Happy Holidays From the Kings Port Division!

 A cold Christmas Eve at West Mill and a Penn Central manifest is seen rolling out of town.  The crew looks forward to Christmas Day off but has to finish this run first.   

Stay warm and healthy this Holiday Season!

PCCM 89 Part 4 on the KPD

 Hello there!

This is the Kings Port Division's 4th installment in this special Holiday Unit Coal Train Op with John's New York Central Train Layout, and Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R..  In previous installments empty hoppers were sent to John's Terminal Yard to be forwarded for loading at Hudson Coal.  The cars are now filled with anthracite and heading back to their consignees. 

The Kings Port & Western is preparing the next WiBi-3 (Williams Yard to Binghamton) transfer run.   The train will include eight hoppers for Corning Glass Company.  They can be seen behind a string of empty hoppers below

Things are quiet in Kings Port for now.  The only signs of trains are six loaded hoppers for KP Steel on the interchange track which have been split into two groups on either side of Ulster Ave.

The KP&W, often short on motive power, dispatched today's WiBi with a B&M loaner F7A in the consist    Watch the WiBi leave Kings Port while a pair of switchers from Williams Yard comes out to deliver loaded hoppers to KP Steel.

The switchers position themselves to shove the two groups of three hoppers together.  They will then be pulled out for a runaround that will allow them to be pushed into KP Steel's holding yard.

 Follow the runaround and delivery action in the video below:

Meanwhile the WiBi has reached West Mill and continues on its way to Binghamton.  Hoppers for the power plant at Port Owen are are seen in the foreground, ready for their journey on the car float.

The next day the loaded hoppers for Corning Glass are delivered.

Completing the cycle of hopper movements the tug Robert H. takes the car float to Port Owen

After unloading the car float SD9 #6925 delivers the six hoppers to Con Edison.

That concludes the Kings Port Division's role in the Unit Train Coal Op...but wait!  Look who's coming home!    SD9 #6922 was repairable after all and is seen arriving in a power run from Selkirk.

Things are back to normal with the West Mill locomotive roster.   Twin RSD12s #6869 and 6865 are coupled together...

...and SD9 #6922 has returned to its usual duty working the car float.

Thanks for following along and Happy Holidays!

 

 

PCCM 89: Part 3 on the KPD (Incoming unit coal train!)

Welcome back!

Earlier this weekend  Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R. and my Kings Port Division got Penn Central Car Movements #89 started by assembling and dispatching trains of empty coal hoppers to John's New York Central Train Layout where they were forwarded to Hudson Coal for loading.

Now its time to follow the unit coal trains returning to their points of origin so the loaded hoppers can be delivered to various consignees in need of anthracite!

Things are deceptively quiet at Kings Port but railfans know this is often a hot spot for observing trains.  

Watch as things pick up with the arrival of a KP&W RDC heading to Williams Yard station carrying railroad company employees as passengers.   After the RDC clears the crossing automobile traffic on Ulster Ave. has to wait for the arrival of Extra 4369, the loaded unit coal train dispatched from Terminal Yard.

The train comes to a stop and the caboose is cut to prepare for the set out of several cars here.

The train pulls ahead of the switch to the Williams Yard lead track and is now ready to shove eight of the hoppers into Williams Yard

Watch the action in the video below:

These eight cars will be forwarded to Binghamton by the KP&W for eventual delivery to Corning Glass Company for their power plant. After they are cut from the train in Williams Yard Extra 4369 pulls forward to efficiently set out six cars for KP Steel.

Six cars about to be dropped off at the interchange for KP Steel.

Three are placed on north side of Ulster Ave....

 

 ...while the other three are set out to the south of the grade crossing.

After the set outs are completed the FP7s and remaining coal hoppers return to the waiting caboose.

Extra 4369 prepares to proceed to West Mill to deliver the last of its string of coal hoppers.  The remaining six cars will be placed on the car float for a trip to the Con Ed. plant at Port Owen

Watch Extra 4369 wait for a northbound manifest to Selkirk before departing south for West Mill in the video below:

A half hour later MM Tower reports the train passing Marion....

 ...and it arrives at West Mill forty five minutes after that.   The yard crew wastes no time pulling the caboose so the hoppers can be quickly placed on the car float for Port Owen.

RSD12 #6865  is still assuming car float duty while SD9 #6922 is being repaired at Selkirk. 

Watch the Alco set the six hoppers on the float in the video below:

The float will shove off for Port Owen soon!

That's it for today!   Stay tuned tomorrow when the hoppers are set out at the Con Ed power plant in Port Owen while Williams Yard dispatches a WiBi (Williams Yard transfer to Binghamton) with hoppers for Corning Glass Company!

PCM89 Unit Coal Train op Part 2 on the KPD

 Hi again!

In this installment of our annual Holiday Time Unit Coal Train Op featuring John's New York Central Train Layout , Neal's  Atlantic Pacific R.R., and my own Kings Port Division we'll follow a unit train of empty coal hoppers dispatched from West Mill to Selkirk. 

Yesterday West Mill's SD9 #6922 suffered mechanical failure and a fire while working the car float.  It has since cooled off and will be added to the consist of the unit coal train as far as Selkirk where it can hopefully be repaired at the large shops there.

FP7s #4348 and 4396 pull the deadheading SD9 out of the engine track and prepare to couple up to the empty coal hoppers waiting in the yard.

Air pressure is pumped and connections are checked.   Watch the train identified as Extra #4348 pull out of West Mill and later arrive in Kings Port in the video below:

Extra #4348 prepares to pick up the six empty hoppers from KP Steel that were set out on the interchange track.  The locomotives, including deadheading #6922, are uncoupled from the train.

 Watch the pick up in the video below:

The cut of empty hoppers from KP Steel completes the manifest for this unit train to Terminal Yard.   After the air is pumped up Extra 4348 departs for Selkirk where it will drop off the deadheading SD9.

 Arriving later at Selkirk the twin FP7s slow to a stop to drop off SD9 #6922 so it can be taken to the Selkirk Shops for repair.

The damaged unit is set out on the next track....

...and the Extra's FP7s return to haul the empty hoppers the rest of the way to Terminal Yard.

That's it for the KPD's outbound unit train of empty coal hoppers!   Check John's blog to see how the N.Y.C.T.L. handles all of the traffic coming its way for Hudson Coal!

Come back to see loaded hoppers return to the Kings Port Division!

PCCM 89 Coal Op! Part 1 on the KPD

 Hello everyone!

Its time for what is becoming a virtual ops tradition; our annual Holiday Time Unit Coal Trains!   John's New York Central Train Layout, Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R. , and my own Kings Port Division will be sending empty coal hoppers to Hudson Coal on John's N.Y.C.T.L. for loading.  The coal hoppers will then make their way back to various consignees in need of the anthracite!  

On the Kings Port Division the first string of empty hoppers is pulled from the Con Ed. power plant at Port Owen.

 Watch the action in Port Owen in the video below:

After a short trip to Port Owen's car float yard the hoppers are loaded for the river journey to West Mill.

Forty five minutes after casting off, the tug boat Robert H. brings the car float into West Mill.

West Mill's usual power for the car float, SD9 #6922, prepares to pull the six empty hoppers from Port Owen.

West Mill we have a problem!  Watch as #6922 develops serious mechanical issues and needs to be rescued by RSD12 #6865!

SD9 #6922 is set aside to smoke and cool down after the fire was put out by West Mill crews.  It will later deadhead to Selkirk for repairs.

RSD12 #6865 takes over responsibility for unloading the car float.  A caboose hop arrives at West Mill while the coal hoppers are pushed into the yard.  Watch the action in the video below:

 The first string of coal hoppers is set out at West Mill.

The next group of coal hoppers comes from Corning Glass Co.  The eight empty cars in the background were set out loaded with coal for Corning's power plant in the last PCCM.   

They are picked up by a KP&W GP9 that will take them to Binghamton to be put on the next transfer to Williams Yard.

The next day BiWi-2 from Binghamton is dispatched with the eight empty coal hoppers in the first block to be set out at West Mill on the way to Williams Yard.  Watch the KP&W train arrive in the video below:

 

 The coal hoppers for West Mill are cut from the train.

The BiWi's power pulls the string of hoppers away from the rest of the train and beyond the West Mill Yard entrance.

The last hopper in the string can be seen waiting at the yard entrance switch.

Watch the hoppers get the shove into West Mill and couple up with the string from Port Owen in the video below:

The two cuts of hoppers now form one long string at West Mill.

The twin KP&W F7As separate from the coal hoppers and return to the BiWi...

...couple up to the train...

...and continue their trip to Williams Yard near Kings Port.

There are now 14 coal hoppers at West Mill ready to become a train for Hudson Coal but six more empty hoppers will be added when the coal train arrives at Kings Port.  They are seen sitting in KP Steel's holding yard below:

Two KP Steel switchers team up to pull the six hoppers to the KP&W/PC interchange track for pick up later.

Watch the diminutive KP Steel power pull the hoppers while a southbound freight passes by in the foreground in the video below:

Six empty coal hoppers now sit on the interchange waiting to be picked up by the unit coal train that will be dispatched from West Mill.

Stay tuned tomorrow when the train leaves West Mill, picks up the cars on the interchange, and heads to Selkirk!