They have the 12 banger....
http://www.thedieselshop.us/PTRR.HTML
is a list of the locomotives, and what frames they were built on.
So far, they have been pretty good locomotives.
On their 10th year, and entering a rebuild/overhaul program here...in a lot of cases, the diesel is pulled out, refurbished and re-installed....while the prime mover is out, they are cleaning and inspecting all other system, replacing worn wires, ducts and such, repainting all the interiors in the long hood and the cab.
For what we do with them, they have held up quite nicely...because the majority of our work is flat switching and industry, they get pretty banged up, but they seem up to the task.
The only major failures have been a head on collision with a loaded grain train, which bent the frame beyond repair, and the 9601 got speared by a piece of drill stem(pipe) that rolled off the top of a gondola in the next track, and stabbed the locomotive as it was passing by.
Managed to go through the cab floor under the engineers seat, the A/C unit, then the back wall, alternator and out the other side by ten feet.
The head on was sent back to Bosie(MK) for a new frame, they swapped all the rest, cab, long hood, diesel and alternator over, and it was back in service within a year.
The 9601 was repaired here, at our shop, after a lot of photos were taken!
Ed
23 17 46 11
edblysard wrote:<snipped> I know why CSXengineer is so quite…he is waiting for someone to ask him an intelligent question he can answer. Me too! There isn’t much he or I could add to the “I saw a red locomotive” style thread. Ask about flat yard switching, I’m your guy…ask about running really hairy big freight trains, he has you covered. Want to know how and why a hump yard does certain things, see Carl S, Tell me you saw a red locomotive…..ok, and? Although I can’t really speak for CSXengineer, I can tell you I am pretty tired of all the “UP sucks, BNSF sucks, CSX sucks, I wish they would bring back the Cotton Belt”, “I hate the new paint scheme ” threads…to us, this is a ongoing part of our daily lives… Whether UP or BNSF sucks is all a matter of perspective. If they sign your paycheck, then they don’t suck that bad… For a lot of us, this is how we make our living, and reading how upset some one is over the shape of a logo is somewhat amusing, but not worth getting your panties all wadded up,…it is a tool to us, one of the tools we use to do our job, and we pretty much don’t care what color it is painted, so long as it works. On the other hand, “What are the yellow thingies on the trucks of BN locomotives” is one of those questions that will have railroaders and fans scrambling to go see if they can find a yellow thingies, and get the answer. I think what I am trying to get at is that a lot of the threads now follow the chat room format, instead of a question/answer/discussion format. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and the right to express it, and you will find I am one of the first to defend those rights, heck, I even argued on the side of FM having every right to come here and make a fool of himself, but after a while, seeing UP sucks in every other thread, or reading about how someone hates the new paint on BNSF locomotives gets kinda tired. Ed
I know why CSXengineer is so quite…he is waiting for someone to ask him an intelligent question he can answer.
Me too!
There isn’t much he or I could add to the “I saw a red locomotive” style thread.
Ask about flat yard switching, I’m your guy…ask about running really hairy big freight trains, he has you covered.
Want to know how and why a hump yard does certain things, see Carl S,
Tell me you saw a red locomotive…..ok, and?
Although I can’t really speak for CSXengineer, I can tell you I am pretty tired of all the “UP sucks, BNSF sucks, CSX sucks, I wish they would bring back the Cotton Belt”, “I hate the new paint scheme ” threads…to us, this is a ongoing part of our daily lives…
Whether UP or BNSF sucks is all a matter of perspective.
If they sign your paycheck, then they don’t suck that bad…
For a lot of us, this is how we make our living, and reading how upset some one is over the shape of a logo is somewhat amusing, but not worth getting your panties all wadded up,…it is a tool to us, one of the tools we use to do our job, and we pretty much don’t care what color it is painted, so long as it works.
On the other hand, “What are the yellow thingies on the trucks of BN locomotives” is one of those questions that will have railroaders and fans scrambling to go see if they can find a yellow thingies, and get the answer.
I think what I am trying to get at is that a lot of the threads now follow the chat room format, instead of a question/answer/discussion format.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and the right to express it, and you will find I am one of the first to defend those rights, heck, I even argued on the side of FM having every right to come here and make a fool of himself, but after a while, seeing UP sucks in every other thread, or reading about how someone hates the new paint on BNSF locomotives gets kinda tired.
You do reach a point at which most of your questions have been answered, most of your stored up stories have been told, and you just don't have a lot to say. I was noticing that even before the format change. Some people "get up and leave," others just lay back and become less active.
The "Thread For" explosion kept me quiet for a while - I may enjoy reading the occasional piece about any given railroad, but when all of page one was "Thread For" material, well, I'll just click over to a local forum for a bit. That one goes through the occasional doldrum, too, and many threads seem to devolve into personal attack forums after all of the pertinent points have been covered, but it can prove entertaining at times.
Now that we're back into a more normal mix, I drop the occasional comment in a thread, if I have something to add, and read with amusement some of the more arcane stuff. I really don't mind the "today I saw" thread - everybody needs a place to brag up the high point of their day, even if it's an everyday occurance for others.
Gabe - don't leave - keep in touch. After a while we'll evolve into a "new" group. The old timers will tell their stories (again) and answer questions (again), and the newbies will bring new insight.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Times change, people move on, the depth of interest in a particular area will wax and wane. As a young adult, I worked on, ate, drank and slept railroads. Later on there was family, different jobs and other hobbies and activites and my interest in the railroad business took a back seat in the, er... jumbo jet.
However, it is a most fascinating business. One may leave for a while or maybe as in my case even years, but then you pick up a copy of Trains, or read a book such as "The Men Who Loved Trains" and it all comes back.
Jay
"We have met the enemy and he is us." Pogo Possum "We have met the anemone... and he is Russ." Bucky Katt "Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future." Niels Bohr, Nobel laureate in physics
Can't help it Mookie.
Look at the buckets...empty.
Need I say more?
Nothing is more sad than a milk junkie with empty buckets!
But the Mook hit it right on.
Between Mike Sol and FM’s “is so, is not, is so,” argument threads, and the “threads for everybody” it has become pretty much a topic wasteland.
Think about this; the thread directed towards Mr. Wrinn seems to be one of the few where ideas about future stories in Trains has been bandied about, with many good concepts being brought up and discussed.
Interesting, lively and free of the “I’m smarter than you” crud that has infected most of the other threads.
The picture is to depict a kitty who lost her job on the railroad (through no fault of her own, of course) and has hit the skids and must now stand on street corners and ask the kind people for help.
Actually, she has kibbles in her pails and needs milk, but is too lazy to go to the store. The work part is just to tug at heartstrings and the head is down cuz she is admiring her new nail polish.
Behind the scenes - Brother Carl sent that to me - I liked it so well, it has been on my office door for several years.
La Mook
She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw
Mookie wrote: I plain ran out of questions. But....thinking up new topics is everyone's job. To keep the forum from getting as dull as it has, everyone really needs to think up at least one topic. There are a lot of people out there with answers and they gladly share them - but even if you are in the "business", surely there is something you could either start a topic on or ask about. I don't think I am alone in saying that the back and forth between say FM and someone was waaay over my head - some of the simple things like "does lightning hit trains" were just right for me. We need variety not nonsense. I can't do megers and eastern railroads and management. But I can do "what are the yellow thingies and where are they on the brand new engines?" I know both answers now but only got one from the forum. The other I chose not to post because it would be buried by the nonsense at the end of one day. So I went behind the scenes and asked Houston Ed. So if you want an interactive forum and an interesting one, try doing some of the work - each and every one of us. Lurkers - post at least one time. Give us a chance to have a dialog, not a constant monologue. This many people surely can come up with something to discuss. Gabe - enjoy your postings - in this case the forum needs a couple of lawyers. Hope you will reconsider. Read the diner forum to the baby - guaranteed happy results! Mookie
I plain ran out of questions. But....thinking up new topics is everyone's job. To keep the forum from getting as dull as it has, everyone really needs to think up at least one topic. There are a lot of people out there with answers and they gladly share them - but even if you are in the "business", surely there is something you could either start a topic on or ask about.
I don't think I am alone in saying that the back and forth between say FM and someone was waaay over my head - some of the simple things like "does lightning hit trains" were just right for me. We need variety not nonsense. I can't do megers and eastern railroads and management. But I can do "what are the yellow thingies and where are they on the brand new engines?" I know both answers now but only got one from the forum. The other I chose not to post because it would be buried by the nonsense at the end of one day. So I went behind the scenes and asked Houston Ed.
So if you want an interactive forum and an interesting one, try doing some of the work - each and every one of us. Lurkers - post at least one time. Give us a chance to have a dialog, not a constant monologue. This many people surely can come up with something to discuss.
Gabe - enjoy your postings - in this case the forum needs a couple of lawyers. Hope you will reconsider. Read the diner forum to the baby - guaranteed happy results!
Mookie
OK Mook, I have a question...your puddy cat in the picture looks kind of sad to me....why?
The Forum is DEAD...
Long live the forum....
Still travelling Gabe. Who says you can't get around in the RR biz...
LC
About the same. Just plugging away at work, and trying to get out on the weekends as much as possible. I've been having a pretty productive summer, and have managed to get out railfanning quite bit, as well as enjoying some hikes both in CO, as well as a trip up to Yellowstone to meet up with some other photographers from the DPReview Canon forum.
August has turned on the calendar, and that means that fall isn't that far away. I'm hoping to get down to the Cumbres and Toltec for some fall color this year. They run a photo freight for Trains Unlimited Tours every year, and I was thinking about renting a 4x4 and chasing the train with that.
Congratulations on your new child! Hope all works out with that, and I hope you can find a little free time for trains, and hanging around here (I'd be sad to see you go, too).
Take care, and good luck!
-ChrisWest Chicago, ILChristopher May Fine Art Photography"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams
gabe wrote: I fear I will not be coming back after this vacation. Not out of protest, but just because the cite isn't very good. That would be a BIG disappointment, as there are a lot of forum members I consider it an honor to have know. Gabe
I fear I will not be coming back after this vacation. Not out of protest, but just because the cite isn't very good. That would be a BIG disappointment, as there are a lot of forum members I consider it an honor to have know.
Gabe
Jeez, Gabe, say it ain't so. I have always enjoyed your perspectives. Even when I operated here under a different name going back to 2000 or whatever -- mostly lurking.
Of course, no one is irreplaceable, but losing you would be a BIG disappointment to a lot of us. Ya gets out of forums what ya puts in.
CopCarSS wrote: I think the forum is also taking a collective breather after all the "Thread For Everybody!" threads, and the resulting spoofing of the same. Other than that, I haven't noticed it being a whole lot different than status quo, apart from the new look. BTW, you can find FM on the "open access" and "closed access" threads. There's still some lively debate in there. What's new in your world Gabe?
I think the forum is also taking a collective breather after all the "Thread For Everybody!" threads, and the resulting spoofing of the same.
Other than that, I haven't noticed it being a whole lot different than status quo, apart from the new look. BTW, you can find FM on the "open access" and "closed access" threads. There's still some lively debate in there.
What's new in your world Gabe?
A new child, which means when I am not working, I am raising her, which doesn't leave a lot of time for trains. Other than that, it is pretty good. I work a lot more than I should, but the work is interesting and fun. If I could find just a little more time in my life for trains, this forum, and family--not necessarily in that order--I think I would be living the perfect life.
How are things with you?
Thanks for asking.
Last summer, we had the problem of all of the Teany Boppers who were out of school and posting agressive posts . . . not that some of the younger people on here are valuable contributors. But, it was a LOT better than it is now.
I agree. It is the mid-summer lull. Actually, there seems to be more participation than last summer, but who's counting.
You can take a few weeks off and not be afraid of missing anythng.
Sorry, I know I am being a bit of a defeatest and to quote my hero--Homer Simpson--no new C*%$. But, I have got to say, the forum just is not the same since the change.
I have been on vacation since Tuesday, and I have been hopping on the forum as much as when I used to have a State government job and 70% productivity tended to embarass your collegues, and made you dare not work more than that.
But, the forum has just been absolutely dead lately. Sure, there isn't kissmycindertrainfinder anoying everyone; but there also isn't the lively conversations and healthy disagreements that made this cite as great as it was. I don't know if it is because the new format has chased some of the previous contributors away, or what, but it has just been dead for the last week.
As much as I hate to admit it, but I owe 18% of my train knowledge to futuremodal. Not that he personally educates me, but some of the stuff he says prompts others to give very learned responses back. In many ways, I think futuremodal is the most valuable contributor. And, I think his missives should be encouraged.
But, there was not a single topic indicative of what really made this forum so great for me in the past this week.
I am a lawyer, and have a greater tolerance for the argumentation that people are trying to get rid of on here. But, I think this falls under the "careful what you ask for, you might get it."
Alas, this is another example of the trouble of the great things in life you get for free, you don't have a lot of power to hold on to them. What I would give for a LC - Greyhound dispute with Futuremodal with occasional refing by Mr. Hemphill et al . . .
P.S. Does MP 173 still contribute; I miss Ed's contributions too.
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