Most units/Shortest Train

[Anonymous]

I thought I'd see a comment on the Chicago Great Western.Used to sit in my railroading friends bedroom in Lombard Ill., facing the CGW.12-15 units where common,can't say how many cars,30-40 maybe? All units working,mostly cabins.It was interesting because you could clearly see the hill&dale main,like a snake on a roller coaster.Ahhh,the good ol' days!

[mudchicken]

Shortest Train?

One loaded coal car at 60 mph through Colfax, NM on York Canyon Sub.....Seems the car got loose at the mine, got over the derail and travelled 18 miles to Colfax, all the time picking up speed. At the US-60 crossing at Colfax where we were working, all we could do was stop traffic. The car came through, the signal lit up, the bell rang once and the car was gone. The car was dumped at French, NM at a power switch another 18-20 miles to the east.

[coalminer3]

Eight Penn Central units (all GE) with one cab; westbound through Framingham in 1973.

work safe

[Anonymous]

I just saw a CP train go through town with 6 units pulling 6 tank cars.

[Anonymous]

Back in the days of the Chicago, Central and Pacific (former and now again current IC Ry line from Chicago - Dubuque - Omaha), I saw 13 units (older Geeps) and only about half of them operating, leaving Freeport ILL heading West. I believe that they would occaisionally reposition power this way. They did however have a healthy train in tow at about 75 cars.

[edblysard]

This ought to tickle jim(planes) to death.
Their on their way to CHINA!
This is the second shipment, first on was five old GEs.
So for once, we get to ship our junk to them!
Stay Frosty,
Ed

QUOTE: Originally posted by drailed1999

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

10 ex BN C 30-7s dead in tow being pulled by 2 MK1500Ds out to Jacintoport/Greensport Texas terminals.
The BN were pointed north, the MKs were pulling south.
It looked like a tug of war that the "big" motors lost!
Stay Frosty,
Ed

[:D] Don't ya just love hospital trains. [8D] Gotta drag the junk somewhere [:0]

[eolafan]

Twelve BN units through Aurora, IL with about 120 general merchandise cars headed up the C&I line through Rochelle to Minneapolis....chased it but could not catch it!

[favuprailroadfan]

Most I have seen is 16 on a 15 car train running on the Sunset Route last year. I was one of the oddest things I have ever seen. Probably on their way back to West Colton for inspection or something like that. I also seen a coal train on Tennessee Pass with 12 AC's. 5 SD90MAC's (when they first came out), 4 AC4400CW's and 3 AC6000's. 4 up front, 4 middle and 4 end.They were crawling at about 8 mph. It was one of the mose tremendous things I have ever HEARD or seen.

Laters, Dru

[zardoz]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CSSHEGEWISCH

Shortest train is a BN suburban local in 1970 with one bi-level coach being pushed by one E8. It was an inbound Aurora-Chicago run on a Sunday.

The CNW used to run 1 and 2 car trains years ago. The brakes on a 1-car train with an E8 were just terrible. One would have to set the brakes for a station stop at least 20% further from the station than with a 'normal' train of 3-4 coaches and 1 unit. The best braking trains were the 9-coach 1-F40. You could set the brakes (going 70mph) at one end of a station platform, and be stopped by the other end (a distance of about 800')!

[bnsfkline]

...

[TH&B]

Four SD40s and one roadrailer.

[FJ and G]

In the 1970s I saw many many short freight and passenger trains (just a couple of cars).

Evidently, business wasn't too good back then.

[Anonymous]

Greatest number of locos I remember.....about nine or ten.....don't remember the exact number, but what stood out is that while most of them were CN, there were a couple of CONRAIL locos mixed in! And this was far from where "Conrail" still exists. (this was in 2001)

~Ra'akone

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

Shortest train is a BN suburban local in 1970 with one bi-level coach being pushed by one E8. It was an inbound Aurora-Chicago run on a Sunday.

[Modelcar]

....For the train with a generous amount of engines...In Kingman, Az. back about 1970 was observing a passing Sante Fe east bound freight coming up through where the main line is close to the main street through town...9 engines on front and mid train 3 more. At that time I believe that held the record for total engines on a train that I had seen.

[bnsfkline]

Looks like I am going to hit 20 replays on this one by the end of the day....not bad for a new comer, eh?

[mudchicken]

16 engine "waycar hop"/light engine move on ATSF, La Junta to Albuquerque during a traffic detour caused by a derailment outside Amarillo in the early 1980's (8-12 engine 408 trains were common with 4600 Class SD-26m and 4000 class SD-39's)

shortest: 2 engine (GP-39-2) and 1 TOFC flatcar with a trailer on the short-lived Q-trains, several times

MUDchicken

[Anonymous]

The most units i've ever seen is twelve different locomtives ("variety pack" as i call it), 1 SD70MAC, 1 GP38-2 and the rest GP40-2s pulling NOTHING.
Besides that, I've seen one loco pulling one passenger coach.

[Anonymous]

I would have loved to see those Penn Centrals through Altoona! ! !



11 units on a NS mixed freight. one was a SW1500.

2 SD80MACs hauling to lumber cars, one SD80 at each end, I thought I was losing my mind for a moment. NS uses the AC 80 MACS for local service, very common to see them with 10 or less cars around my area (Gallitzin, PA)

[zardoz]

1 SD40-2 hauling 25 retired (dead) FM baby Trainmasters back in '73 or '74 in Kenosha, Wi.

18 SD units on a coal train on Tennessee Pass in Colorado (6 on point, 6 mid-train, 6 helpers on rear).

2 GP40'S with 2 auto-frame flatcars at Bain Road in Pleasant Prairie, Wi,

[corwinda]

30 unit move on UP some years ago. Eastbound through Elko, NV.

1 SD 9, a flatcar of steel plate, and a caboose on SP in Springfield OR in the mid 80s.

[bnsfkline]

Some friends of mine, Allen Holtman and Jason Winter of Kirkwood fame, laughed about the UP Local the shortest train thay had ever seen.....Local LSJ59 had 2 GP38-2's with only an ETD on the trailing unit

[Anonymous]

The most units I've seen on a train is nine on a CP frieght quite a few years ago. I'm not too sure about the shortest train I've seen. I've seen a crane with one or two flatcars head through town before. I do know that at least once I've seen a frieght with just 5 or less cars.

[dehusman]

Two working units and 50 dead retired units Ft Worth to Chicago.
2 working units and 23 other in service units being repositioned from LA to Chicago.
Shortest train. Local with one unit and one car or intermodal train with 3 units and one car.

[JoeKoh]

I have seen 10 and 12 unit trains here on csx before.The shortest train I've seen (other than just engines) is Csx and NS hauling a crane to a worksite.
stay safe
Joe

[Anonymous]

The strangest thing I've ever seen was 2 ATSF GP40-2's with a single tank car and a caboose scream by me at about 55-60mph on a line where posted track speed was 45mph!!

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by edblysard

10 ex BN C 30-7s dead in tow being pulled by 2 MK1500Ds out to Jacintoport/Greensport Texas terminals.
The BN were pointed north, the MKs were pulling south.
It looked like a tug of war that the "big" motors lost!
Stay Frosty,
Ed

[:D] Don't ya just love hospital trains. [8D] Gotta drag the junk somewhere [:0]

[AltonFan]

An ex-MoPac geep and caboose running through St. Marys, KS on the UP line.

During one or another of the construction periods on the former C&NW Northwest commuter line, a self-propelled crane.

[techguy57]

A little different but worthwhile.

UP has a two track line near where I work that runs from Downtown Chicago to the Rockford area and maybe even further past. While the main line is UP, Chicago's METRA also runs on the line so there is mixture of freight rail traffic and commuter traffic. Also UP uses an industry siding to do some MOW work as well.
That being said perhaps one of the most intriguing and somewhat humorous sights I have seen lately in a UP six axle "cherry picker" type work truck hauling 3 MOW gondolas. To add more to the already funny sight was that sitting on top of the last gondola, supported by wooden rail ties was a backhoe tractor.
I've seen this configuration 3 times now and I'm desperately trying to get a picture.
As for longest, I grew up near Conrail's Biug Four Yard in Avon, IN and remember getting stopped at a crossing and counting cars. Seems the biggest we ever counted was about 100 or so, big considering they were mostly boxcars (it was the late 80's so intermodal wasn't as big).