Preparing for Intermodal Ops #2

Hi gang!

Here is the Kings Port Division's status with this op!  :)

See the REAL action at:

John R.'s New York Central Train Layout

Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R. 

John B.'s Los Feliz and NW 

and maybe something from  Brian's Ralston Creek R.R.

Enjoy following intermodal operations through the decades to the current time!

Intermodal ops. 1D: TOFCs set out on interchange track

Greetings intermodal fans,

We're running an unusual virtual ops this time to give participants who have more modern intermodal equipment a chance to show their stuff!   While the Kings Port Division is firmly rooted in the Penn Central era (1968-76) and has few intermodal cars, its fun to see what other folks are coming up with for this run.

I'm following up Neal's first post of two.  He encouraged me to post my installment and he'll follow up with his second one.  

See his intermodal work here:
Neal's first post 

The Kings Port Division's meager contribution to this series consists of these three TOFCs seen here at Williams Yard.

A pair of KP&W switchers moves the cars out of Williams Yard to set them out on an interchange track for later pick up (much later!) by a CSX intermodal train!

Meanwhile the Kings Port Railfan society has found themselves a good vantage point to watch the set-out.

The guys lament the limited intermodal operations that can be seen on the Kings Port Division.

Later at Volstead's Tavern the guys try to imagine what intermodal rail service might be like in the coming decades.  Benny, the most imaginative of the group, proposes the possibility of time travel as a way of finding out.  After a few rounds the other guys become enthusiastic about the idea.

A few days later Benny surprises everyone by claiming to have devised a time travel device that he has installed in his VW Bug!  Its a flux something or other...  According to Benny's calculations they need to get the little car up to 88 MPH to activate the device and see the future!  Starting near the engine yard the guys pile in the VW and Benny hits the gas!

  Speeding along at 55....60...65...70...75...80..85 MPH...!

"Get ready for the flash!" shouts Benny!

Oh, there's a flash all right...from the lights on top of a K.P.P.D, patrol car!   The Kings Port Railfan society finds themselves busted.   Seems like the only thing they'll be seeing in the immediate future is the inside of a cell.  Hope they memorized the number on the bail bond sign on top of Volstead's Tavern!

You, however, can get a good view of intermodal rail traffic in the future beyond the PC era by staying tuned to these blogs!

John R.'s Blog
John B.'s Blog
Neal's Blog 
Brian's Blog 

Meanwhile these TOFCs are ready to join their more modern counterparts.

P.C.C.M. 52D: loaded gons return to KP Steel

Hello all,

If you've been following the latest virtual op between my layout and the N.Y.C.T.L. you know that several empty gondolas were picked up from KP Steel to be loaded with scrap metal by Gershow Recycling.  John's previous blog posts followed the empties being handed off to the L.I.R.R. for delivery to Gershow, and his latest entry features the string of loaded gons now heading back to the Kings Port Division. Take a look below:

 Loaded gons return behind a pair of GP30s!

The great looking GP30s were switched out at Selkirk and sent back home to Terminal Yard.  Power and crew replacement provided an F7A-B-B set at the head end of this special gon train.    After leaving Selkirk Extra #1805 is seen arriving at KP&W's Williams Yard.

The Penn Central crew sets out the string of gons on three Williams Yard tracks

After setting out all of the loaded gons the PC consist grabs its caboose and runs light to the joint PC/KP&W locomotive facility in Kings Port.  See the consist moving out here:

The Penn Central power rests in the locomotive servicing yard...

..while KP&W RS3 #566 is assigned The Steel Job which involves shoving the string of gons from Williams Yard to KP Steel.

The yard crew likes reliable #566 which seems more powerful than its rating.   It should have no problem pushing these cars.

The shove move is well protected at Ulster Ave.

A KP&W transfer caboose ("one of them...) is seen emerging from the yard entrance with a crewman observing from the rear porch.

See #566 leave Williams Yard on the shove below:

 ...and see it cross Ulster Ave...

Once the train reaches KP Steel the caboose is cut and cars are shoved into the Steel Mill's holding yard.

RS3 #566 provides the final push to set out the last of the loaded gons.  

The engineer and conductor confer and then couple up the loco and caboose as they wait for a Penn Central oil train to pass before returning to Williams Yard.   

See the oil train pass by #566 here:

See RS3 #566 head for home

The Steel Job is completed.   14 gondolas loaded with scrap metal await KP Steel's Basic Oxygen Furnace.

Thanks for following along!

Going! Going!! GONS!!!

 Hello everyone!

This is a special brief P.C.C.M. #52 between the N.Y.C.T.L. and the Kings Port Division.  John R. recently posted about several scrap loads he made for his fleet of gondolas so we've decided to run a virtual op of a long string of empty gons leaving Kings Port for Gershow Recycling in Medford NY (which is served by the L.I.R.R.) where they will be loaded and returned to the steel mill.

Several empty gondolas sit in KP Steel's holding yard.

There are only a few carloads of scrap left to supply the new Basic Oxygen Furnace at KP Steel so its important to move those empties!

Williams Yard sends out a pair of GP9s to pick up the empty gons.

Arriving at KP Steel the KP&W units couple up with the first cut of cars.

The Geeps notch it up to pull the first cut out

...and then back up to pick up the second group.

All coupled up, the long string of gons is ready to be pulled to Williams Yard.

See the KP&W haul the cars out in this video.

After the cars were set out at Williams Yard the Geeps take off. The gondolas will be eventually added to Penn Central train WV-2 that is coming from Weehawken to pick them up for Selkirk.

 WV-2 arrives at Kings Port.

A set of KP&W switchers prepares to shove the gons onto the back end of WV-2

See WV-2 arrive at Kings Port and Williams Yard in this video.

The switchers push the cut of gons into WV-2

After the PC caboose is tacked onto the back end and air pressure checks are completed WV-2 proceeds to Selkirk where the gons will be sent to Terminal Yard and forwarded to its L.I.R.R. connection for Gershow Recycling in Medford NY.

Stay tuned to John's blog to see what happens next!