  Your question!

  • Member since
    May 2013
  • 3,231 posts
Posted by NorthWest on Friday, March 4, 2016 8:03 PM

DS4-4-1000
Staying with N&W they inherited a small group of one model of a minority builder of locomotives. That group was divided exactly in half by being repowered by two different builders. What railroad did these come from? Who was the original builder? What model? and who repowered them?

NKP purchased four Baldwin AS-16s numbered 320-323. Two were repowered by EMD, becoming GP9s, while the other two were repowered by Alco and became RS11s.

  • Member since
    October 2012
  • 225 posts
Posted by DS4-4-1000 on Friday, March 4, 2016 11:55 AM

CSSHEGEWISCH
Factory repowerings by Alco were relatively rare, the only others of which I'm aware are two NKP AS16's

The Upper Merion & Plymouth sent a VO1000 to Alco and it received a 251 and an S6 hood.

The three PRR sharks were repowered with Alco engines.  Some references say it was done by Alco while others say PRR did it.

 

  • Member since
    October 2012
  • 225 posts
Posted by DS4-4-1000 on Friday, March 4, 2016 11:31 AM

Staying with N&W they inherited a small group of one model of a minority builder of locomotives.  That group was divided exactly in half by being repowered by two different builders.

What railroad did these come from?  Who was the original builder? What model? and who repowered them?

 

  • Member since
    March 2016
  • From: Burbank IL (near Clearing)
  • 13,540 posts
Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Friday, March 4, 2016 10:03 AM

DS4-4-1000

Wabash's TMs were repowered by Alco

This was the answer I was looking for.  Factory repowerings by Alco were relatively rare, the only others of which I'm aware are two NKP AS16's.

DS4-4-1000, it's your question.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
  • Member since
    November 2005
  • From: Hope, AR
  • 2,061 posts
Posted by narig01 on Friday, March 4, 2016 1:40 AM

I was doing a Google search on TM' s and this popped up in the advertising:

H-24-66 - Cheap Prices - Want Hot Deals for New H-24-66?

Adwww.nextag.com ‎/Home-and-Garden‎

Save on Everything Home & Garden!

Millions of products · Today's Hottest Deals · Our seller's lowest price

BeddingAppliancesFurnitureFlooring

 

LOL

  • Member since
    October 2012
  • 225 posts
Posted by DS4-4-1000 on Thursday, March 3, 2016 11:58 AM

Wabash's TMs were repowered by Alco

  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Thursday, March 3, 2016 11:46 AM

Wabash's two ex-demonstrators (TM-1 and TM-2 -> 550-551) had steam generators.  Did 552-557?

  • Member since
    June 2002
  • 20,096 posts
Posted by daveklepper on Thursday, March 3, 2016 10:48 AM

Dynamic brakes?   (Virginian yes, Wabash no)

  • Member since
    March 2016
  • From: Burbank IL (near Clearing)
  • 13,540 posts
Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Thursday, March 3, 2016 9:57 AM

Norfolk & Western inherited Train Masters from both Virginian and Wabash.  Aside from road numbers, what feature distinguished one group of Train Masters from the other?

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 1:17 PM

CSSHEGEWISCH

I'll go with Soo Line.  Their GP30's are well-known for their trade-in trucks and they had some RSC2's that needed to be re-trucked.

 

Bingo!  Soo traded in 21 FA1s, a wrecked F7B and their spare Alco trucks on GP30s 700-721.  They later regretted using the old motors, but the units lasted a long time anyway.  The 22nd FA1 was traded in on GP35 722, which also rode on Alco trucks.

MSP&SSM had RSC2s and RSC3s used in North Dakota on light rail branch lines, and WC had an RSC3 for service over Milwaukee Road trackage rights to the ferry slip in Manitowac WI.  After the post-merger Soo Line retired its DRS-4-4-15 and AS16 road switchers the trucks were used to convert the two remaining RSC2s and all of the RSC3s to B-B, a few of them lasting into the 1970s.

  • Member since
    March 2016
  • From: Burbank IL (near Clearing)
  • 13,540 posts
Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 10:06 AM

I'll go with Soo Line.  Their GP30's are well-known for their trade-in trucks and they had some RSC2's that needed to be re-trucked.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
  • Member since
    May 2012
  • 5,017 posts
Posted by rcdrye on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 9:49 AM

The Army kept all of its requisitioned RS(D)-1s.  The railroad I'm looking for bought both the eventually-retrucked Alco road switchers and the Baldwins the trucks came from new.

The engines that got the Alco trucks were the first large order painted in the company's new bright paint scheme that replaced a very conservative look.

SUBSCRIBER & MEMBER LOGIN

Login, or register today to interact in our online community, comment on articles, receive our newsletter, manage your account online and more!

FREE NEWSLETTER SIGNUP

Get the Classic Trains twice-monthly newsletter