PCCM 91: Part 6 on the KPD

 Hello once again!

Welcome to the penultimate installment of the Kings Port Division's involvement in our 91st Penn Central Car Movement "virtual ops" with John's New York Central Train Layout , and Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R..

We've been following trains dispatched from one layout to the next and are managing the deliveries of freight cars to their consignees.    Looking at the Penn Central's West Mill Yard, switcher #8951 is assembling a Northbound Local and a "Turn" for Bloomberg.  The P&LE gon loaded with scrap will be set out at nearby Sal's Salvage.

Cargill TDLX #7241 is empty for Blue Ribbon Flour while PC boxcar #77047 is full of pallets for Woodstock Hills Natural Soda.

IC boxcar #30130 is empty for Woodstock Hills while the old Pacemaker is carrying drums of Drywell Ink for the Catskill Mt. Press.

RI boxcar #35062 is also carrying ink for Catskill Mt. Press.  The Dresser Magcobar car is hauling the first load of bentonite being sent to Bloomberg's Agway.

KP&W #30112 and #30115 are empty for Zenith TV.

After some maneuvering the switcher has assembled two separate cuts of cars.  The Bloomberg Turn is in the background while the Northbound Local sits on the nearest track starting with the scrap gon.

Two of the cars forwarded by the APRR and N.Y.C.T.L. respectively are NYC #47062 loaded with steel banding and EL #73510 loaded with bagged iron ore. Both are going to take the trip down river on the car float to Port Owen Brick Company.  They are set on the track next to the car float to wait for the arrival of a coal run from Mayfield with more cars for the float.  

Watch the Mayfield Coal Transfer arrive at West Mill with hoppers for the car float in the video below:

After the coal hoppers from Mayfield are dropped off SD9 #6922 is fired up for car float duty. 

 It pulls its three spacer cars off the car float lead and backs them into the EL and NYC boxcars.

The two boxcars are then coupled to the string of newly arrived hoppers.

The eight car string is then pulled forward to access the car float lead...

...and the cars are slowly pushed onto the float a pair at a time on alternate sides to maintain the float's balance.

After the cars were placed on the float and locked down the captain of the tug boat Robert H. prepares to shove off for the 45 minute trip to Port Owen where the box cars will be delivered to Port Owen Brick and the hoppers to the Con Ed power plant there.

With the car float work completed, the yard crew turns its attention to the Bloomberg Turn (WmB-1) which serves an industrial park in the Catskills.   West Mill Yard policy is to dispatch the Turn when at least five cars are scheduled to be delivered to businesses up there.  As a reminder, today's manifest includes six cars with:

IC #30130 going empty to Van Winkle Canning

NYC Pacemaker loaded with Drywell ink for Catskill Mt. Press

RI #35062 also loaded with ink for Catskill Mt. Press

NIRX #42868 (Dresser Magcobar) loaded with Bentonite for Agway

KP&W 30112 & 30115 Empty for Zenith TV

The yard switcher tacks a caboose at the end of the Turn.

Watch the train back out of West Mill powered by its usual pair of GP20s in the video below:

 The Turn backs beyond the yard lead to access the mainline

After getting clearance to proceed, the Bloomberg Turn takes the branch line off the main to the Catskills and meets a Penn Central Weehawken-to-Selkirk power run before leaving town.

It takes about an hour to climb the mountains to the Bloomberg Industrial Park where cars are delivered to:

Van Winkle Canning Co....

...Catskill Mt. Press...

...Agway...

....and Zenith TV.

 Come back tomorrow for the final installment as the Northbound Local delivers the last of the cars in this series on the Kings Port Division.

PCCM 91: Part 5 on the KPD

 Hello again!

We're in the "inbound" parts of our 91st Penn Central Car Movements, the virtual ops between John's New York Central Train Layout , Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R. , and my own Kings Port Division layout.

Cars for Kings Port industries were set out on the KP&W/ PC interchange track yesterday.   Today the Kings Port & Western is managing the deliveries.  PC boxcar #229046 at the end of the string seen below is loaded with Berk Enterprises packaging for Blue Ribbon Flour.  The four empty coil coaches are going to KP Steel.

A switching consist of an S12 and two SW9s is sent from Williams Yard to handle the local set outs as The Kings Port Job.

Watch the KP&W units arrive on the scene and push the cut of cars toward Blue Ribbon Flour.

After the PC boxcar is set out, the coil coaches are moved so the switchers can get behind them for the shove into KP Steel's complex.

Watch the runaround move in the video below:

The coil coaches are delivered to KP Steel.

After The Kings Port Job has been completed, today's WiBi to Binghamton, NY (WiBi-4) leaves Williams Yard under F7A&B power, heading toward West Mill where it will pick up a few more cars on the way.  Watch it meet the returning switchers as it leaves Kings Port.  Note the eight coal hoppers on the train for Corning Glass Co., sent from John's Hudson Coal.

As the WiBi works its way to West Mill Yard the crew there prepares a cut of cars the KP&W train will pick up for its run to Binghamton.  Three PC RBLs and an NYC Hi Cube from the APPR's Rock Ridge Yard arrived at West Mill the other day.  The PC cars are loaded with shipping crates from Mike's Lumber for IBM.  The Hi Cube is also going to IBM, loaded with hardware from American Hardware.

Yard switcher #8951 takes the four cars out of the yard and sets them out on a siding next to the mainline for pick up by the KP&W.

 Here they are pulled past the yard entrance switch near WM Tower

...and then backed into the siding next to the mainline for the WiBi.

An hour later WiBi-4 arrives at West Mill and picks up the cars for IBM in the video below:

After the pick up is made connections are tested and the air is pumped for departure to Binghamton.

Watch the WiBi leave West Mill with the IBM cut in the front of the train and the hoppers for Corning Glass Co. at the rear in the video below:

After arriving in Binghamton the three PC RBLs loaded with shipping crates and the NYC Hi Cube loaded with hardware are placed on a local serving IBM...

...While the eight loaded coal hoppers are forwarded to Corning Glass Co.

That concludes the KP&W's part in this series!  Check back tomorrow as the Penn Central forwards freight cars sitting in West Mill Yard.

PCCM 91: Part 4 on the KPD

Welcome back "virtual ops" fans!   

We're starting the "inbound" posts of our 91st Penn Central Car Movements Series which this time is a three layout affair with John's New York Central Train Layout ,  Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R., and my own Kings Port Division layout.

The Kings Port Division dispatched a combined 41 freight cars to the APRR and N.Y.C.T.L. last week.  This week it will be receiving a total of 34 in return.

Seven of those cars will be arriving this morning at West Mill from Neal's Rock Ridge Yard.  The cars were dispatched on Penn Central Extra 6510  to Selkirk that will stop at West Mill to drop off the cut.

Watch the string of cars roll into West Mill and get pushed into the yard in the video below:

Cars in the APRR cut now sitting in West Mill Yard include:

KP&W boxcars #30112 and #30115 empty for Zenith TV

NYC #47062 Loaded with steel banding from Shapeless Steel for Port Owen Brick Co. 

NYC Hi Cube #173861 loaded with American Hardware for IBM

 PC #229059, #229178, and #229300 loaded with shipping crates from Mike's Lumber for IBM.  

Let's leave West Mill for now and switch over to Selkirk.  We see a distinctive looking Dresser Magcobar car NIRX #42868 making its debut in our virtual ops!  The car was shipped from Texas and arrived at Selkirk on train NY-6 from East St. Louis.   Its currently waiting to be added to a train to West Mill Yard.   The car is loaded with Bentonite clay for Agway in Bloomberg.

Train SK-5 dispatched from John's Terminal Yard is about to arrive at Selkirk.  The Dresser Magcobar car will be added to the cars coming in on this train. The train will be then be re-powered and dispatched to West Mill as VWm-6.

Watch Train SK-5 arrive at Selkirk.  Unfortunately our railfan's video coverage missed the impressive five unit consist John assigned to the train but did catch the rolling stock behind it starting with two empty Southern bulkhead flatcars.

The two bulkhead flats are cut from the train, as is an NYC covered hopper at the rear of the train.  The Southern bulkhead flats will be transferred to Mechanicville for eventual forwarding to Jackson Lumber in Lawrence, MA where they will be loaded with saw logs.

The NYC covered hopper will eventually find its way to Rock Ridge Yard.  It will be sent there on another train that Neal will refer to in his blog.

After the Dresser Magcobar car is added to the string of cars, the train gets a new consist for the run to West Mill Yard, an F7 A-B-B-A  set.

This train, now designated VWm-6, leaves Selkirk and is later seen arriving at Kings Port.

 

While VWm-6 reaches Kings Port the Southern bulkheads were put on NY-20, the transfer to Mechanicville.   The cars can be seen arriving at Mechanicville below.   From there they will travel to Jackson Lumber.

VWm-6, now stopped at Kings Port, prepares to set out several cars for the Kings Port & Western and local industries Blue Ribbon Flour and KP Steel. 

Four empty steel coil coaches for KP Steel...

 ...and PC #229046 loaded with Berk Enterprises packaging for Blue Ribbon Flour will be set out first.

Watch VWm-6 make the first set outs in the video below:

The next set out is a ten car cut for Williams Yard including eight loaded coal hoppers for Corning Glass Co. and two gons loaded with pipes for the Hudson Valley Ag Coop.   The hoppers will leave Williams Yard on the next transfer to Binghamton NY (the WiBi).  The gons will be unloaded at Williams Yard. 

Watch the big set out and see the F Units do a back and forth move to rejoin the rest of VWm-6 after that.

After the consists couples up to its train, VWm-6 gets permission to proceed to West Mill.  Follow its journey through Upper Kings Port Station and over the Division summit at Marion in the video below.  There's that cool Dresser Magcobar at the rear of the train.

Back at West Mill, the cars from Neal's APRR that were set out earlier by PC Extra 6510 wait for VWm-6 to arrive.

Watch VWm-6 roll into West Mill in the video below:

The crew in the caboose exit the cabin car and "go to beans".

West Mill's switcher #8951 pulls the empty caboose to the service track.

 The A-B-B-A consist crosses over to the next track and rolls past the train to get to the engine servicing area. 

All of the cars scheduled for the KPD in this series have now arrived with a combined 15 from the APRR and N.Y.C.T.L. at West Mill...

...along with two "intra-layout" cars; Cargill covered hopper TDLX #7241 heading empty to Blue Ribbon Flour and boxcar IC #30130 empty for Van Winkle Canning Co.

Four steel coil coaches for KP Steel and PC boxcar #229046 for Blue Ribbon Flour await attention on the Kings Port Interchange track...

...while eight coal hoppers for Corning Glass Co are about to be added to the next outgoing KP&W transfer to Binghamton, NY.

Meanwhile, KP&W and MCRR gons #2140 and #350623 are being unloaded for the Hudson Valley Ag Coop at Williams Yard.

That's probably more than enough action for this installment!  Check back tomorrow as PC and KP&W crews work to forward those cars to their respective consignees!