Former PRR F7A & B set is seen on the Kings Port Division!

 Hello!

 As I have occasionally commented to my friend John R. of the New York Central Train Layout fame, I was only "innocently scrolling through eBay" when I came across something to buy!  This time it was a Bachmann Plus Pennsylvania Railroad freight  F7 A&B set listed at a very reasonable price.    Not really needing another couple of locomotives I watched with some interest but let the auction end with the units unsold.  I was surprised that no one bid on them and told myself that if they appeared for sale again I would make an offer.  

 A few weeks later my patience paid off as the locos did indeed appear for sale at the same low price.  I tried to avoid attracting attention to them and waited until the auction's last ten minutes to bid the original asking price...and I won!  I was astounded that no one else bid on these nice looking and smooth running locos in two auctions.   Mine, I think!  :)

Bachmann Plus F units have the reputation for running smoothly and pulling respectable tonnage.  I've been very pleased with a pair of B&O Bachmann Plus units that I bought on eBay a few years ago.  Here they are seen on a coal drag at West Mill.

The seller sent the PRR F units immediately and I was pleased to test them on the Kings Port Division within a few days of purchase.  Here they shine in their Pennsylvania livery circa 1955.

I replaced the horn hook couplers in the front and back of the set.  (I ran out of couplers to change out the ones connecting the A&B together!) and tested the units with several coal hoppers.  The pair ran great!
 

 

I didn't want to paint these nice looking locomotives PC dip black but did want to include them in my Penn Central era roster.  Fortunately conversations with John, and a little research, revealed that several PRR F7s renumbered with larger yellow "conforming numbers" in anticipation of the Penn Central merger kept their original paint jobs for a while in the PC era.   An example of one still in PRR livery but with newer numbers can be seen  Here 

John provided me with information that the PRR and NYC agreed to start numbering their locomotives in a cooperative scheme two or three years prior to the merger.  Apparently the plan was to adopt a joint numbering sequence by locomotive class, with the road having the greatest number of any particular units be the guide for numbers selected.    The New York Central rostered more F7s so their numbering sequence for those units was adopted by the Pennsylvania.    PRR F units absorbed into the Penn Central were numbered 1440-1538 and 1900-1906.    

Here are a couple more photos of PRR FA and B units in the early merger scheme.

PRR F7A

PRR F7B 

Using their numbers and John's information as guides, I created F7A #1485 and F7B #3516.   Numbers on the F7As seem to have been located with classic Penn Central variety on either the lower panel as shown in the photo or above the stripe in the location that became more standard PC practice with their black units.  ACI plaques have been added to both.

The two former PRR units are showing their age and deferred maintenance as part of the Penn Central on the Kings Port Division.

I'll be testing this set with other Bachmann units for potential lashups on my DC layout.  A little locomotive shell switching lets me run this early merger GP30 with the F7s.  John notes that both later NYC and PRR locomotives tended to be more simply painted to make post-merger changes easier and less expensive.  GP30 #2212 sports only the small Keystones as identification.

 Now I can run my latest acquisitions on my PC era layout while other black dipped locos look on.  I still needed to change the number boards on the F7A when this photo was taken.  The previous owner did a nice job on them but....

 

Here we go!   I printed off numbers using Microsoft Word and glued them on.

  Here is the set running with a PC F7A.

Thanks for taking a look!  Expect to see #1485 and #3516 make occasional appearances in future P.C.C.M.s!

 

 

P.C.C.M. 78 Grain op 3!

 Hi railfans!

Well, once again I'm posting about the grain op that I missed because of an internet service outage.  Here is the last installment I would have posted at the time if I could have.

I'm hearing that my videos don't seem to play and that this is becoming a problem for others using Blogger.  Not sure what's up.  I apologise if the videos in this post do not work and hope to hear about a "fix" soon!

Meanwhile, on with the original post:

Yesterday a unit grain train was dispatched from West Mill to Selkirk an eventually to Terminal Yard on John's  New York Central Train Layout .   The cars were forwarded to Terminal Yard's Pier 16 and the massive elevator there.

After unloading, the cars are quickly returned to their home layouts.   Here we are at Ulster Ave in Kings Port waiting with a Super 8 camera to capture the returning unit train.

It will be coming from under the overpass on the north side of town in the distance. 

A horn is heard, but from the opposite direction.  A mixed freight is heading toward Selkirk on Track 2.   Watch the northbound roll by before the grain train blasts southbound through Kings Port on its way to West Mill.  Hmmmm....looks like either giant spiders or tent caterpillars built a nest on the crossbuck!  The video below was filmed with my iPhone instead of my old Cannon and it seems every detail is clear to see!  An extermination crew subcontracted by the Penn Central took care of it after this video was posted!

By the way, the northbound was powered by an F7A-B-A consist with the first two units still in their pre-merger PRR livery but with conforming numbers applied in anticipation of the PC merger.   Their story will be featured in a future blog post.

Later in the afternoon the grain train arrives at West Mill, headed by the same pair of six axle U Boats assigned at Terminal Yard.

Several empty grain cars roll into West Mill for later forwarding to other destinations.   That concludes this special unit grain op! Thanks for following along!

Check out the action on Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R.  as empty grain cars are returning to his layout as well!

P.C.C.M. 78 Grain Op 2!

 Hey everyone!

We're running a grain train as our 78th Penn Central Car Movement series, that we refer to as  our "virtual ops" between John's New York Central Train Layout , Neal's Atlantic Pacific RR , and my own Kings Port Division.   

Actually I'm very late to the party because of an internet outage that eventually led me to change our provider.  I'm back online today and want to send out my parts of the grain ops. 
 

So...back to the post as originally written along time ago!

Yesterday several loaded grain cars were brought into West Mill Yard to be assembled into a unit grain train for Selkirk and eventually Terminal Yard on the N.Y.C.T.L.

The yard's SW9 gets to work putting the train together.

 Power for this train will be handled by a trio of GP38-2s which couple up to the first cut and pull it forward to grab the second half of the train.

 The trio of Geeps pulls the first string and then backs it into the next track to pick up the rest of the cars.

 The covered hoppers heading to Selkirk are all coupled together. SW9 #8951 tacks on a caboose to make this an official train.

Watch the unit grain train leave West Mill for Selkirk in the video below:

Watch what happens next on John's New York Central Train layout!

Keep an eye on the Kings Port Division and the A.P.R.R. as those grain cars will be quickly returned as empties!

P.C.C.M. 78 Grain Train op!

 Hello,

Its been a while since we featured a unit Grain Train in our "virtual ops"!   In this single weekend Penn Central Car Movement series (P.C.C.M.) we're shipping several cars loaded with grain to the massive elevator at Terminal Yard's Pier 16 on John's  New York Central Train Layout .   Neal's Atlantic Pacific RR will join my Kings Port Division in forwarding multiple covered hoppers to Terminal Yard.

 Before dispatching a unit grain train from West Mill to Selkirk with cars for Terminal Yard those cars need to get to West Mill first!  We'll see three trains bring a variety of covered hoppers loaded with grain into West Mill Yard.  The first is the Bloomberg Turn that operates out of West Mill, serving the Catskill Mountain community of Bloomberg.  Watch as as the train's GP20/GP30 consist picks up cars from the local elevator.  Most of today's action is on video provided by grain train railfans!

The Turn arrives back at West Mill with grain hoppers in tow 
 

Watch the Turn shove the first string of covered hoppers for this op into West Mill Yard.

 

 

The locomotives are cut from the train and head to the engine service track:

 

After the Turn's power is out of the way SW9 #8951 gets the call to pick up several loaded grain cars at nearby Empire Grain.

After pulling the grain cars out of Empire Grain the cut is pushed back onto the main to access the Yard Entrance.

 

Watch the SW9 bring the cars into the yard, now doubling the number that will eventually head to Selkirk and Terminal Yard.

 
Later in the afternoon the daily KP&W transfer from Mayfield Yard, Extra #566, brings in more covered hoppers.

 

Two cuts of grain hoppers can be seen in the foreground waiting for the next string to join them.

 Watch the KP&W RS3/F7B consist bring the covered hoppers in from Mayfield.

 

 

 

The Mayfield Transfer cuts its caboose and backs the string into the Yard.

The last string of grain cars for Selkirk/Terminal Yard is delivered to West Mill Yard.

 

The yard is now full of grain cars!  Stay tuned tomorrow as they are assembled into a a unit grain train and dispatched to Selkirk!