G'day Gents!
After a really slooooooooooow morning ‘n early PM, things picked up with the arrival of CM3 Shane ‘n Fergie the Mariner. And of course our Manager, Lars provided TWO fine Posts . . . Then along came Pete!
Customer Acknowledgments since my last narrative:
Lars (LoveDomes) at 11:46 AM 'n 2:21 PM: Some super GG1 fotos <for Moi!> and the first batch of covers provided some surprises - especially that road from Tennessee. Have to admit, I never heard of it - good picks!
Was thinking that had this been a Friday back in the "old days <daze>" with you on board twice, we'd probably have had some "real time" conversations flowing . . . those were fun.
Many thanx for the continuing support 'n rounds . . .
CM3 Shane (coalminer3) at 2:36 PM 'n 2:59 PM: A fine run down of this 'n that from our Resident WVA Connection. Really "jumped" on those covers provided by the Larsman! Always like to read the insights you provide - means alot in that you were there, when . .
Two rounds for the gang along with lotsa quarters! Can't beat that, eh Enjoy the weekend, Mate!
Fergie (Fergmiester) at 2:50 PM: Worried about calories!?!?! Are you serious!?!?!?! Sailors don't count calories!!! <grin>
A respite in St. John's . . . now that brings to mind some memories from way, way back. Yes, things were indeed "different" . . .
Glad you're finding some things of interest to you 'round here. Latching on to CM3 Shane is a PLUS . . . . for when it comes to steam locos of the U.S. - he's your man!
As bragged about in other narratives, we pride ourselves on exchanging reliable, interesting 'n fun info . . . that's what this joint is supposed to be all about. Guys don't come in here to rack up "points" on their totals <harkens back to the days of STARS, eh > and for the most part are an interactive group. That's what separates us out from the other Threads 'n my intent is to keep us on that course.
Many thanx for keeping us in mind 'n of course the round! <KaChing> <KaChing>
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
When Wolfman Pete dropped off his daily (which I'll acknlowledge in the AM), it occurred to me that I couldn't pass up this opportunity presented to make the THREE THOUSANDTH offering at "Our" Place under the reborn mantra!
So, here's the deal: Since I'm the Proprietor, no prize comes to me - BUT the guy who picked BOTH the day AND the person wins something very special.
That guy is LoveDomes Lars our CONTEST winner! And the prize is <drumroll> . . . .
A round trip <two nites!> in the drawing room suite <rear obs dome> aboard the Can-Am Railway's Trans Mentor Limited! Of course meals ‘n open bar are included for TWO! <wonder WHO gets to accompany our Manager?!?!?>
Transportation to 'n from Can-Am City's Union Station provided by Vito's Limo 'n Hearse Conveyance, LLC. <uh oh>
Thanx to all who participated - and for doing so, a Happy Hour on any afternoon or evening of your choosing!
Changing gears . . .
Tomorrow is ENCORE! Saturday - and - Photo Posting Day!
Hi Tom and all.
Thought I heard of the free beer on offer from TOM so a Bathams XXX please LEON.
Just popped in to congratulate Manager LARS on his great contest win on the 3,000th post at Our Place and his mavellous prizealthough I can quess who will be stocking the rear obs car on the Trans Mentor Limited, no worries it will be stocked with the finest beverages possible.
Don,t suppose there is a prize for guessing who will accompany our manager on the two night trip.
Well LEON let me get a round in and I had better make sure we have enough supplies for next weeks Happy Hours.
Pete.
Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!Leon, tonight is the right time for a Filet Mignon and lots of mushrooms! Plus an ice cold Keith's. Another busy day at the office, but now there are only two weeks left, so who cares? It is Friday! Mike – Thanks for some very historic and interesting pictures and links all connected to this day, the Pearl Harbor Day. I have been to the Arizona Memorial and it certainly make you think. Tom – I like your installment for the WWFTS! It reminds me about my time as a radio and TV repairman in the early 60’s when those appliances still were equipped with vacuum tubes (with some exceptions). Those were the days!Another day without pain! Feels good. The last two weekends were very painful though, so I hope this one will be a good one. Very nice pictures of those three GG1’s! To sad there is no one operational today. Lars – Congratulations to the 3,000th Post!!! We will do our best to hang on and keep this place running! Hope today was a successful day for your Mrs. in all her tests! I am glad to see that Ruth has Christmas off! No admin matters to take care of? No, hmmm, future train ride?It is amazing how many books about trains you can find! Wish I had the time (and money) to read them all. L&N is an interesting railroad I don’t know much about. GG1’s! Nice pictures! The picture from Harrisburg looks almost exactly the same as mine of that same locomotive. But I bet the raised pantograph in the bottom picture (PRR GG1 #4903) is faked. Looks like it has been drawn on the picture. CM3 – Would have been interesting to see that Amtrak ad! GG1 running without overhead wire! I wonder if they (responsible Amtrak people) ever saw that themselves? I guess the E7s you mentioned were, said in a polite way, near the end. Good enough for an inside cover of a national timetable though. Fergie – Glad to hear you at least have “good” weather out there! Last “trip” before Christmas I guess. An Egg Nog is okay after a busy day!Pete – I have the same opinion as you about pantographs and how to show them, explaining how an electric gets its power. I think that would be a great idea to convert one of those Wine cars for use by the track gang. There is plenty of room on that old track behind Our Place. No, no, Ruth never complained. Now she is already packing for her trip aboard the Can-Am Railway’s Trans Mentor Limited! Gonzo agrees with you about his name. He is offering a freshly caught mouse as a thank you! He stayed up late tonight in order to catch it. Good story anbout the hand held radar device and the Toronado!
Straight ahead! The old country.
Eric
Greetings Tom and gentlemen....
May I have the usual extra cold Guinness, top up with cigars for the lads please?
$$$$ for the cigar box and Mr Wurlitzer....
Just thought that I'd drop by for a snifter and drop off a couple of pics. Just woke up a wee while ago, still feel a bit heavy headed. I'll stop by again later today. Really enjoy all the posts and pics put up....keep 'em coming!
View of Great Northern Railway Oriental Limited passenger train on tracks near a railroad signal. A steel passenger car reads "Great Northern" and "Compartment Observation Car," "9029," and a sign on the railing displays the Oriental Limited logo. Photo by Lucius Beebe.
"The Oriental Limited grinds to a halt at the division point. Quickly a car "toad" plugs in the phone for milady's call. Alas, such dialings were infrequent enroute as on most long runs. The Oriental theme was carried throughout the train from rugs to paintings. It wasn't unusual, after the lounge shut down for the night, to see brakeman sitting at the rear windows, only the lights from his flagging lanterns on the platform and the leaking gleam from the tail sign weakly illuminating the scene. And every now and then a semaphore would slowly wink back to green in the darkness behind the train."*
NP 4-6-2 #2236 and 4-8-4 #2601, with train #1, North Coast Ltd, at Muir, Mont., September 25, 1931. Photo by unknown.
"The mountains are quiet. Then comes the roar down the line of double-shotted Pacifics talking loud to the sky. Throttles are wide open, stacks blasting soot, cinders and smoke, they charge the craggy portals of Rocky Canyon east of Bozeman"*
SP 4-8-2 #4331 in Portland, Ore., June 5, 1926. Photo by Otto Perry.
"Imagine leaving Portland at night. Darkness surrounds the Columbia River Gorge and hides the whispy tail of Multnomah Falls. Suddenly lightning is everywhere and rain splatters across the big windows as the mountains let loose a storm. The radio crackles with static. A crash of light. The radio goes dead."*
Credit: Photoswest and *"Steam, Steel and Limiteds."
<"Our" Place Christmas Holiday Train>
This is ENCORE! Saturday - and - Photo Posting Day!
Remember: "Our" Place is CLOSED on Sundays.
At long last Saturday has arrived! Really a gloomy start in these parts with it wet, damp ‘n a bit more than a chill out there. Don't know what it is about rainy late fall ‘n winter days, but the colder it gets when it is snowing or with clear skies - no problems. When it's raining though, then the feel of the day is absolutely different with spitting rain, etc.
Oh well . . . time for a hot mugga Joe, pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery case ‘n an order for a <light> or <traditional> breakfast. That should kick start the morning quite well enough!
Comments from the Proprietor:
As mentioned at the top of this Page - Lars won the CONTEST with his guess that I would be the one to make the 3,000th Post at our reborn bar ‘n grill. I don't believe we've EVER had someone make such an accurate guess as the FIRST one to participate in any of our CONTESTS! <double wow>
Here are the participants with their guesses:
Lars sed: Dec 7th (Tom)
Rob sed: Dec 24th (Lars)
Pete sed: Dec 9th (Lars)
Eric sed: Dec 13th (CM3)
Fergie sed: Dec 16th (Pete)
CM3 Shane sed: Dec 12th (Lars)
Allan sed: Dec 11th (Tom)
Jan sed Dec 13th (Eric)
ALL who joined in are to receive a HAPPY HOUR on an afternoon or evening of their choosing!
Customer Acknowledgments (since my last narrative)
Friday - Dec 7th:
Pete (pwolfe) at 8:56 PM: Sorry Pete, but the trip is for TWO . . . perhaps next time! Nice of you to extend your Bar Chandler duties to the Can-Am Trans Mentor Ltd.
Next CONTEST - hmmmmmm, probably when we get near the 4,000th - think we'll still be up ‘n runnin' by then OR who knows Maybe something different will crop up . . . never a dull moment at the Tavern by the Tracks!
Thanx for the 2nd visit!
Eric (EricX2000) at 11:28 PM: Back in another time, I used to run my model GG1s <one tuscan, one Brunswick green> on my HO layout featuring my four favorite roads of the time: PRR - NYC - NH - B&M. Since I had no overhead wiring, I just "created" dual power GG1s - diesel OR electric. Worked for Moi!
Now those, and all the remaining locos ‘n rolling stock are on display in the Can-Am Trainroom's display cases <as you've witnessed at Rendezvous II>
Another pain-free day along with a day closer to the 21st all makes for a better day for you. Good to know!
"Back in the day," I was a radio operator <responsible for maintenance too> with all of our transmitters ‘n receivers equipped with vacuum tubes. We had one power amplifier <PA> tube that stood over 3 feet from the deck. It was a monster tube, fer sure, fer sure. In fact, all ships had to carry a spare - and "back in the day" <1950s> they cost $750 apiece through the supply system. Anyway, I remember having them air dropped to us while out on station in the north Atlantic when for whatever the reason, our spare either didn't exist or was inoperative.
Anyway, your commentary about vacuum tubes brought all of that back . . .
Nice right-of-way foto from the old country!
Yeah, yeah - you ‘n Pete can "play dumb," but I recall when the two of you were scheming to find this &lsquo
Here's something in THREE PARTS to keep this ENCORE! Saturday <humming> along . . .
RAILWAYS of EUROPE #3 - TGV (France) "SNCF, gives the train ideas in advance"
<A form of this was initially Posted on Page 255, Feb 23, 2006 on the Original Thread>
Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources. Information NOT corroborated.
TGV PART I of III This article is about the French high-speed railway system. TGV trains depart from Gare Montparnasse in Paris to western and southwestern destinations. (Wikimedia Commons) The TGV (train à grande vitesse, French for "high-speed train") is France's high-speed rail service, developed by GEC-Alsthom (now Alstom) and SNCF, the French national rail operator, and operated primarily by SNCF. Following the inaugural TGV service between Paris and Lyon in 1981, the TGV network, centred on Paris, has expanded to connect cities across France. The success of the first line led to a rapid expansion of the service, with new lines built to the south, west and northeast of the country. Eager to share in the success of the French network, neighbouring countries such as Belgium, Italy and Switzerland built their own high-speed lines to connect with it. TGVs under other brand names also link to Germany and the Netherlands through the Thalys network, and to the United Kingdom through Eurostar. Several future lines are currently planned, including extensions within France and to surrounding countries. Towns such as Tours have become a part of this "TGV commuter belt". TGVs travel at up to 320 km/h (200 mph), which is made possible through the use of specially designed tracks, laid down without any sharp curves, and a range of features which make TGV trains suitable for high speed travel. These features include high-powered electric motors, low axle weight, articulated carriages and in-cab signaling which removes the need for drivers to see lineside signals at high speed. TGVs are manufactured primarily by Alstom, now often with the involvement of Bombardier. Except for a small series of TGVs used for postal freight between Paris and Lyon, TGV is primarily a passenger service. Trains derived from TGV designs also operate in South Korea (KTX) and Spain (AVE). Travel by TGV has largely replaced air travel between connected cities, due to shorter commuting times (especially for trips taking less than three hours), reduced check-in, security and boarding formalities, and the convenient location of train stations in the heart of cities. Furthermore, the TGV is a very safe mode of transport, with no recorded fatalities due to accidents while running at high speed since operations began. History Main article: Development of the TGV The idea of the TGV was first proposed in the 1960s, after Japan began construction on the Shinkansen in 1959. At the time the French government favoured new technologies, exploring the production of hovercraft and maglev trains such as Aérotrain. Simultaneously, SNCF began researching high-speed trains that would operate on conventional tracks. It was originally planned that the TGV, then standing for très grande vitesse (very high speed) or turbine grande vitesse (high speed turbine), would be propelled by gas turbine-electric locomotives. Gas turbines were selected for their small size, good power-to-weight ratio, and ability to deliver a high power output over an extended period of time. The first prototype, TGV 001, was the only TGV constructed with this type of engine. However, following the sharp increase in the price of oil during the 1973 energy crisis, gas turbines were deemed impractical and the project turned to locomotives powered by electricity from overhead lines. The electricity was to be generated by France's new nuclear power stations. However, TGV 001 was not a wasted prototype. Its gas-turbine powerplant was only one of many technologies required for high-speed rail travel. The TGV 001 platform also tested high-speed brakes, which were needed to dissipate the large amount of kinetic energy amassed by a train operating at high speed. Other technologies tested by the 001 included high-speed aerodynamics and signaling. The train was articulated, meaning that its two carriages shared a bogie between them which allowed them to move freely with respect to one another. The prototype train reached 318 km/h (198 mph), which remains the world speed record for a non-electric train. The interior and exterior of TGV 001 were styled by British-born designer Jack Cooper, whose work formed the basis of all subsequent TGV design, including the distinctive nose shape of TGV power cars. Changing the specification of the TGV to incorporate electric traction required a significant design overhaul. The first fully electric prototype, nicknamed Zébulon, was completed in 1974, testing features such as innovative body-mounting of motors, pantographs, suspension and braking. Body mounting of motors allowed over 3 tonnes (2.95 tons) to be dropped from the weight of the power cars. The prototype travelled almost 1 000 000 km (621,000 miles) during testing. In 1976 the French government fully funded the TGV project, and construction of the LGV Sud-Est, the first high-speed line (ligne à grande vitesse), began shortly afterwards. The line was given the designation LN1, Ligne Nouvelle 1 (New Line 1).
Good Afternoon Tom and Crew!
Fill the Thermos please and I'll have a Western with extra Mayo to go. This is the 2nd go at this one as the puter dumped the 1st attempt...
Me... count calories? Constantly! especially when they are getting low
Pete and Eric: As Tom will attest the weather out here is a relative thing. It was blowing 40 this morning and getting lumpy now it's blowing 30 and less lumpy. It still takes the mickey out of you after a while.
Yes I was raised on Tube radios as the MF/HF sets made by Collins never stopped their "chattering" when tuned or their buzzing as they warmed up.
coalminer3 wrote: A C&O T-1? Good choice and arguably about the best steam they ever had. Lots of stories about that one for sure.
A C&O T-1? Good choice and arguably about the best steam they ever had. Lots of stories about that one for sure.
Yes the MESS was one third owned by C&O as a result of a hostile takeover by CN back in 57' gone awry. Seems some of the local talent was in on it too but as luck had it they got found out and were run out of town. Regardless it was the beginning of the end, as the MESS never fully recovered and was saddled with equipment that couldn't be repaired due to lack of spares. (The Story of the MESS thickens)
Anyway Gents must relieve later all.
Thanks Tom thanks for yet another history lesson. Always appreciated.
Jan: Love the pics my man!
Later All
Fergie
http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=5959
If one could roll back the hands of time... They would be waiting for the next train into the future. A. H. Francey 1921-2007
Ahoy Cap'n Tom ‘n fellow travelers at the bar!
Cindy my sweet, ‘tis a gloomy day outdoors, but with you behind the bar, why one would think it was the brilliance of springtime! A round for the boyz - treats for the crittAHs - the small jar of PPF for Boris (when he feeds the gang o' course) and I'll have a Larsman special hero sandwich (sometimes called hoagie) of ham, Swiss, mustAHd ‘ buttAH with two extra large ‘n crunchy pickles from the barrel. <uhmmmmm> Change is for you!
I WON! I WON! I WON! However, the guy who really deserves the attention ‘n praise is hardly me - it belongs to the man who makes this place GO - that is Cap'n Tom our Proprietor. He made post # 3000 AND perhaps the Lion's share of all the others here ‘n over on the old site. Who in the world could argue that, huh Without Da Bossman, why this joint wouldn't be. So a toast of good CHEER to Da Bossman - Cap'n Tom! <hear, hear>
Many thanks for the trip aboard Can-Am's Trans Mentor Limited. Two nights in drawing room suite with <???????> should be a memory to last for the rest of my days. <grin> Just gotta figure out how to get away with this plan this out!
A couple of visits by Shane yesterday with all kinds of insights to my book covAHs! Then Pete jumped on the bandwagon too with a couple of visits - all helped to keep the joint in operation!
Good news continues from Eric in the sand box - just hope all of this gets resolved quickly so that the Christmas season won't be a total wipe out for him.
Sorry Pete ‘n Eric, buy playing coy ain't gonna change a thing. Youse guyz are BANNED from the Penthouse Suite. <grrrrrrrrrrrr> But of course things change ovAH time, ‘n I've been known to accept a payoff apology!
I see Cap'n Tom has been busy this morning with some trains from France. TGV is always an interesting read. Sorta ticks me off though that we in north America STILL don't get it when it comes to this technology. I'll nevAH understand why or how we let Japan ‘n European countries overtake us with rail transportation. Yeah, it's really not a competition, but there was a time . . . <moan> <groan>
And finally, a visit from Fergie. Had a brief port call in Newfoundland, huh Always thought that was a super port up there in St. John's in terms of being protected. But I don't recall ever departing without immediately getting into the "slop." <grin> Fortunately, I only logged a few trips up there, as the majority of my Atlantic sailings were to Europe.
Well it's Saturday once more ‘n time for some Encore photo material . . . so let me get right to it . . . MORE GG1's for Da Bossman!!
PRR GG1 #4913 (photo credit: Ana Dill)
PRR GG1 #4927 (photo credit: Illinois Railway Museum)
PRR GG1 #4933 (photo credit: Richard Duley)
PRR GG1 #4935 (photo credit: RR Museum of PA)
- and -
From Page 333 on Tom's B'day back in 2006 (May 18th) over on the old site:
Tom - here's something that I know is near & dear to your railroading heart! Pennsylvania Railroad's GG1 The GG1 was designed by the Pennsylvania Railroad based on the need for a locomotive that could pull more than 12 to 14 passenger cars. The railroad thought it had designed the perfect electric passenger locomotive, the P-5a, but as the P-5a locomotives arrived, it became necessary to double head them on many trains in order to protect schedules. Two other factors were involved in the development of the GG1. The chassis and wheel arrangement were a result of experiments with a leased New Haven EP3a and the streamlined body and center crew cab were a siberianmo Member sinceFebruary 2004 From: Chesterfield, Missouri, USA 7,214 posts Posted by siberianmo on Saturday, December 8, 2007 12:42 PM This is ENCORE! Saturday - and - Photo Posting Day!Remember: "Our" Place is CLOSED on Sundays.G'day Gents!Continuing on with the TGV of France - here's Part II for ENCORE! Saturday . . . RAILWAYS of EUROPE #3 - TGV (France) "SNCF, gives the train ideas in advance" TGV PART II of III <A form of this was initially Posted on Page 255, Feb 23, 2006 on the Original Thread> Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources. Information NOT corroborated.Stations Avignon TGV station. (GNU Free Documentation) One of the main advantages of TGV over other fast rail techologies such as magnetic levitation is that TGV trains can take advantage of existing infrastructure. This makes connecting city centres (such as Paris-Gare de Lyon to Lyon-Perrache) with TGV a simple and inexpensive proposition; TGVs often use intra-city tracks and stations originally built with lower-speed trains in mind. However, TGV route designers have tended to build new stations in suburban areas or in the open countryside several kilometers away from cities. This allows TGVs to stop without incurring too great a time penalty, since more time is spent on high-speed track. In some cases, stations are built halfway between two communities. The station serving Montceau-les-Mines and Le Creusot is an example of this approach. Another, more controversial example is the Haute Picardie station, which is located between Amiens and Saint-Quentin. The location of the Haute Picardie station was rather controversial; the press and local authorities criticized it as too far from either town to be convenient, and too far from connecting railway lines to be useful for travellers. The station was nicknamed la gare des betteraves, or 'beetroot station', as it is surrounded by beet fields. This nickname is now applied to similar stations located away from town and city centres, whether such stations are in the vicinity of beet fields or not. A number of major new railway stations have been built to support the TGV service, some of which are considered major architectural achievements in their own right. The Avignon TGV station, opened in 2001, has been praised as one of the most remarkable stations on the network, with a spectacular 340 m (1,115 ft)-long glazed roof which has been compared to that of a cathedral. Rolling stock A TGV train in Rennes, in Brittany. (Wikimedia Commons) Eurostar and Thalys side-by-side in Paris Gare du Nord. (Wikimedia Commons) TGV rolling stock differs from other types in that trains consist of semi-permanently coupled multiple units. Bogies are located between carriages, supporting the carriages on either side, so that each carriage shares its bogies with the two adjacent to it. Locomotives at either end of the trains have their own bogies. This design is advantageous during a derailment, as the locomotive derails first and can move separately from the passenger carriages, which are more likely to stay upright and in line with the track. Normal trains, by contrast, tend to split at couplings and jackknife. A disadvantage of this carriage design is that it is difficult to split sets of carriages. While TGV locomotives can be removed from trains via standard uncoupling procedures, specialized depot equipment is needed to split carriages by lifting the entire train at once. Once uncoupled, one of the carriage ends is left without a bogie at the split, so a bogie frame is required to hold it up. SNCF operates a fleet of about 400 TGV trainsets. Six types of TGV or TGV derivative currently operate on the French network; these are TGV Sud-Est (passenger and La Poste varieties), TGV Atlantique, TGV Réseau/Thalys PBA, Eurostar, TGV Duplex and Thalys PBKA. A seventh type, TGV POS (Paris-Ostfrankreich-Suddeutschland, or Paris-Eastern France-Southern Germany), is currently being tested. All TGVs are at least bi-current, which means that they can operate at 25 kV, 50 Hz AC on newer lines (including LGVs) and at 1.5 kV DC on older lines (such 1.5 kV lignes classiques that are particularly common around Paris). Trains crossing the border into Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom must accommodate foreign voltages. This has led to the construction of tri-current or even quadri-current TGVs. All TGVs are equipped with two pairs of pantographs, two for AC use and two for DC use. When passing between areas of different supply voltage, marker boards are installed to remind the driver to lower the pantograph(s), turn off power to the traction motors, adjust a switch on the dashboard to select the appropriate system, and raise the pantograph(s) again. Pantographs and pantograph height control are selected automatically based on the voltage system chosen by the driver. Once the train detects the correct supply to its transformers, a dashboard indicator lights up and the driver can switch on power to the traction motors. The train coasts across the border between voltage sections with traction motor power turned off. Main article: SNCF TGV Sud-Est Happy Railroading! Siberianmo siberianmo Member sinceFebruary 2004 From: Chesterfield, Missouri, USA 7,214 posts " Our" Place reborn! An adult bar 'n grill for the discussion of Classic Trains! Posted by siberianmo on Saturday, December 8, 2007 3:53 PM This is ENCORE! Saturday - and - Photo Posting Day!Remember: "Our" Place is CLOSED on Sundays.G'day Gents!The finale of my 3-parter on the TGV from France . . . RAILWAYS of EUROPE #3 - TGV (France) "SNCF, gives the train ideas in advance" TGV PART III of III <A form of this initially was Posted on Page 255, Feb 23, 2006 on the original Thread>Used with permission from: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Formatting differences made necessary due to Forums requirements. Some heralds from other sources. Information NOT corroborated.France: TGV Duplex in Paris, Gare de Lyon.Existing lines LGV Sud-Est (Paris Gare de Lyon to Lyon-Perrache), the first LGV (opened 1981) LGV Atlantique (Paris Gare Montparnasse to Tours and Le Mans) (opened 1990) LGV Rhône-Alpes (Lyon to Valence) (opened 1992) LGV Nord (Paris Gare du Nord to Lille and Brussels and on towards London, Amsterdam (HSL-Zuid) and Cologne) (opened 1993) LGV Interconnexion Est (LGV Sud-Est to LGV Nord Europe, east of Paris) (opened 1994) LGV Méditerranée (An extension of LGV Rhône-Alpes: Valence to Marseille Saint Charles) (opened 2001) High Speed 1 (Channel Tunnel to London St Pancras International) (Phase 1 opened 2003, phase 2 opened 14 November 2007) LGV Est (Paris Gare de l'Est-Strasbourg) (opened 10 June 2007)[14] Lines under constructionLGV Perpignan-Figueres (due to open 2009, TGV service 2012) LGV Rhin-Rhône (Lyon-Dijon-Mulhouse) (due to open 2011) HSL-Zuid (Br Happy Railroading! Siberianmo siberianmo Member sinceFebruary 2004 From: Chesterfield, Missouri, USA 7,214 posts " Our" Place reborn! An adult bar 'n grill for the discussion of Classic Trains! Posted by siberianmo on Saturday, December 8, 2007 4:03 PM ENCORE! Saturday ‘n Photo Posting Day!at "Our" Place!We are CLOSED on SUNDAYs!Starting Sunday at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre! . . . December 9th thru 15th: Christmas with the Kranks (2004) Starring: Tim Allen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Dan Aykroyd, M. Emmet Walsh & Elizabeth Franz - and - The Santa Clause (1994) Starring: Tim Allen, Wendy Crewson, Judge Reinhold, Eric Lloyd & David Krumholtz. SHORT: The Three Stooges - A Gem of a Jam (1943). Christmas with the Kranks (2004)PLOT SUMMARY: Slapstick humor gets a full-body workout in Christmas with the Kranks. Critics were unanimous in their derision, and John Grisham must have gnashed his teeth over what studio-boss-turned-director Joe Roth did to his bestselling novel Skipping Christmas, to which this broad-stroked comedy bears little or no resemblance. The title characters are played by Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, who decide to skip Christmas because their daughter's in Peru with the Peace Corps. Thus begins a rabid program of enforced conformity when their neighbors (led by Dan Aykroyd) coerce the Kranks into changing their holiday attitude--a change that comes easily when the daughter announces she'll be home for Christmas after all. Imagine if a suburban lynch mob said "Have a Merry Christmas or we'll kill you," and you'll get some idea of what spending Christmas with the Kranks is really like. And if you laughed at the frozen cat, you're probably on Santa's "naughty" list. --Jeff Shannon <from: amazon.com> The Santa Clause (1994)PLOT SUMMARY: Divorced toy company executive Scott Calvin (Tim Allen of Home Improvement and the Toy Story movies) is pleased to have his son Charlie for Christmas, though the boy himself isn't happy about it. But when Santa Claus accidentally topples off the roof of the house and falls with a thud in the snow, Scott finds himself taking the merry old elf's place and earning new respect in his son's eyes. When the night ends, the reindeer take them to the North Pole, and Scott discovers that by donning the fabled red suit, he's inadvertently agreed to become the next Santa Claus. The next morning he wakes up in his own bed and thinks it's all a dream--only Charlie remembers it with crystal clarity. Scott now has to deal with his suspicious ex-wife (Wendy Crewson, Air Force One) and her psychiatrist boyfriend (Judge Reinhold, Beverly Hills Cop), who both think he's playing tricks with Charlie's mind, and also with his own out-of-control body, which is putting on weight and growing a prodigious beard. The Santa Clause probably won't supplant It's a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street as anyone's favorite holiday film, but it's an enjoyable, straightforward family film, anchored by the affable charisma of Allen. --Bret Fetzer <from: amazon.com> SHORT: A Gem of a Jam (1943)PLOT SUMMARY: The Stooges are cleaning a doctor's office when a wounded crook enters. The Stooges try to tell him they aren't doctors, but the crook demands treatment. The crook accidentally falls out of the window and the Stooges escape. They are now on the run from the crook's accomplices who are scared away by Curly, who fell in a vat of plaster. <from: threestooges.net> Enjoy the weekend! Tom Happy Railroading! Siberianmo pwolfe Member sinceFebruary 2005 From: mid mo 1,054 posts Posted by pwolfe on Saturday, December 8, 2007 4:34 PM Hi Tom and allA pint of Harvey's Christmas Ale (8.2% ABV) please CINDY.ERIC. I too hope this is a good weekend for you after the rough ones you have had to put up with lately.A wine car full of beer would certainly save a lot of carrying of the kegs I have to do although we would have to have armored hoses.I see we are still banned from the Penthouse Suite, although Manager Lars is offering an olive branch in today's post, do you think he wants two waiters for his up coming trip on the Trans Mentor Limited.Tell Gonzo many thanks for the mouse, is it OK if I give it to ARTIE.Yes I too at the radar story, glad you liked it and thanks for the photo of the clear track ahead.JAN Many thanks for the drink Great photos and great descriptions to go with the photos. Thanks for sharing.FERGIE I can only imagine what it can be like to have to suffer rough seas for days on end, glad the winds seem to be moderating where you are.LARS Good words indeed for TOM.Perhaps as train speeds get higher, the airways getter busier and gas prices get higher, high speed rail lines may be an possibility in the United States, although the initial cost is massive, to paraphrase a line from a famous film ‘Build them and they will travel" as the French have found out.Many thanks for more photos and the encore on the great GG1s. Reading the post it seems as though it is nearly impossible to get a GG1 running today. I am a bit I thought the GG1s were in that famous Tuscan Red from the start but it said it was in 1952 some were painted in that color. I wonder what livery the GG1s were in when they were new.TOM As you say it is probably good I did not win the contest, HELGA would insist she accompany me, I can escape her clutches, for the most part, at the bar on a train it would be far more difficult. Also have we enough tank cars to carry two days supply of Bathams.Many thanks for the TGV re-formatted encore. It is interesting to think that if the 1973 oil crises had not happened perhaps they would have gone with gas turbines for the TGV. It is great to see that on the map at the end of part 2 the dotted line between the Channel Tunnel and London can now be a full line as the UK high-speed line opened last month. I guess the TGVs can now work through to London technically, but it said in the post that the Eurostars that work the route have special fire safety features for working the Chunnel. I read they may be putting a minimum speed limit of 140MPH on the link. I see in part 3 that though they have been involved in some accidents the design of the TGVs have save many lives than if a train of earlier design had been involved. To think of a 155MPH de-railment with no fatalities is remarkable.It is really good to see that 4 lines are under construction and more planned Thanks again for a very interesting read.. I see two Chritmas films on at the Emprorium. I have just seen Christmas with the Kranks and the Santa Clause looks a pleasant film, with the Stooges as well, plenty of More photos from the Hartz railway in Germany from Alan.Narrow gauge No.99.5906 at GERNODE. A close up of the loco.Arriving at ALEXISBAD.The train then returned to GERNRODE and QUEDLINBURG Plenty of steam in the cold air. Gunneral Member sinceSeptember 2002 From: NZ 242 posts Posted by Gunneral on Saturday, December 8, 2007 7:19 PM Hi Tom and all,Set em` up please Leon, Tui`s all round for the crew!Lars. Congratulations on making the 3000th post mate, I had a feeling it would be between you and Tom in the end, so you enjoy your prize trip in the Dome and all the other "goodies". Nice selection from the Larsman Mobile, the L&N covers and the nice GC1 pics were top notch. Hope your wife`s check up was AOK the other day, keep hanging in there! I bet you are looking forward to your wintering over trip to The Keys, have you been to the Maugham museum at all ? He`s one of my favourite writers`.Eric. Glad to hear your pain is more under control now, it will be a big relief to have the surgery over and done with. Had a close look in the cab of the X2000 pictured in Philidelphia with a magnifier but could`nt see the drivers face clearly.Pete. Oh what i`d give to be at that A4 anniversary next year, might have to re-mortgage the house methinks! I`m as jealous as you are that the two Alan`s are going to it, am looking forward to when Alan sends you the photo`s. It`s amazing to think that the Silver Link ran one month after I was born, time really flies when your enjoying yourself does`nt it? Enjoyed your posts and pics and Alan`s Hartz pics. That RAF radar joke was a honey, will be passing it on to my mate`s at our ex-serviceman`s lunch on Tuesday. Hot off the ether from BBC World, National Express takes over the East Coast Main Line from GNER on Sunday UK Time! CM3. Nice to see you on board.Fergie. Hope your St John`s trip is`nt too rough.Jan. Real nice NP, GN, and SP pics mate, keep `em coming!Tom. Many thanks for your kind words, as i`ve found out throughout life, communication and inclusion with everyone is the KEY thing no matter the language barriers. Enjoyed the super GC1 pics and the very comprehensive write up on the TGV, the system, and the different countries rolling stock, they are a MUST save in my book! Nice festive season flicks you chose for this weekend.See ya, Allan trolleyboy Member sinceMay 2014 3,727 posts Posted by trolleyboy on Saturday, December 8, 2007 9:18 PM Good evening folks Leon I think a guiness tonight ( I need a beer with some body ) this cold is back again with a vengence , most like because just about everyone a work has it in one form or another , modern buildings just are not healthy.Tom-Wow you were a busy beaver today , loved re-reading the three parter on the TGV. If only such trains would be brought to fruition in our contries , down with cars I say just kidding , but we North Americans do like the automobile way to much.I'm supprised that you hadn't heard that saying <tighter than tree bark> I remember my grandmother using it ever since I could well remember. The Raptors thing was of coarse refering to last year when they won their division, I don't think they'll be remotely close this year, Boston seems unbeatable at least so far. Lots 'o' shots and info on GG1's the last couple of days ( daze ) you most be in PRR heaven don't worry 'bout I'm going to pace myself so I don't burn out again. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed the 10+ years I was part of that train club , but unfortunatly as with anything in life, it only takes a couple JO's to ruin it for everyone.Lars-Congrats on winning the prize, you nailed it sir right on both accounts Loved the GG1 right up and photo's, it flicked dabossman's switch as well Nice to see also that the larsmobile hasn't run out of titles yet as well. Ron-That's some impressive work that's taking shape on your work bench,good luck on getting the 'ole kitchen cabinnets completed on time as well.Allan-I'm glad that you liked the website,I'll have to post some of teh pictures I've taken of some of their birds over the years again for everyone.Rob trolleyboy Member sinceMay 2014 3,727 posts Posted by trolleyboy on Saturday, December 8, 2007 9:26 PM Well here's a couple late saturday pics for everyone. Oh Leon another Guiness as well sir and here's a 20 for a round for any late stragglers.The lone survivor of the TH&B's NW2's , still in its TH&B paint as lovingly preserved and still used by the Ontario Southland railway.One of the Ontario Southlands ex CP Rail RS18u's at St Thomas Ontario.To of The Ontario Southlands ex CP Rail RS23's at Guelph JCT OntarioThe Southlands track inspection speeder also at Guelph JCTenjoy Rob JanOlov Member sinceDecember 2001 From: GB 376 posts Posted by JanOlov on Sunday, December 9, 2007 12:03 PM Greetings Tom and gentlemen...Just thought that stop by to drop off a few pics and some $$$$ for the cigar box and Mr Wurlitzer.... I hope that you all enjoy a quiet Sunday. NYNH&H 4-6-2 #1368 with #23, Yankee Clipper, at Westbrook, Conn., August 18, 1937. Photo by Otto Perry.NYNH&H 4-6-2 #1025 with "Fall River Boat Express", near Boston, Mass., October 11, 1930. Photo by Otto Perry.NYC 4-6-4 #5310 with #50, Empire State Express, near Syracuse, N.Y., August 23, 1933. Photo by Otto Perry.B&A 4-6-4 #619 with #25, The 20th Century Limited, leaving Springfield, Mass., August 22, 1933. Photo by Otto Perry.NYC 4-6-2 4915 Mercury near Olmsted Falls, Ohio, August 9, 1937. Photo by Otto Perry.NYC 4-6-4 #5291 with #26, 20th Century Ltd, near Chicago, Ill., August 7, 1937. Photo by Otto Perry.Credit: Photoswest All the best! Jan trolleyboy Member sinceMay 2014 3,727 posts Posted by trolleyboy on Sunday, December 9, 2007 10:47 PM Howdy Leon ,figured I would come in and help you count the bottles for the next return.A slow closed Sunday , which is of coarse agood thing.jan-Some mighty fine steam selections, thanks for bringing them in. I've always prefered the "action" shots. Some photographers just get it right. to those who can.Pete-Sorry I forgot all about mentioning your saturday selections from Alan. allow me to buy you your next beverage when you come in tomorrow afternoon.Well folks I'm off see everyone tomorrow.Rob EricX2000 Member sinceDecember 2002 From: Phoenix, AZ 683 posts Posted by EricX2000 on Sunday, December 9, 2007 11:02 PM It is so dark here this time of the year! Where is that slot... here. I just noticed that Rob sneaked in here a little while ago. Hmm. Bottles?! Hmmm. I better get away from here before it is too late.JanOlov – Nice pictures from days long gone! I especially like the photo of train #1 at Muir, MT. Also interesting to see the pictures from the East coast! Okay, Ohio and Chicago too! Tom – I run my first model electrics like you did. Pantographs down and no catenary. Worked just fine. But later I built my own catenary. I remember those giant vacuum tubes! And the older tubes of all different kinds and sizes. Built my own tube tester. That saved a lot of time trouble shooting. Pete and I was scheming to find this ’n that about Manager Lars and Ruth?? No, must be a misunderstanding. But we found out a lot!! Thanks for all the articles on TGV! I am not a big fan of French railroads but I must admit they certainly did a good job developing and building TGV plus all the new infrastructure! They really believed in what they were doing and things turned out great. I have never been on a TGV, but I have seen them from the outside. I did not know there had been so many protests against building the new lines for TGV. Christmas is almost here! Now it shows even at the Emporium! Two Santa Claus movies! Both starring Tim Allen! Looking forward to see them!Just 157 days until the 3rd Annual Rendezvous!! Fergie – I can imagine winds 40 is more than enough. I think you mentioned once that the sea is pretty shallow in the area where you spend most of the time. Lars – It is pretty cold here in the sand box right now. I don’t think anything will happen before the end of this year. Which is fine with me. I just have to be careful about what I eat. Banned?? From the Penthouse Suite?? That is not fair. Apology (payoff)?? We have been so discrete. I don’t think you are fair!Nice pictures of nice locomotives, GG1’s! Pete – You are right, there would be some problems converting the wine tank car and fill it with beer for the track gang. Something to think about. This weekend has been much better than the two previous ones from my point of view. I even managed to replace the kitchen faucet today! Gonzo said it is perfectly okay to give the mouse to Artie! I am not sure what manager Lars wants. He certainly will need two waiters for his up coming trip. Nice pictures from Alan! Sad looking station building though. Maybe there are no train stops on the main line at that place. Allan – Yes, this weekend was not bad, just a little bit of pain tonight. I will know on Tuesday when I will have my surgery. Probably early next year. What is the name of that book with the picture of the X2000?Rob – Thanks for the pictures of the Canadian locomotives! I love the picture of that tiny inspection speeder! Not much of protection if anything goes wrong though. Interesting kind of locomotive, a Shay, at IRM. Eric siberianmo Member sinceFebruary 2004 From: Chesterfield, Missouri, USA 7,214 posts " Our" Place reborn! An adult bar 'n grill for the discussion of Classic Trains! Posted by siberianmo on Monday, December 10, 2007 6:37 AM <"Our" Place Christmas Holiday Train>A smile to begin the week! Asking his wife where has she been, she responded, "I took Tim to see Dr. Zhivago." Yogi's replied, "What the H's wrong with him now?<A Yogi-ism!>G'day Gents!We have ice all around us this morning - been pretty much that way all weekend 'n is projected to continue on thru Wednesday with rain 'n freezing rain. <ugh> About the only thing "good" to say is that the trees 'n shrubs all look quite "wintry" with their coats of ice . . . Juneau is rarin' to GO! It's THAT day again - MONDAY <ugh> - but on the bright side, there's BREAKFAST waitin' for ya at the Tavern by the Tracks - so order a <light> or <traditional> breakfast from our Menu Board. Grab a couple of pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery case ‘n draw a mugga freshly ground ‘n brewed coffee while you're waiting! Working on the Christmas card list this weekend ‘n decided that it's time to trim ship. Been sending out cards to hither ‘n yon with little or no annual responses. And can you imagine getting an Email response to card Happens too often . . . <tacky> in my book . . . <bah humbug> Just another indicator of changing times, social graces, et al . . . <Don't get me wrong - Email greetings are fine, but not in response to someone who has taken the time 'n made the effort to send a card by mail.>Figure I'll save enough to buy a six pack of Keiths next time I'm in Canada! Customer Acknowledgments (since my last narrative) Saturday - Dec 8th:Fergie (Fergmiester) at 11:13 AM: Good to see our sailorman again! Those Forum's Gremlins do NOT discriminate, for they <attack> Posts ashore ‘n at sea with impunity! And to think I thought the MESS was strictly an imaginary railway conjured up in the mind of our Canadian Maritime Mariner. Stick around boyz, we live ‘n learn! Many thanx for swinging by . . . you should be getting close to heading back home, eh Lars (LoveDomes) at 11:54 AM: Not to disappoint, our Manager came through <again> with an excellent offering for Saturday! As you KNOW, anything to do with GG1s definitely "flicks my switch," so keep ‘em coming! Yeah, I recall that Post of yours for my B'day back in 2006. I checked back on those Pages <several!> and it was quite a turnout. Really brought back some memories of days <daze> gone by . . . Received your Email ‘n not to worry. As I've said - the bar WILL survive. Of course if you cannot be here daily, we'll try to plug the gap as best we can . . . Congrats on the CONTEST win <again> - you definitely are the ONLY person to not only pick the winner, but to do so on the first entry. So WHO is going to accompany you in the obs dome drawing room suite Hmmmmmmmmm. <grin>Your JINTS won! So that should put a smile on your mug . . . Round, visit ‘n great ENCORE! material ‘n fotos appreciated! Pete (pwolfe) at 4:34 PM: Long time between "regulars," but I'm glad you made it "in." Figured you would, but one never knows when it's Saturday ‘n there's a wife around with a "things to do list"!! <uh oh> Try as you may to get you <'n Eric> on board the Can-Am Railway's Trans Mentor Limited, I doubt it will happen! Last thing Lars needs are FOUR eyes checking out his every move . . . <well, maybe not EVERY!> <grin> I just can't imagine WHO is traveling companion might be . . . hmmmmmmmm.Artie would dearly love a "fresh" mouse . . . just let Boris take it ‘n Artie outback! <ugh> Happy Railroading! Siberianmo pwolfe Member sinceFebruary 2005 From: mid mo 1,054 posts Posted by pwolfe on Monday, December 10, 2007 11:05 AM Hi Tom and all.A cup of your steaming hot cup of 'Joe' and a bacon and egg sarnie please RUTH..It was good to talk to you this morning Tom.Just a quick note to say we are in, what the weather people rather quaintly call, an 'ice event' here in Mid Mo. We have had a bout of freezing rain and it has brought down trees and branches. We had two power outages yesterday and unfortunatly we are do for some more bad icing today and tomorrow, so if I am not at the bar it will be because we have lost power again. The electricity guys are working real hard but if it gets worse they wont have a chance.Hopefully I shall be back later today.I am going to try to get the laundry done while we still have powerSo can you get a round in please RUTH..Pete. LoveDomes Member sinceJanuary 2006 From: northeast U.S. 1,225 posts Posted by LoveDomes on Monday, December 10, 2007 11:38 AM Ahoy Cap'n Tom ‘n fellow travelers at the bar!!Ruth my deAH, just a mugga Joe with a jolt for now . . . Any pastries left A couple of crullers will do! A round for the house, treats for the crittAHs, the small jar of PPF for Boris ‘n the change for YOU! Kinda <gloomy> ‘round here too - temperatures aren't supposed to get out of the low-40's . . . chance of rain pretty much all week. Gasoline is at $3.29 at our "favorite" station . . . <ugh>My JINTS WON! They are now sitting pretty good for a wild card spot, but we can't count our chickens yet. Logged some football on the tube yesterday . . . too much in fact. Fortunately, the Mrs. likes watching it - she says it helps her sleep bettAH! <huh?> My Rangers are suddenly behind the Devils - beat ‘em last nite, but fell out of 1st place . . . <groan>What's this about the Knicks???? Is trolleyMAN trying to sell somebody a "bill of goods"??? The Lakers ‘n Knicks have been one ‘n two as the MFF <most valuable franchise> for years . . . just read where the Knicks overtook the Lakers for the "honor." Don't know, or really don't care about that kinda stuff - but it doesn't surprise me. I'm amazed - truly amazed - that the NBA can survive outside of the U.S. . . . just my two cents.Don't suppose anyone took notice, for not very many of "us" stop by on Sundays, but I didn't "show" yesterday. I'm back to taking that day "off," as intended by Da Bossman here ‘n "upstairs." <grin> May even go to alternate days during the week. Things are beginning to mount up for me too. <groan>Cap'n Tom came through with a whole bunch of French TGV "stuff" on Saturday - looks like it was updated - all read, all digested <burp> ‘n all I need to do is speak a bit of du lange . . . <I think that's how it is phrased!>Some support from Fergie - Pete - Allan ‘n Rob too! Made for a quiet, but interesting day . . . Noticed Jan showed up on Sunday with an offering of photos - guduns too. For Eric 'n Pete: Look you guyz, it's pretty simple. Youse have been trying to get "the goods" on me for months. So, WHY would I want any part of youse aboard the Can-Am Trans Mentor Limited My daddy didn't raise a fool <dontchano!> Fair - shmare. Banned is what youse are! PERIOD . . . unless of course a bit of "somethng" crosses the palm of my hand <and it better "glitter" as in gold!> For Allan: Glad you're enjoying the book covAHs . . . and no, I'm unfamiliar with that writer or the museum you mentioned.Couple of funnies at the Emporium - the Santa Clause is a gudun . . . Kranks is awright too. Tim Allen is great in the Santa Clause movies . . . part was made for him. Just noticed Pete's on board! Have a "hot toddy" on me, mate! <double jigger> should warm you up right well! Weren't you 'n Cap'n Tom supposed to rendezvous this week Looks like the icing gotcha both. Hope there's a "do ovAH" in the works! You had asked a question regarding the ORIGINAL color of the Pennsy GG1's . . . here's a Url that may help . . . http://www.spikesys.com/GG1/paint.html Ok, time once more for the Larsman Mobile ‘n the daily book covAHs . . . Short Line Railroads of Arkansas Bradford the Railroad Town Southern States Trolleys in ColorOhio Valley Trolleys in ColorStreetcar Scenes of the 1950s in Color Anonymous Member sinceApril 2003 305,205 posts Posted by Anonymous on Monday, December 10, 2007 11:44 AM Good Afternoon, all.Sorry for clomping in like this, but I need a cup of strong! coffe. May i join you? Blame it on Eric, that I am here. I, as he, have spent time at the Swedish State Railroads (1962-1982) in warious positions. I live since 1983 in the States, Upper Midwest.I will try to learn how to handle this format, and how to brighten my dull writing up with symbols, as I go. I will mainly visit at my breaks and lunch hour at work.I stop here for my first visit, and humbly sneak out the back door, as I do not know what I just did, and how, and where it will appear.Sven Edit LoveDomes Member sinceJanuary 2006 From: northeast U.S. 1,225 posts Posted by LoveDomes on Monday, December 10, 2007 11:53 AM Ahoy Sven!Just caught your post as I was about to check out!Stealing Cap'n Tom's thundAH a bit <he's Bossman 'round here> let me jump on the occasion to say that any friend of Eric's is a friend of ours! There's all kinds of "stuff" to learn about what we do here 'n how we do it. Don't let any of that confuse you - we're all confused enough! I suggest that you begin at the beginning - check out page one - it contains all you'll need to understand the premise <ground rules> of this cyber space adult bar 'n grill . . . then as Cap'n Tom will surely tell you, read through the last 5 or 6 pages of material. That will get you up to speed on who the customers are 'round here 'n what they have to say.You'll surely fit in here as we've got an international group with the UK - Sweden - New Zealand -Canada 'n the U.S. well represented. Me My heritage is Norwegian - I'm 2nd generation American.Your "official" welcome comes from our Proprietor <Cap'n Tom> HOWEVER, I'm the Manager, so have one on me! <grin> Ruth, pour the man a drink! Until the next time! Lars siberianmo Member sinceFebruary 2004 From: Chesterfield, Missouri, USA 7,214 posts " Our" Place reborn! An adult bar 'n grill for the discussion of Classic Trains! Posted by siberianmo on Monday, December 10, 2007 1:53 PM G'day Gents!I see we've been visited by a newcomer to the bar, a friend of Eric's - named Sven! While I generally refrain from our OH-FISH-UL welcome until the 2nd visit - I think an exception may surely be made in your case. So, Aboard, Sven! First drink is on the house - after that, well it's just like any other tavern - pay as you go! But not to fret, we have many opportunities for drinks on the house - just take advantage of 'em! Manager Lars covered what I would've have said - so I also recommend you take a look at our FIRST PAGE for the <groundrules> then the final several, just to see who is who along with what's being said.The distinction between this Thread <site> and those found elsewhere is we are interactive and pride ourselves on ensuring that the other guy gets recognized. But I have a feeling you already know that . . . Surely hope we'll be hearing from you regularly and we're looking forward to your offerings on Classic Trains <north America or Europe or . . . . > Oh yes, you'll probably find that there are some "characters" around here that may require some clarification. For example, RUTH is our daytime bartender - BORIS is our resident Cyclops <?> and man <?> about the bar. LEON is our night bartender. We have mascots too. And CINDY is our Saturday daytime bartender AND she's MINE, MINE, MINE! <grin> You'll see references to them as you progress through the Pages. Awk is our Parrot - Tex is our Armadillo - Artie is our Owl - Frostbite is our Penguin and Juneau is our Siberian Husky. Clear enough There's much more, but in time you'll find that it all will appear "normal" to you! <grin>Again, most happy to have you join us! Tom Happy Railroading! Siberianmo coalminer3 Member sinceJanuary 2001 From: WV 1,251 posts Posted by coalminer3 on Monday, December 10, 2007 2:33 PM Good afternoon Barkeep and all Present; coffe, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox. 'Nother one of "them days" as we are just back from the outside which is warm today for a change - just ne3eded the field coat not the down vest and the heavy Carhartt monster like we did last week.Needless to say this is just a quick one, but we will be back tomorrow at our usual time. Note to OSP and Eric - book was mailed from here (1st Class) on Saturday.Work safe siberianmo Member sinceFebruary 2004 From: Chesterfield, Missouri, USA 7,214 posts " Our" Place reborn! An adult bar 'n grill for the discussion of Classic Trains! Posted by siberianmo on Monday, December 10, 2007 3:02 PM NOTICE! NOTICE! NOTICE! The RR BOOK RELAY 2007 is underway! Pete (pwolfe) has a book that he's sharing with the boyz - it's called Red for Danger. So what's a RR BOOK RELAY The book gets mailed from person to person, with comments made by the reader on the forms provided. At the conclusion, all comments will be put into an Email "report" 'n sent to the participants.Simple enough Signed up are:(1) Lars (LoveDomes - New York City) - (2) CM3 Shane (coalminer3 - West Virginia) - (3) Eric (EricX2000 - Arizona) - (4) Allan (Gunneral - New Zealand) - (5) Tom (siberianmo - Missouri) Journey of the book: I received it from Pete <Jefferson City, MO> on Aug 28th Mailed to Lars on Sep 1st Mailed to CM3 Shane on Sep 14thMailed to Eric on Dec 8th Now WHO ELSE wants "in" Let me know by EMAIL because sometimes things Posted at the bar have a way of getting misplaced (ie: not read)!! We're having fun with this! Tom Happy Railroading! Siberianmo pwolfe Member sinceFebruary 2005 From: mid mo 1,054 posts Posted by pwolfe on Monday, December 10, 2007 5:51 PM Hi Tom and all.A pint of Bathams XXX please RUTH.ALLAN Yes they will be a very special trip with the 3 A4s from London to Aberdeen. I think I am right in saying that steam trips across the Forth and the Tay bridges are very rare nowadays. I remember a two-day trip I went on in 1980 based in Glasgow. On the first day it was A4 No 60009 Union of South Africa from Stirling up to Dundee, where the loco turned and then back to the Glasgow area via both the Tay and Forth Bridges and the freight only line that leaves the main line south of the Forth Bridge and joins the Edinburgh to Glasgow line near Linlithgow. On the Sunday It was a trip round the Edinburgh area with the LNER 4-4-0 No 256 Morayshire and the ex North British 0-6-0 No 673 Maude.A photo of Alan's showing A4 No 60009 Union of South Africa arriving at York from Scarborough on 8th of August this year.They are great locomotives.Glad you liked Alan's photos the next few I will show will be from The Foxfield Railway gala featuring industrial tank locomotives. Hope you friends at the Ex Serviceman's lunch enjoy the ‘radar' taleI think the ones who ran the GNER franchise before ran about the best service in privatization, I hope National Express can keep up the same standard.ROB Glad you enjoyed Alan's photos, thanks for the drink.Many thanks for the Ontario Southlands locomotive photos the NW2 # 51 looks in great condition as well as indeed does that interesting speeder.JAN Many thanks for those great photos of those East Coast Railroads steam locomotives hard at work. As Rob says they are indeed good cameramen who can capture a locomotive at speed, especially with the cameras when those photos were taken in 1930s.ERIC Glad you had a good weekend. I think we are banned from the Observation Car on Manager Lars trip as well; it will be interesting to see who will do the serving on the train. ARTIE says to pass on his thanks to Gonzo for the mouse any more will be gratefully received. Many thanks for the great photo of the Shay's cylinders; the one at Jamestown was inside the shed so it was not possible to get a good photo. I have a DVD set that includes the Cass Scenic Railroad and it is great to see those Shays working hard. LARS Yes Tom and I were supposed to meet up tomorrow, but owing to the conditions we have postponed it a week, it would have been OK if we had got stranded in the Train wreck saloon.That is a great link to the GG1s paint schemes, even has the silver color CM3 talked about. The earlier schemes seem to suit the GG1s really well especially the Tuscan Red although I thought some of the later ones did not suit the locomotives at all. Many thanks for sharing.Great set of books from the Larsman Mobile today. Short Lines in Arkansas and the book on Bradford Ohio look well worth a read. Then three great trolley books in color.SVEN May I add my to those of Lars and Tom. As Manager Lars says any friend of Eric will be a friend of ours.CM3 will look forward to your post tomorrow.TOM Well so far so good with the power situation here, I though it was thawing a bit but just now some large branches came down along the street, really hope that forecast of more freezing rain and ice build up is wrong.As you say it as not been a good year for the Missouri NFL teams, the bride could not bear to watch any more of the Chiefs yesterday, I think she was hoping the power had not come back on until the game had finishedYes it looks as like the nearest Eric and I will get to the Trans Mentor Limited is waving ‘Bon Voyage' to Lars and his mystery guest from Mentor station. EricX2000 Member sinceDecember 2002 From: Phoenix, AZ 683 posts Posted by EricX2000 on Monday, December 10, 2007 10:42 PM Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!Leon, I’ll have my weekly ham sandwich, please! You know, sugar cured ham on rye. Keith's!Another week! But I don't care, just 10 more days! Received the Relay book today! Will be very interesting to read! Tom – I used to have boxes full of old and new vacuum tubes until the late 80’s. But now they are all gone. I kind of miss them. What I like about model railroading is that the only limitation is, as you said, your own imagination. You may want to concentrate on making everything 100% to scale, or maybe concentrate on traffic/timetables, etc, or running specific models, like big steam engines, diesels, or narrow gauge small trains. Or, like Ron, build a good size model from scratch and run it on your own track outside the house!. Pete – Hope you made it through the day without any power outages. You are right, Manager Lars is... hmmm, kind of not so friendly when it comes to our offer to help him on the Observation Car trip. I don’t know why. He is hinting something about “glittering” as in gold. I’ll let Gonzo know about future mice for Artie! Lars – Hey, what’s up? No hard feelings, we just want to make your trip as comfortable and nice as possible! Glitter as in gold? Hmmm, what could that be? No clue. Some very interesting covers today! Including traction! I love the picture on the first cover, Shortline Railroads of Arkansas. Looks almost like a model train layout! Sven – Wow, glad to see you stopping by! You don’t have to sneak out the back door, you already put the blame on me so I’ll take care of any problems that might occur! Hope to hear you clomping in here again soon!CM3 – Received the book today, thank you! Thanks for the round!Refueling, Minot, ND. Eric trolleyboy Member sinceMay 2014 3,727 posts Posted by trolleyboy on Monday, December 10, 2007 11:07 PM Good evening Leon , It's cold heer and I ahve a cold so I think a large and well spiked Irish coffee for myself tonight ( it oughta put me right to sleep ) Anywho glad to see that Tom and Pete have for the most part survived teh first ice storm of this winter. Looks like we may catch the tail end of it tomorrow or wednesday depending on how the storm's moveI do hate the ice mixed in with the snow espeacially with the maple trees of ample proportions that ring our house ( I know Boris your favourite rubber girl has ample proportions as well ) <argh>Lars-Loved the days editions from the Larsmobile, I actually own one or two of those ( go figure ). I'll just say this , basketball is not my thing never will be, in fact it's one of those sprots that could implode and dissapear and I wouldn't miss it.I live for hockey and tolerate baseball , footballs fine so long as it's played by CFL rules so yes I definatly misread or at least read the miss-printed local cage liner, whick had the Celtics top o the heap ,again I think the local sports writer is a hockey and Lacrosse guy so those two sports get amazingly accurate reporting. I'm beginning to think that he musta worked for teh mentor gazzette at sometime and was found wanting.Tom-Couldn't aggree with you more about the lost opportunities to create better rail infrastructure in our countries, nuff said we both know the score.I'll keep a finger or two crossed for you guys and hopefully that storm won't cause as much mayhem as the one you and Pete lived through last year.I'm glad that you liekd that OSR RS18. The 18's are my favourite locomotive, tough old birds,it's a credit to MLW's designers that so many of them still carry the mail as it were today.I can't believe that someone actually responded to a Christmas card from you guys with an email ! Good gawd gertie is there anything ruder than that ?Sven-Welcome aboard sir , as has been stated by the rest of the boyz any friend of Eric's is okay in my books, espeacially if he's a railroader to boot Eric-Perhaps you guys can offer to act as personal grooms and Butlers for Lars and his "guest" on the train, and work your way back into the area's from which you were banned. Just a thought, mind you I would offer to work for freeThose little inspection cars were wuite soemthing weren't they. Just a small rotory engine powered them no bigger than most lawnmowers. They were quick and upto 10 or so years ago they were the inspection vehicle of choice for most railroads, until finally being replaced by the high rail equiped trucks everyone use's today.Ther are people out there that collect and restore thease little machines, a hobby in itself.Pete-Glad that you liked the shots.The OSR does pay particualar and pirdes themselves in clean servicable equipment. Much like the Wisconcin Central used to.They have kept alive the TH&B's marroon and creame and it looks just as good on their deisels as it did on the GP's and NW's of old.Robn trolleyboy Member sinceMay 2014 3,727 posts Posted by trolleyboy on Monday, December 10, 2007 11:13 PM Hey Leon I think another Irish coffee is reqired I can still feel my toes Here's some morning reading that I dare say may be a bit more entertaining thasn the daily cage liner or maybe not, you guys can decide.enjoy RobCLASSIC DIESELS # 38 LOCOMOTIVE DESIGNATIONS PT 1 ALCO / MLWReading Mikes post on the difficulty of the diesel locomotives designations lead me to doing a couple posts on the more widespread ones, so here goes. We will start with my favourite manufacturer of diesel locomotives ALCO / MLW.As with most locomotive builders the terminolgy for their products started out silmpe and then got a bit more involved as more and newer designs came online. ALCO created the designations and MLW their Canadian counterpart for ttte most part carried through te same designations for their designs with the occational differences as the two companies gradually became separate entities. I'll attempt to unraval the designs. Most likely I'll miss a few so apologies ahead of time. The first basic engines were the early switchers and cab units designed to compete with EMD's early offerings.DL109 / 110's were passenger cab units introduced by ALCO to compete with EMD's early E units in the earlyb 40's. These units were built exclusivly by ALCO and were sold only to US roads.HH660 and HH1000's were the first end cab switchers built by Alco again just before the war. The HH stood for High Hood as the hood was the same height as the cab the number differences were the HP rating of the enginbes themselves 660hp or 1000. again these units were only built by ALCO for US companies.S1,S2,S3,S4 & S6 locomotives were the frist conventional switch engines,also some of the most popular of their creations with units being built in the US and by MLW in Canada. The S1,S3's were 660 hp units with the S2's and S4's being 1000hp units. The S6 ( built only by Alco ) were 1000hp unit but used the new 251 engine . In Canada additional enhine types were built the S11 using the old 537 motor and 800hp the S13 using a 1000hp 251 and the RS23 a 1000hp 251 but these units had road trucks an AAR type B similar to the regular RS type units.The FA 1 FB 1, FA2 FB2 were the 1500 then 1600 hp cab units built to compete with EMD's F series, all used the new 244 engine.Passenger units with the 244's were designated the FPA 2's and FPB-s' these caame equipped with steam generator equipment for passenger car heating.they were built by both ALCO and MLW with MLW going one further with the design bringing out the FPA-4's engined by the more reliable 251 engine. The A's were cab wquiped the B's were cabless boosters.The Pa1, PB-1,PA2,PB2 and PA3's were the six axles passenger units built by ALCO only for the US roads, and are agueably the most beloved of the early passenger engines.The next series of ALCO locomotives also using the 244 power systems were their RS series.The RS1 was a 1000hp unit the first true road switcher it was followed by the 1500hp RS2 and the 1600hp RS3.Sub vrients with and A1A-A1A configuration were also built the RSC2 and RSC3 locomotives. Later CC trucked units were built in the RSD4 and 5 series. The RS1's and the 6 axles varients were only made by ALCO MLW bult RS 2's and #'s for the Canadian roads. The next unit in the RS family was the 1800HP RS11 and it's six axles runningmate the RSD12 built only for US roads by ALCO. In Canada MLW built the RS10's with 1600HP 244's and the RS18 with the 1800hp 251 engines instead.After the RS11's Alco concentrated on using the 251 engines only.The RSD15's were the frist of this new batch, followed by the RS27's ( 2650hp } RS32's (2000hp) and the RS36's (1800hp) it was found that these older units were not selling well in the face of the latest EMD and by this point GE locomotives co none of those units were built by MLW for Canada. A new more modern series the centruy line was designed. The first of the centruy locomotives brought in a new hp wheel arrangement designation to ALCO. first came the C424's C for Century 4 being a B-B truck arrangement and 24= 2400hp, next came the C425 both were built for both canada by MLW and for the US by Alco. The first big Alco came out at the same time in the form of the C628 C= century series 6= C-C truck arrangement and 28=2750hp. The C628 were not built for canada by MLW. mext came the C420 ad the C430's a 2000 and 3000hp road switcher built only by ALCO for US customers. the next big alco's were the C630's and C636's 3000-3600hp six axle units built for teh US market by Alco, then ALCO went out of the locomotive business. MLW continued on and changed the designations for te lates t big alcos to M630 and M636 M=Montreal built. This was followe dwith a one off AC traction M640 for CP only ( 4000hp unit ) and a M630W model for BC rail only it was a 3000hp M630 with a full width wide cab nose.After 1974 MLW was purchased by Bombardier and continued to build locomotives mostly for the Canadian market. the first was the M420 a four axles 2000hp switcher with a full width cab and nose alter it was redesigned as the HR412 still 2000 hp but with neew microprocessor controls and the final was the HR616 which was a 3000hp full coweled six axle road switcher.The LRC passenger locomotives were also produced for VIA rail by Bombardier in the late 70's and early 80's. By 1986 Bombardier discontinued locomotive production.Not a complete list but I hope it's helpfullRob « First«9899100101102103104»Last » 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! 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Pennsylvania Railroad's GG1
The GG1 was designed by the Pennsylvania Railroad based on the need for a locomotive that could pull more than 12 to 14 passenger cars. The railroad thought it had designed the perfect electric passenger locomotive, the P-5a, but as the P-5a locomotives arrived, it became necessary to double head them on many trains in order to protect schedules. Two other factors were involved in the development of the GG1. The chassis and wheel arrangement were a result of experiments with a leased New Haven EP3a and the streamlined body and center crew cab were a
Continuing on with the TGV of France - here's Part II for ENCORE! Saturday . . .
RAILWAYS of EUROPE #3 - TGV (France) "SNCF, gives the train ideas in advance" TGV PART II of III
The finale of my 3-parter on the TGV from France . . .
RAILWAYS of EUROPE #3 - TGV (France) "SNCF, gives the train ideas in advance" TGV PART III of III
<A form of this initially was Posted on Page 255, Feb 23, 2006 on the original Thread>
France: TGV Duplex in Paris, Gare de Lyon.Existing lines
Lines under construction
ENCORE! Saturday ‘n Photo Posting Day!
at "Our" Place!
We are CLOSED on SUNDAYs!
Starting Sunday at the Mentor Village Emporium Theatre!
Christmas with the Kranks (2004)
PLOT SUMMARY: Slapstick humor gets a full-body workout in Christmas with the Kranks. Critics were unanimous in their derision, and John Grisham must have gnashed his teeth over what studio-boss-turned-director Joe Roth did to his bestselling novel Skipping Christmas, to which this broad-stroked comedy bears little or no resemblance. The title characters are played by Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, who decide to skip Christmas because their daughter's in Peru with the Peace Corps. Thus begins a rabid program of enforced conformity when their neighbors (led by Dan Aykroyd) coerce the Kranks into changing their holiday attitude--a change that comes easily when the daughter announces she'll be home for Christmas after all. Imagine if a suburban lynch mob said "Have a Merry Christmas or we'll kill you," and you'll get some idea of what spending Christmas with the Kranks is really like. And if you laughed at the frozen cat, you're probably on Santa's "naughty" list. --Jeff Shannon
Slapstick humor gets a full-body workout in Christmas with the Kranks. Critics were unanimous in their derision, and John Grisham must have gnashed his teeth over what studio-boss-turned-director Joe Roth did to his bestselling novel Skipping Christmas, to which this broad-stroked comedy bears little or no resemblance. The title characters are played by Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, who decide to skip Christmas because their daughter's in Peru with the Peace Corps. Thus begins a rabid program of enforced conformity when their neighbors (led by Dan Aykroyd) coerce the Kranks into changing their holiday attitude--a change that comes easily when the daughter announces she'll be home for Christmas after all. Imagine if a suburban lynch mob said "Have a Merry Christmas or we'll kill you," and you'll get some idea of what spending Christmas with the Kranks is really like. And if you laughed at the frozen cat, you're probably on Santa's "naughty" list. --Jeff Shannon
The Santa Clause (1994)
PLOT SUMMARY: Divorced toy company executive Scott Calvin (Tim Allen of Home Improvement and the Toy Story movies) is pleased to have his son Charlie for Christmas, though the boy himself isn't happy about it. But when Santa Claus accidentally topples off the roof of the house and falls with a thud in the snow, Scott finds himself taking the merry old elf's place and earning new respect in his son's eyes. When the night ends, the reindeer take them to the North Pole, and Scott discovers that by donning the fabled red suit, he's inadvertently agreed to become the next Santa Claus. The next morning he wakes up in his own bed and thinks it's all a dream--only Charlie remembers it with crystal clarity. Scott now has to deal with his suspicious ex-wife (Wendy Crewson, Air Force One) and her psychiatrist boyfriend (Judge Reinhold, Beverly Hills Cop), who both think he's playing tricks with Charlie's mind, and also with his own out-of-control body, which is putting on weight and growing a prodigious beard. The Santa Clause probably won't supplant It's a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street as anyone's favorite holiday film, but it's an enjoyable, straightforward family film, anchored by the affable charisma of Allen. --Bret Fetzer
Divorced toy company executive Scott Calvin (Tim Allen of Home Improvement and the Toy Story movies) is pleased to have his son Charlie for Christmas, though the boy himself isn't happy about it. But when Santa Claus accidentally topples off the roof of the house and falls with a thud in the snow, Scott finds himself taking the merry old elf's place and earning new respect in his son's eyes. When the night ends, the reindeer take them to the North Pole, and Scott discovers that by donning the fabled red suit, he's inadvertently agreed to become the next Santa Claus. The next morning he wakes up in his own bed and thinks it's all a dream--only Charlie remembers it with crystal clarity. Scott now has to deal with his suspicious ex-wife (Wendy Crewson, Air Force One) and her psychiatrist boyfriend (Judge Reinhold, Beverly Hills Cop), who both think he's playing tricks with Charlie's mind, and also with his own out-of-control body, which is putting on weight and growing a prodigious beard. The Santa Clause probably won't supplant It's a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street as anyone's favorite holiday film, but it's an enjoyable, straightforward family film, anchored by the affable charisma of Allen. --Bret Fetzer
SHORT: A Gem of a Jam (1943)
PLOT SUMMARY: The Stooges are cleaning a doctor's office when a wounded crook enters. The Stooges try to tell him they aren't doctors, but the crook demands treatment. The crook accidentally falls out of the window and the Stooges escape. They are now on the run from the crook's accomplices who are scared away by Curly, who fell in a vat of plaster.
The Stooges are cleaning a doctor's office when a wounded crook enters. The Stooges try to tell him they aren't doctors, but the crook demands treatment. The crook accidentally falls out of the window and the Stooges escape. They are now on the run from the crook's accomplices who are scared away by Curly, who fell in a vat of plaster.
<from: threestooges.net>
Enjoy the weekend! Tom
Hi Tom and all
A pint of Harvey's Christmas Ale (8.2% ABV) please CINDY.
ERIC. I too hope this is a good weekend for you after the rough ones you have had to put up with lately.
A wine car full of beer would certainly save a lot of carrying of the kegs I have to do although we would have to have armored hoses.
I see we are still banned from the Penthouse Suite, although Manager Lars is offering an olive branch in today's post, do you think he wants two waiters for his up coming trip on the Trans Mentor Limited.
Tell Gonzo many thanks for the mouse, is it OK if I give it to ARTIE.
Yes I too at the radar story, glad you liked it and thanks for the photo of the clear track ahead.
JAN Many thanks for the drink Great photos and great descriptions to go with the photos. Thanks for sharing.
FERGIE I can only imagine what it can be like to have to suffer rough seas for days on end, glad the winds seem to be moderating where you are.
LARS Good words indeed for TOM.
Perhaps as train speeds get higher, the airways getter busier and gas prices get higher, high speed rail lines may be an possibility in the United States, although the initial cost is massive, to paraphrase a line from a famous film ‘Build them and they will travel" as the French have found out.
Many thanks for more photos and the encore on the great GG1s. Reading the post it seems as though it is nearly impossible to get a GG1 running today. I am a bit I thought the GG1s were in that famous Tuscan Red from the start but it said it was in 1952 some were painted in that color. I wonder what livery the GG1s were in when they were new.
TOM As you say it is probably good I did not win the contest, HELGA would insist she accompany me, I can escape her clutches, for the most part, at the bar on a train it would be far more difficult. Also have we enough tank cars to carry two days supply of Bathams.
Many thanks for the TGV re-formatted encore. It is interesting to think that if the 1973 oil crises had not happened perhaps they would have gone with gas turbines for the TGV.
It is great to see that on the map at the end of part 2 the dotted line between the Channel Tunnel and London can now be a full line as the UK high-speed line opened last month. I guess the TGVs can now work through to London technically, but it said in the post that the Eurostars that work the route have special fire safety features for working the Chunnel. I read they may be putting a minimum speed limit of 140MPH on the link. I see in part 3 that though they have been involved in some accidents the design of the TGVs have save many lives than if a train of earlier design had been involved. To think of a 155MPH de-railment with no fatalities is remarkable.
It is really good to see that 4 lines are under construction and more planned Thanks again for a very interesting read..
I see two Chritmas films on at the Emprorium. I have just seen Christmas with the Kranks and the Santa Clause looks a pleasant film, with the Stooges as well, plenty of
More photos from the Hartz railway in Germany from Alan.
Narrow gauge No.99.5906 at GERNODE.
A close up of the loco.
Arriving at ALEXISBAD.
The train then returned to GERNRODE and QUEDLINBURG
Plenty of steam in the cold air.
Hi Tom and all,
Set em` up please Leon, Tui`s all round for the crew!
Lars. Congratulations on making the 3000th post mate, I had a feeling it would be between you and Tom in the end, so you enjoy your prize trip in the Dome and all the other "goodies". Nice selection from the Larsman Mobile, the L&N covers and the nice GC1 pics were top notch. Hope your wife`s check up was AOK the other day, keep hanging in there! I bet you are looking forward to your wintering over trip to The Keys, have you been to the Maugham museum at all ? He`s one of my favourite writers`.
Eric. Glad to hear your pain is more under control now, it will be a big relief to have the surgery over and done with. Had a close look in the cab of the X2000 pictured in Philidelphia with a magnifier but could`nt see the drivers face clearly.
Pete. Oh what i`d give to be at that A4 anniversary next year, might have to re-mortgage the house methinks! I`m as jealous as you are that the two Alan`s are going to it, am looking forward to when Alan sends you the photo`s. It`s amazing to think that the Silver Link ran one month after I was born, time really flies when your enjoying yourself does`nt it? Enjoyed your posts and pics and Alan`s Hartz pics. That RAF radar joke was a honey, will be passing it on to my mate`s at our ex-serviceman`s lunch on Tuesday. Hot off the ether from BBC World, National Express takes over the East Coast Main Line from GNER on Sunday UK Time!
CM3. Nice to see you on board.
Fergie. Hope your St John`s trip is`nt too rough.
Jan. Real nice NP, GN, and SP pics mate, keep `em coming!
Tom. Many thanks for your kind words, as i`ve found out throughout life, communication and inclusion with everyone is the KEY thing no matter the language barriers. Enjoyed the super GC1 pics and the very comprehensive write up on the TGV, the system, and the different countries rolling stock, they are a MUST save in my book! Nice festive season flicks you chose for this weekend.
See ya, Allan
Good evening folks Leon I think a guiness tonight ( I need a beer with some body ) this cold is back again with a vengence , most like because just about everyone a work has it in one form or another , modern buildings just are not healthy.
Tom-Wow you were a busy beaver today , loved re-reading the three parter on the TGV. If only such trains would be brought to fruition in our contries , down with cars I say just kidding , but we North Americans do like the automobile way to much.I'm supprised that you hadn't heard that saying <tighter than tree bark> I remember my grandmother using it ever since I could well remember.
The Raptors thing was of coarse refering to last year when they won their division, I don't think they'll be remotely close this year, Boston seems unbeatable at least so far.
Lots 'o' shots and info on GG1's the last couple of days ( daze ) you most be in PRR heaven don't worry 'bout I'm going to pace myself so I don't burn out again. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed the 10+ years I was part of that train club , but unfortunatly as with anything in life, it only takes a couple JO's to ruin it for everyone.
Lars-Congrats on winning the prize, you nailed it sir right on both accounts Loved the GG1 right up and photo's, it flicked dabossman's switch as well Nice to see also that the larsmobile hasn't run out of titles yet as well.
Ron-That's some impressive work that's taking shape on your work bench,good luck on getting the 'ole kitchen cabinnets completed on time as well.
Allan-I'm glad that you liked the website,I'll have to post some of teh pictures I've taken of some of their birds over the years again for everyone.
Rob
Well here's a couple late saturday pics for everyone. Oh Leon another Guiness as well sir and here's a 20 for a round for any late stragglers.
The lone survivor of the TH&B's NW2's , still in its TH&B paint as lovingly preserved and still used by the Ontario Southland railway.
One of the Ontario Southlands ex CP Rail RS18u's at St Thomas Ontario.
To of The Ontario Southlands ex CP Rail RS23's at Guelph JCT Ontario
The Southlands track inspection speeder also at Guelph JCT
enjoy Rob
Greetings Tom and gentlemen...
Just thought that stop by to drop off a few pics and some $$$$ for the cigar box and Mr Wurlitzer.... I hope that you all enjoy a quiet Sunday.
NYNH&H 4-6-2 #1368 with #23, Yankee Clipper, at Westbrook, Conn., August 18, 1937. Photo by Otto Perry.
NYNH&H 4-6-2 #1025 with "Fall River Boat Express", near Boston, Mass., October 11, 1930. Photo by Otto Perry.
NYC 4-6-4 #5310 with #50, Empire State Express, near Syracuse, N.Y., August 23, 1933. Photo by Otto Perry.
B&A 4-6-4 #619 with #25, The 20th Century Limited, leaving Springfield, Mass., August 22, 1933. Photo by Otto Perry.
NYC 4-6-2 4915 Mercury near Olmsted Falls, Ohio, August 9, 1937. Photo by Otto Perry.
NYC 4-6-4 #5291 with #26, 20th Century Ltd, near Chicago, Ill., August 7, 1937. Photo by Otto Perry.
Credit: Photoswest
Howdy Leon ,figured I would come in and help you count the bottles for the next return.A slow closed Sunday , which is of coarse agood thing.
jan-Some mighty fine steam selections, thanks for bringing them in. I've always prefered the "action" shots. Some photographers just get it right. to those who can.
Pete-Sorry I forgot all about mentioning your saturday selections from Alan. allow me to buy you your next beverage when you come in tomorrow afternoon.Well folks I'm off see everyone tomorrow.
It is so dark here this time of the year! Where is that slot... here. I just noticed that Rob sneaked in here a little while ago. Hmm. Bottles?! Hmmm. I better get away from here before it is too late.JanOlov – Nice pictures from days long gone! I especially like the photo of train #1 at Muir, MT. Also interesting to see the pictures from the East coast! Okay, Ohio and Chicago too! Tom – I run my first model electrics like you did. Pantographs down and no catenary. Worked just fine. But later I built my own catenary. I remember those giant vacuum tubes! And the older tubes of all different kinds and sizes. Built my own tube tester. That saved a lot of time trouble shooting. Pete and I was scheming to find this ’n that about Manager Lars and Ruth?? No, must be a misunderstanding. But we found out a lot!! Thanks for all the articles on TGV! I am not a big fan of French railroads but I must admit they certainly did a good job developing and building TGV plus all the new infrastructure! They really believed in what they were doing and things turned out great. I have never been on a TGV, but I have seen them from the outside. I did not know there had been so many protests against building the new lines for TGV. Christmas is almost here! Now it shows even at the Emporium! Two Santa Claus movies! Both starring Tim Allen! Looking forward to see them!
Just 157 days until the 3rd Annual Rendezvous!!
Fergie – I can imagine winds 40 is more than enough. I think you mentioned once that the sea is pretty shallow in the area where you spend most of the time. Lars – It is pretty cold here in the sand box right now. I don’t think anything will happen before the end of this year. Which is fine with me. I just have to be careful about what I eat. Banned?? From the Penthouse Suite?? That is not fair. Apology (payoff)?? We have been so discrete. I don’t think you are fair!Nice pictures of nice locomotives, GG1’s! Pete – You are right, there would be some problems converting the wine tank car and fill it with beer for the track gang. Something to think about. This weekend has been much better than the two previous ones from my point of view. I even managed to replace the kitchen faucet today! Gonzo said it is perfectly okay to give the mouse to Artie! I am not sure what manager Lars wants. He certainly will need two waiters for his up coming trip. Nice pictures from Alan! Sad looking station building though. Maybe there are no train stops on the main line at that place. Allan – Yes, this weekend was not bad, just a little bit of pain tonight. I will know on Tuesday when I will have my surgery. Probably early next year. What is the name of that book with the picture of the X2000?Rob – Thanks for the pictures of the Canadian locomotives! I love the picture of that tiny inspection speeder! Not much of protection if anything goes wrong though.
Interesting kind of locomotive, a Shay, at IRM.
A smile to begin the week!
Asking his wife where has she been, she responded, "I took Tim to see Dr. Zhivago." Yogi's replied, "What the H's wrong with him now?
<A Yogi-ism!>
We have ice all around us this morning - been pretty much that way all weekend 'n is projected to continue on thru Wednesday with rain 'n freezing rain. <ugh> About the only thing "good" to say is that the trees 'n shrubs all look quite "wintry" with their coats of ice . . . Juneau is rarin' to GO!
It's THAT day again - MONDAY <ugh> - but on the bright side, there's BREAKFAST waitin' for ya at the Tavern by the Tracks - so order a <light> or <traditional> breakfast from our Menu Board. Grab a couple of pastries from The Mentor Village Bakery case ‘n draw a mugga freshly ground ‘n brewed coffee while you're waiting!
Working on the Christmas card list this weekend ‘n decided that it's time to trim ship. Been sending out cards to hither ‘n yon with little or no annual responses. And can you imagine getting an Email response to card Happens too often . . . <tacky> in my book . . . <bah humbug> Just another indicator of changing times, social graces, et al . . .
<Don't get me wrong - Email greetings are fine, but not in response to someone who has taken the time 'n made the effort to send a card by mail.>
Figure I'll save enough to buy a six pack of Keiths next time I'm in Canada!
Saturday - Dec 8th:
Fergie (Fergmiester) at 11:13 AM: Good to see our sailorman again!
Those Forum's Gremlins do NOT discriminate, for they <attack> Posts ashore ‘n at sea with impunity!
And to think I thought the MESS was strictly an imaginary railway conjured up in the mind of our Canadian Maritime Mariner. Stick around boyz, we live ‘n learn!
Many thanx for swinging by . . . you should be getting close to heading back home, eh
Lars (LoveDomes) at 11:54 AM: Not to disappoint, our Manager came through <again> with an excellent offering for Saturday! As you KNOW, anything to do with GG1s definitely "flicks my switch," so keep ‘em coming!
Yeah, I recall that Post of yours for my B'day back in 2006. I checked back on those Pages <several!> and it was quite a turnout. Really brought back some memories of days <daze> gone by . . .
Received your Email ‘n not to worry. As I've said - the bar WILL survive. Of course if you cannot be here daily, we'll try to plug the gap as best we can . . .
Congrats on the CONTEST win <again> - you definitely are the ONLY person to not only pick the winner, but to do so on the first entry. So WHO is going to accompany you in the obs dome drawing room suite Hmmmmmmmmm. <grin>
Your JINTS won! So that should put a smile on your mug . . .
Round, visit ‘n great ENCORE! material ‘n fotos appreciated!
Pete (pwolfe) at 4:34 PM: Long time between "regulars," but I'm glad you made it "in." Figured you would, but one never knows when it's Saturday ‘n there's a wife around with a "things to do list"!! <uh oh>
Try as you may to get you <'n Eric> on board the Can-Am Railway's Trans Mentor Limited, I doubt it will happen! Last thing Lars needs are FOUR eyes checking out his every move . . . <well, maybe not EVERY!> <grin> I just can't imagine WHO is traveling companion might be . . . hmmmmmmmm.
Artie would dearly love a "fresh" mouse . . . just let Boris take it ‘n Artie outback! <ugh>
A cup of your steaming hot cup of 'Joe' and a bacon and egg sarnie please RUTH..
It was good to talk to you this morning Tom.
Just a quick note to say we are in, what the weather people rather quaintly call, an 'ice event' here in Mid Mo. We have had a bout of freezing rain and it has brought down trees and branches. We had two power outages yesterday and unfortunatly we are do for some more bad icing today and tomorrow, so if I am not at the bar it will be because we have lost power again. The electricity guys are working real hard but if it gets worse they wont have a chance.
Hopefully I shall be back later today.I am going to try to get the laundry done while we still have power
So can you get a round in please RUTH..
Ahoy Cap'n Tom ‘n fellow travelers at the bar!!
Ruth my deAH, just a mugga Joe with a jolt for now . . . Any pastries left A couple of crullers will do! A round for the house, treats for the crittAHs, the small jar of PPF for Boris ‘n the change for YOU!
Kinda <gloomy> ‘round here too - temperatures aren't supposed to get out of the low-40's . . . chance of rain pretty much all week. Gasoline is at $3.29 at our "favorite" station . . . <ugh>
My JINTS WON! They are now sitting pretty good for a wild card spot, but we can't count our chickens yet. Logged some football on the tube yesterday . . . too much in fact. Fortunately, the Mrs. likes watching it - she says it helps her sleep bettAH! <huh?>
My Rangers are suddenly behind the Devils - beat ‘em last nite, but fell out of 1st place . . . <groan>
What's this about the Knicks???? Is trolleyMAN trying to sell somebody a "bill of goods"??? The Lakers ‘n Knicks have been one ‘n two as the MFF <most valuable franchise> for years . . . just read where the Knicks overtook the Lakers for the "honor." Don't know, or really don't care about that kinda stuff - but it doesn't surprise me. I'm amazed - truly amazed - that the NBA can survive outside of the U.S. . . . just my two cents.
Don't suppose anyone took notice, for not very many of "us" stop by on Sundays, but I didn't "show" yesterday. I'm back to taking that day "off," as intended by Da Bossman here ‘n "upstairs." <grin> May even go to alternate days during the week. Things are beginning to mount up for me too. <groan>
Cap'n Tom came through with a whole bunch of French TGV "stuff" on Saturday - looks like it was updated - all read, all digested <burp> ‘n all I need to do is speak a bit of du lange . . . <I think that's how it is phrased!>
Some support from Fergie - Pete - Allan ‘n Rob too! Made for a quiet, but interesting day . . . Noticed Jan showed up on Sunday with an offering of photos - guduns too.
For Eric 'n Pete: Look you guyz, it's pretty simple. Youse have been trying to get "the goods" on me for months. So, WHY would I want any part of youse aboard the Can-Am Trans Mentor Limited My daddy didn't raise a fool <dontchano!>
Fair - shmare. Banned is what youse are! PERIOD . . . unless of course a bit of "somethng" crosses the palm of my hand <and it better "glitter" as in gold!>
For Allan: Glad you're enjoying the book covAHs . . . and no, I'm unfamiliar with that writer or the museum you mentioned.
Couple of funnies at the Emporium - the Santa Clause is a gudun . . . Kranks is awright too. Tim Allen is great in the Santa Clause movies . . . part was made for him.
Just noticed Pete's on board! Have a "hot toddy" on me, mate! <double jigger> should warm you up right well! Weren't you 'n Cap'n Tom supposed to rendezvous this week Looks like the icing gotcha both. Hope there's a "do ovAH" in the works!
You had asked a question regarding the ORIGINAL color of the Pennsy GG1's . . . here's a Url that may help . . . http://www.spikesys.com/GG1/paint.html
Ok, time once more for the Larsman Mobile ‘n the daily book covAHs . . .
Short Line Railroads of Arkansas
Bradford the Railroad Town
Southern States Trolleys in Color
Ohio Valley Trolleys in Color
Streetcar Scenes of the 1950s in Color
Good Afternoon, all.
Sorry for clomping in like this, but I need a cup of strong! coffe. May i join you?
Blame it on Eric, that I am here. I, as he, have spent time at the Swedish State Railroads (1962-1982) in warious positions. I live since 1983 in the States, Upper Midwest.
I will try to learn how to handle this format, and how to brighten my dull writing up with symbols, as I go. I will mainly visit at my breaks and lunch hour at work.
I stop here for my first visit, and humbly sneak out the back door, as I do not know what I just did, and how, and where it will appear.
Sven
Ahoy Sven!
Just caught your post as I was about to check out!
Stealing Cap'n Tom's thundAH a bit <he's Bossman 'round here> let me jump on the occasion to say that any friend of Eric's is a friend of ours!
There's all kinds of "stuff" to learn about what we do here 'n how we do it. Don't let any of that confuse you - we're all confused enough!
I suggest that you begin at the beginning - check out page one - it contains all you'll need to understand the premise <ground rules> of this cyber space adult bar 'n grill . . . then as Cap'n Tom will surely tell you, read through the last 5 or 6 pages of material. That will get you up to speed on who the customers are 'round here 'n what they have to say.
You'll surely fit in here as we've got an international group with the UK - Sweden - New Zealand -Canada 'n the U.S. well represented. Me My heritage is Norwegian - I'm 2nd generation American.
Your "official" welcome comes from our Proprietor <Cap'n Tom> HOWEVER, I'm the Manager, so have one on me! <grin> Ruth, pour the man a drink!
Until the next time!
Lars
I see we've been visited by a newcomer to the bar, a friend of Eric's - named Sven! While I generally refrain from our OH-FISH-UL welcome until the 2nd visit - I think an exception may surely be made in your case.
So, Aboard, Sven!
First drink is on the house - after that, well it's just like any other tavern - pay as you go! But not to fret, we have many opportunities for drinks on the house - just take advantage of 'em!
Manager Lars covered what I would've have said - so I also recommend you take a look at our FIRST PAGE for the <groundrules> then the final several, just to see who is who along with what's being said.
The distinction between this Thread <site> and those found elsewhere is we are interactive and pride ourselves on ensuring that the other guy gets recognized. But I have a feeling you already know that . . .
Surely hope we'll be hearing from you regularly and we're looking forward to your offerings on Classic Trains <north America or Europe or . . . . >
Oh yes, you'll probably find that there are some "characters" around here that may require some clarification. For example, RUTH is our daytime bartender - BORIS is our resident Cyclops <?> and man <?> about the bar. LEON is our night bartender. We have mascots too. And CINDY is our Saturday daytime bartender AND she's MINE, MINE, MINE! <grin> You'll see references to them as you progress through the Pages.
Awk is our Parrot - Tex is our Armadillo - Artie is our Owl - Frostbite is our Penguin and Juneau is our Siberian Husky. Clear enough
There's much more, but in time you'll find that it all will appear "normal" to you! <grin>
Again, most happy to have you join us!
Tom
Good afternoon Barkeep and all Present; coffe, please; round for the house and $ for the jukebox. 'Nother one of "them days" as we are just back from the outside which is warm today for a change - just ne3eded the field coat not the down vest and the heavy Carhartt monster like we did last week.
Needless to say this is just a quick one, but we will be back tomorrow at our usual time.
Note to OSP and Eric - book was mailed from here (1st Class) on Saturday.
Work safe
NOTICE! NOTICE! NOTICE!
The RR BOOK RELAY 2007 is underway!
Pete (pwolfe) has a book that he's sharing with the boyz - it's called Red for Danger.
So what's a RR BOOK RELAY
The book gets mailed from person to person, with comments made by the reader on the forms provided. At the conclusion, all comments will be put into an Email "report" 'n sent to the participants.
Signed up are:
(1) Lars (LoveDomes - New York City) - (2) CM3 Shane (coalminer3 - West Virginia) -
I received it from Pete <Jefferson City, MO> on Aug 28th
Mailed to Lars on Sep 1st
Mailed to CM3 Shane on Sep 14th
Mailed to Eric on Dec 8th
Now WHO ELSE wants "in"
Let me know by EMAIL because sometimes things Posted at the bar have a way of getting misplaced (ie: not read)!!
A pint of Bathams XXX please RUTH.
ALLAN Yes they will be a very special trip with the 3 A4s from London to Aberdeen. I think I am right in saying that steam trips across the Forth and the Tay bridges are very rare nowadays. I remember a two-day trip I went on in 1980 based in Glasgow. On the first day it was A4 No 60009 Union of South Africa from Stirling up to Dundee, where the loco turned and then back to the Glasgow area via both the Tay and Forth Bridges and the freight only line that leaves the main line south of the Forth Bridge and joins the Edinburgh to Glasgow line near Linlithgow. On the Sunday It was a trip round the Edinburgh area with the LNER 4-4-0 No 256 Morayshire and the ex North British 0-6-0 No 673 Maude.
A photo of Alan's showing A4 No 60009 Union of South Africa arriving at York from Scarborough on 8th of August this year.They are great locomotives.
Glad you liked Alan's photos the next few I will show will be from The Foxfield Railway gala featuring industrial tank locomotives. Hope you friends at the Ex Serviceman's lunch enjoy the ‘radar' tale
I think the ones who ran the GNER franchise before ran about the best service in privatization, I hope National Express can keep up the same standard.
ROB Glad you enjoyed Alan's photos, thanks for the drink.
Many thanks for the Ontario Southlands locomotive photos the NW2 # 51 looks in great condition as well as indeed does that interesting speeder.
JAN Many thanks for those great photos of those East Coast Railroads steam locomotives hard at work. As Rob says they are indeed good cameramen who can capture a locomotive at speed, especially with the cameras when those photos were taken in 1930s.
ERIC Glad you had a good weekend.
I think we are banned from the Observation Car on Manager Lars trip as well; it will be interesting to see who will do the serving on the train. ARTIE says to pass on his thanks to Gonzo for the mouse any more will be gratefully received.
Many thanks for the great photo of the Shay's cylinders; the one at Jamestown was inside the shed so it was not possible to get a good photo. I have a DVD set that includes the Cass Scenic Railroad and it is great to see those Shays working hard.
LARS Yes Tom and I were supposed to meet up tomorrow, but owing to the conditions we have postponed it a week, it would have been OK if we had got stranded in the Train wreck saloon.
That is a great link to the GG1s paint schemes, even has the silver color CM3 talked about. The earlier schemes seem to suit the GG1s really well especially the Tuscan Red although I thought some of the later ones did not suit the locomotives at all. Many thanks for sharing.
Great set of books from the Larsman Mobile today. Short Lines in Arkansas and the book on Bradford Ohio look well worth a read. Then three great trolley books in color.
SVEN May I add my to those of Lars and Tom. As Manager Lars says any friend of Eric will be a friend of ours.
CM3 will look forward to your post tomorrow.
TOM Well so far so good with the power situation here, I though it was thawing a bit but just now some large branches came down along the street, really hope that forecast of more freezing rain and ice build up is wrong.
As you say it as not been a good year for the Missouri NFL teams, the bride could not bear to watch any more of the Chiefs yesterday, I think she was hoping the power had not come back on until the game had finished
Yes it looks as like the nearest Eric and I will get to the Trans Mentor Limited is waving ‘Bon Voyage' to Lars and his mystery guest from Mentor station.
Good evening Captain Tom and Gentlemen!!Leon, I’ll have my weekly ham sandwich, please! You know, sugar cured ham on rye. Keith's!Another week! But I don't care, just 10 more days! Received the Relay book today! Will be very interesting to read! Tom – I used to have boxes full of old and new vacuum tubes until the late 80’s. But now they are all gone. I kind of miss them. What I like about model railroading is that the only limitation is, as you said, your own imagination. You may want to concentrate on making everything 100% to scale, or maybe concentrate on traffic/timetables, etc, or running specific models, like big steam engines, diesels, or narrow gauge small trains. Or, like Ron, build a good size model from scratch and run it on your own track outside the house!.
Pete – Hope you made it through the day without any power outages. You are right, Manager Lars is... hmmm, kind of not so friendly when it comes to our offer to help him on the Observation Car trip. I don’t know why. He is hinting something about “glittering” as in gold. I’ll let Gonzo know about future mice for Artie! Lars – Hey, what’s up? No hard feelings, we just want to make your trip as comfortable and nice as possible! Glitter as in gold? Hmmm, what could that be? No clue. Some very interesting covers today! Including traction! I love the picture on the first cover, Shortline Railroads of Arkansas. Looks almost like a model train layout! Sven – Wow, glad to see you stopping by! You don’t have to sneak out the back door, you already put the blame on me so I’ll take care of any problems that might occur! Hope to hear you clomping in here again soon!CM3 – Received the book today, thank you! Thanks for the round!
Refueling, Minot, ND.
Good evening Leon , It's cold heer and I ahve a cold so I think a large and well spiked Irish coffee for myself tonight ( it oughta put me right to sleep ) Anywho glad to see that Tom and Pete have for the most part survived teh first ice storm of this winter. Looks like we may catch the tail end of it tomorrow or wednesday depending on how the storm's moveI do hate the ice mixed in with the snow espeacially with the maple trees of ample proportions that ring our house ( I know Boris your favourite rubber girl has ample proportions as well ) <argh>
Lars-Loved the days editions from the Larsmobile, I actually own one or two of those ( go figure ). I'll just say this , basketball is not my thing never will be, in fact it's one of those sprots that could implode and dissapear and I wouldn't miss it.I live for hockey and tolerate baseball , footballs fine so long as it's played by CFL rules so yes I definatly misread or at least read the miss-printed local cage liner, whick had the Celtics top o the heap ,again I think the local sports writer is a hockey and Lacrosse guy so those two sports get amazingly accurate reporting. I'm beginning to think that he musta worked for teh mentor gazzette at sometime and was found wanting.
Tom-Couldn't aggree with you more about the lost opportunities to create better rail infrastructure in our countries, nuff said we both know the score.I'll keep a finger or two crossed for you guys and hopefully that storm won't cause as much mayhem as the one you and Pete lived through last year.
I'm glad that you liekd that OSR RS18. The 18's are my favourite locomotive, tough old birds,it's a credit to MLW's designers that so many of them still carry the mail as it were today.
I can't believe that someone actually responded to a Christmas card from you guys with an email ! Good gawd gertie is there anything ruder than that ?
Sven-Welcome aboard sir , as has been stated by the rest of the boyz any friend of Eric's is okay in my books, espeacially if he's a railroader to boot
Eric-Perhaps you guys can offer to act as personal grooms and Butlers for Lars and his "guest" on the train, and work your way back into the area's from which you were banned. Just a thought, mind you I would offer to work for free
Those little inspection cars were wuite soemthing weren't they. Just a small rotory engine powered them no bigger than most lawnmowers. They were quick and upto 10 or so years ago they were the inspection vehicle of choice for most railroads, until finally being replaced by the high rail equiped trucks everyone use's today.Ther are people out there that collect and restore thease little machines, a hobby in itself.
Pete-Glad that you liked the shots.The OSR does pay particualar and pirdes themselves in clean servicable equipment. Much like the Wisconcin Central used to.They have kept alive the TH&B's marroon and creame and it looks just as good on their deisels as it did on the GP's and NW's of old.
n
Hey Leon I think another Irish coffee is reqired I can still feel my toes Here's some morning reading that I dare say may be a bit more entertaining thasn the daily cage liner or maybe not, you guys can decide.
CLASSIC DIESELS # 38 LOCOMOTIVE DESIGNATIONS PT 1 ALCO / MLW
Reading Mikes post on the difficulty of the diesel locomotives designations lead me to doing a couple posts on the more widespread ones, so here goes. We will start with my favourite manufacturer of diesel locomotives ALCO / MLW.
As with most locomotive builders the terminolgy for their products started out silmpe and then got a bit more involved as more and newer designs came online. ALCO created the designations and MLW their Canadian counterpart for ttte most part carried through te same designations for their designs with the occational differences as the two companies gradually became separate entities. I'll attempt to unraval the designs. Most likely I'll miss a few so apologies ahead of time.
The first basic engines were the early switchers and cab units designed to compete with EMD's early offerings.
DL109 / 110's were passenger cab units introduced by ALCO to compete with EMD's early E units in the earlyb 40's. These units were built exclusivly by ALCO and were sold only to US roads.
HH660 and HH1000's were the first end cab switchers built by Alco again just before the war. The HH stood for High Hood as the hood was the same height as the cab the number differences were the HP rating of the enginbes themselves 660hp or 1000. again these units were only built by ALCO for US companies.
S1,S2,S3,S4 & S6 locomotives were the frist conventional switch engines,also some of the most popular of their creations with units being built in the US and by MLW in Canada. The S1,S3's were 660 hp units with the S2's and S4's being 1000hp units. The S6 ( built only by Alco ) were 1000hp unit but used the new 251 engine . In Canada additional enhine types were built the S11 using the old 537 motor and 800hp the S13 using a 1000hp 251 and the RS23 a 1000hp 251 but these units had road trucks an AAR type B similar to the regular RS type units.
The FA 1 FB 1, FA2 FB2 were the 1500 then 1600 hp cab units built to compete with EMD's F series, all used the new 244 engine.Passenger units with the 244's were designated the FPA 2's and FPB-s' these caame equipped with steam generator equipment for passenger car heating.they were built by both ALCO and MLW with MLW going one further with the design bringing out the FPA-4's engined by the more reliable 251 engine. The A's were cab wquiped the B's were cabless boosters.
The Pa1, PB-1,PA2,PB2 and PA3's were the six axles passenger units built by ALCO only for the US roads, and are agueably the most beloved of the early passenger engines.
The next series of ALCO locomotives also using the 244 power systems were their RS series.The RS1 was a 1000hp unit the first true road switcher it was followed by the 1500hp RS2 and the 1600hp RS3.Sub vrients with and A1A-A1A configuration were also built the RSC2 and RSC3 locomotives. Later CC trucked units were built in the RSD4 and 5 series. The RS1's and the 6 axles varients were only made by ALCO MLW bult RS 2's and #'s for the Canadian roads. The next unit in the RS family was the 1800HP RS11 and it's six axles runningmate the RSD12 built only for US roads by ALCO. In Canada MLW built the RS10's with 1600HP 244's and the RS18 with the 1800hp 251 engines instead.
After the RS11's Alco concentrated on using the 251 engines only.The RSD15's were the frist of this new batch, followed by the RS27's ( 2650hp } RS32's (2000hp) and the RS36's (1800hp) it was found that these older units were not selling well in the face of the latest EMD and by this point GE locomotives co none of those units were built by MLW for Canada. A new more modern series the centruy line was designed.
The first of the centruy locomotives brought in a new hp wheel arrangement designation to ALCO. first came the C424's C for Century 4 being a B-B truck arrangement and 24= 2400hp, next came the C425 both were built for both canada by MLW and for the US by Alco. The first big Alco came out at the same time in the form of the C628 C= century series 6= C-C truck arrangement and 28=2750hp. The C628 were not built for canada by MLW. mext came the C420 ad the C430's a 2000 and 3000hp road switcher built only by ALCO for US customers. the next big alco's were the C630's and C636's 3000-3600hp six axle units built for teh US market by Alco, then ALCO went out of the locomotive business. MLW continued on and changed the designations for te lates t big alcos to M630 and M636 M=Montreal built. This was followe dwith a one off AC traction M640 for CP only ( 4000hp unit ) and a M630W model for BC rail only it was a 3000hp M630 with a full width wide cab nose.After 1974 MLW was purchased by Bombardier and continued to build locomotives mostly for the Canadian market. the first was the M420 a four axles 2000hp switcher with a full width cab and nose alter it was redesigned as the HR412 still 2000 hp but with neew microprocessor controls and the final was the HR616 which was a 3000hp full coweled six axle road switcher.The LRC passenger locomotives were also produced for VIA rail by Bombardier in the late 70's and early 80's. By 1986 Bombardier discontinued locomotive production.
Not a complete list but I hope it's helpfull
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