Not quite sure whether to put this in 'preservation' or 'locomotives', but as the two are likely to be a long while before restoration to operation, I mention it here.
Word from RyPN less than an hour ago that the Baldwin Sharks have been confirmed as going to museums. Early speculation is that Mr. Larkin either no longer owns them or has signed a binding agreement with a museum or other organization.
This is strange because Kalmbach Newswire is the source, and no one at Kalmbach seems to think this is important enough to take out from behind the paywall. Perhaps Brian or someone can be convinced to put up, or post with a paraphrase, so we can get meaningful details.
I just read the "Newswire" article, and yes, there is a paucity of details that most of us would like to know.
I'd have to assume Mr. Larkin still owns the locomotives, the article says he does, and take him at his word their ultimate destiny isn't going to be the friendly neighborhood scrapper.
But if that's all there is to go on at this point, so be it. Nobody ever said being a railfan is easy.
Keeping a large amount of rolling stock stored indoors is more expensive than many would think, whether you own the building or not.
Out of respect for the owner, I'm willing to hold off on speculating and wait until things actually start to move to find out exactly where they will go.
But I do wonder if this news release has anything to do with the actions of that other fellow who was asking around about the Sharks on here not too long ago.
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
Mr. Larkin is 72 years old. The article states that upon his death the units will go to unspecified museums. That could conceivably be 30 years from now.
Well, until those big ol' Baldwins comeout of storage, and as "L-O" says it may be a long time, we'll just have to console ourselves with this...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX20kcp7j5c
Don't say you didn't see it coming!
Flintlock76Don't say you didn't see it coming!
I see it coming, because my daughter introduced me to the meme. What I don't understand is why nobody has dubbed one of the Green Frog 'shark' containing videos with this as a soundtrack... only the B-B locomotives, of course, not the BP-20s.
I found a neat four-minute video with those D&H Sharks, and the film quality and sound is superb!
So, as Cap'n Quint might have said, "Let's go sharkin'!"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM49JvJf65I
Nice! Burbling Baldwins and the 'blaaat' horn. PA's very nice too. Thanks!
Great experience! Thank you.
You're welcome boys! I'll tell you what, I'm not on his payroll so there's no ulterior motive here, but I've got several of those John Pechulis videos and the quality is absolutely superb! Money very well spent!
Two questions...
1. Am I the only one who would rather see them restored into the MRY paint? I saw them both at Brownstown and at Whitehall, NY but remember them most fondly as PA coalhaulers.
2. What would be fitting museum(s)? They'd have to be somewhat germane to their operational life and have the resources so they wouldn't deteriorate into junk. Green Bay? Steamtown? PA RR Museum? Any others?
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Steamtown? From what I can see they can barely take care of what they've got. They'll also be displayed outdoors, and you know what that means. At any rate, it's supposed to be "STEAMtown," not "DIESELtown."
The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania? Possibly. There's indoor storage available there, but running the locomotives is out of the question if that's what most fans would like to see, they don't run anything in the collection, that's not in their mission statement.
The big question in my mind is whether they'd be restored to running condition, it IS possible, as Overmod pointed out in another thread, so that would hopefully mean a museum with trackage and running space available.
There's the Illinois Railroad Museum, they do run what they've got that's runnable, the question is would they be willing to take them on for restoration and running, and again, we're back to outdoor storage.
Quite a few possibilities out there, so it's anyone's guess where they might go.
I personally like the D&H scheme they've got on them right now, but if they're restored to operating condition it wouldn't matter to me how they're re-painted.
SD70Dude Keeping a large amount of rolling stock stored indoors is more expensive than many would think, whether you own the building or not. Out of respect for the owner, I'm willing to hold off on speculating and wait until things actually start to move to find out exactly where they will go. But I do wonder if this news release has anything to do with the actions of that other fellow who was asking around about the Sharks on here not too long ago.
Allegedly he has a Milwaukee shops built Milwaukee Road Skytop Observation in his collection though it has also allegedly deteriorated quite a bit. I would be real curious to know where that is going to end up. Only three of them left that I am aware of. Milwaukee Road burned one up (Priest Rapids?) in an attempt to get it scrapped for the metal.
Flintlock76 There's the Illinois Railroad Museum, they do run what they've got that's runnable, the question is would they be willing to take them on for restoration and running, and again, we're back to outdoor storage.
IRM has plenty of indoor barns.
If you feel they need more, they are open to donations just for that purpose.
https://www.irm.org/donations/indoor-storage/
An "expensive model collector"
n012944 Flintlock76 There's the Illinois Railroad Museum, they do run what they've got that's runnable, the question is would they be willing to take them on for restoration and running, and again, we're back to outdoor storage. IRM has plenty of indoor barns. If you feel they need more, they are open to donations just for that purpose. https://www.irm.org/donations/indoor-storage/
Good to know, thanks! I've never been there, yet, but I do know their reputation is absolutely sterling.
Although I DO wish they'd paint "Erie" or "Susquehanna" on the tender of their Russian Decapod! "Frisco" on the cab just doesn't seem "right."
Didn't the D & H stay out of Amtrak for a few years like the Southern but eventually become a part of it? I seem to recall that.
I could be wrong on this (probably am) but I think D&H actually contracted with Amtrak to run passenger trains until Amtrak could get that particular part of the system organized.
I think the D&H also loaned the PA's to the Boston transit system for a time.
54light15 Didn't the D & H stay out of Amtrak for a few years like the Southern but eventually become a part of it? I seem to recall that.
Were not they originally AT&SF? Would not the Cal-State museum in Sacramento be very happy to have them?
daveklepperWere not they originally AT&SF? Would not the Cal-State museum in Sacramento be very happy to have them?
Dave, I think ... very charitably ... you have mistaken your rare locomotive builder: these are not Alco PAs brought to the D&H, they are Sharknoses from the New York Central via the Monongahela, and I suspect would have been west of Ohio as often as ATSF runthrough power made it to western Pennsylvania. While perhaps CSRM might be happy to have them... it would make about as much sense as acquiring a U34CH repainted for ATSF would be.
The paint scheme used on the Sharks is cobbled from ATSF 'warbonnet' of course ... and thereupon hangs a tale perhaps better told over at the MR forums (if indeed it could be told without invoking a Certain Other Publication Involving A Colonel Not Named Harlan, which is where I recall having heard it) in that it came not from a prototype but from a hastily-acquired Model Power HO shark taken up for show 'n tell.
Story is, and was, that the NYC lightning-stripe scheme was preferable, but not available in the roadnames from the place of purchase. One was subsequently found and rushed up a day or so later ... but the approval was in and stencils were being cut already!
ATSF did have Baldwin power ... and, in a sense, 'still does' (look up the history of the Beep to see 'what might have been'). But Baldwin freight cabs were NOT part of what they owned.
Whoops! It looks like I may have caused a little "thread drift" when I mentioned those "...PA's loaned to Boston..."
Of course, the Sharks are RF-16's, not PA's.
However, David does remember correctly, those D&H PA's did come from the Santa Fe. Here's the story of one of the survivors...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel_Plate_Road_190
Flintlock76However, David does remember correctly, those D&H PA's did come from the Santa Fe.
But what relevance could that possibly have in a thread about BALDWIN SHARKS?
There's even a thread with Alco PAs right in the title only a couple of items down in the list of forum topics as I write this. I'd say more on them... but it doesn't belong here.
It's irritating enough that the original story appears to be largely already-known information 'puffed up' into the semblance of something important. The only 'nugget of importance' that would need to be in the Newswire story is the discussion of binding arrangements between Mr. Larkin and his 'chosen' list of museums. I neither need nor want to see the actual list, particularly as it would cause all sorts of problems for the museum(s) involved long before anything has to happen.
Ironically enough, not only do I know exactly where and how to see the Sharks as preserved, I have no interest in contributing to railfan spotting fever -- which is precisely what this thread has so far involved.
Overmodnot only do I know exactly where and how to see the Sharks as preserved,
What does this clause mean? I don't understand it.
Lithonia Operator Overmod not only do I know exactly where and how to see the Sharks as preserved...
Overmod not only do I know exactly where and how to see the Sharks as preserved...
Thanks. Now I get it.
Really, in the case of these engines, railfans need to be on better than their best behavior. Too bad some bad apples ruined things; unfortunately that's not uncommon.
I'm patient. I can wait.
And if I get tired of waiting I'll just start haunting train shows for a nice set of Williams O-Gauge Sharks. They're out there somewhere...
Flintlock76 n012944 Flintlock76 There's the Illinois Railroad Museum, they do run what they've got that's runnable, the question is would they be willing to take them on for restoration and running, and again, we're back to outdoor storage. IRM has plenty of indoor barns. If you feel they need more, they are open to donations just for that purpose. https://www.irm.org/donations/indoor-storage/ Good to know, thanks! I've never been there, yet, but I do know their reputation is absolutely sterling. Although I DO wish they'd paint "Erie" or "Susquehanna" on the tender of their Russian Decapod! "Frisco" on the cab just doesn't seem "right."
Fortunately, they didn't heed your tongue-in-cheek suggestion, since it was an authentic restoration, not like a bastardized D&H PA or RF-16.
Well the Erie did have more of the "Bolsheviks" than anyone else did, 75 to be exact, some of which found their way to the Susquehanna.
I know, I know, the Frisco had 'em too...
Flintlock76And if I get tired of waiting I'll just start haunting train shows for a nice set of Williams O-Gauge Sharks. They're out there somewhere...
I'd send you mine, except (1) they're an A-B set, and you might lose as many teeth as I have grinding them thinking on how the B-unit got away; (2) they're painted in someone's idea of a fantasy PRR scheme; and (3) for some utterly unaccountable reason they have Blomberg and not AAR truck frames! They were delivered to me in their stock packaging, so I don't think they were messed with by someone who liked EMD engineering...
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