Penn Central Car Movement #44D: Meet Me at West Mill!

"Meet Me at West Mill" sounds like an old movie title but the actors in this play are two unit coal trains sent from two separate layouts that will arrive at West Mill from two different directions!

If you've been following the series so far, Train UHC-1 dispatched from Weehawken with empty coal hoppers for Hudson Coal has arrived at West Mill and is about to pick up some additional hoppers for the trip to Selkirk.  The two U Boats pull a few cars with them and then do a back and forth move to pick up the cut from West Mill

The West Mill cut of hoppers is added to the train.

Meanwhile, manifest freight WV-2, which was last seen passing through West Mill shortly after UHC-1 arrived, has reached Kings Port.

Coming from the opposite end of Kings Port is UHC-2, a unit coal train of loaded hoppers from Hudson Coal that will be heading south to Weehawken with eventual transfer to Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R. 

UHC-2 has orders to wait at Kings Port for train WV-2.   Behold the Almighty Form 19!

While they wait for VW-2 to pass, the crew on UHC-2 confers about one of the locomotives in their five unit consist.  The end unit, an aging F7A #1802 is acting up. 

WV-2 passes through Kings Port at a respectable 45 MPH

 ...and meets the waiting UHC-2....

UHC-2 is clear to proceed but the engineer and conductor are pretty concerned about #1802.   The other four units are able to carry this train to Weehawken with the possible exception of mastering the grade to Marion, the summit of the Kings Port Division.

Not liking to risk excessive wheel slip on the hill to Marion, a call is made to the Williams Yard locomotive facility to send a pair of helpers to shove UHC-2 upgrade to Marion.  The job is assigned to a pair of FP7s; #4369 and #4348.

The helper set is in place and last minute agreements are made prior to departure.  The helpers will couple on the fly as the train slowly rolls out of Kings Port.

UHC-2 gets underway...

F7A #1802 has officially conked out and is deadheading now...

The helper set prepares to catch up to the train...

...and couples on behind the caboose.

With help from the two FP7s, UHC-2 successfully climbs to the top of the Kings Port Division near Hedberg Aggregates...

...and the FP7 helpers cut off at MM Tower...Thanks guys!!

....and return to Kings Port.  UHC-2 should be able to make it the rest of the way now.  

The loaded unit coal train arrives safely at West Mill...

....with four out of five units working...

  
...and meets its empty doppelganger, UHC-1.

Loads pass empties as UHC-2 rolls through West Mill.

UHC-2 leaves West Mill for Weehawken.

All opposing traffic clear, UHC-1 gets the high sign to proceed to Selkirk where the cars will be forwarded to Terminal Yard for eventual loading at Hudson Coal.

UHC-1 with empties is headed North!  UHC-2 with loads is headed South!  This completes the Kings Port Division's role in this series.  With trains approaching Neal's and John's layouts, be sure to follow the action on their respective blogs!

Neal's A.P.R.R.:
 http://atlanticpacificrailroad.blogspot.com/

John's N.Y.C.T.L.:
 https://newyorkcentrallayout.blogspot.com/2018/02/penn-central-car-movement-44b.html

Thanks for following the action at West Mill!

Penn Central Car Movement #44C: UHC-1 Arrives at West Mill

Greetings all!

The latest virtual ops series between three layouts that we call Penn Central Car Movements (P.C.C.M.s) is focusing on two unit coal trains, one empty (UHC-1) and one fully loaded (UHC-2).     The former (UHC-1) is a train of empty coal hoppers dispatched from Neal's Atlantic Pacific R.R. for Hudson Coal on John R.'s New York Central Train Layout.   The latter (UHC-2) is a train of loaded hoppers from Hudson Coal heading to Neal's layout for consignees such as R.M.O. Electric Company.   So, we have trains coming from both directions heading toward West Mill Yard on my layout.  


See the action begin as UHC-1 departs Neal's layout:
http://atlanticpacificrailroad.blogspot.com/2018/02/pccm-44a-empty-coal-train-from-rmo.html

...and check out UHC-2 departing from John's:
https://newyorkcentrallayout.blogspot.com/2018/02/penn-central-car-movement-44b.html  

The red signal at the south end of town warns of the approach of Unit Train Hudson Coal-1 (UHC-1) from Weehawken.

Headed by U28C #6533, the same unit seen in Neal's blog post about UHC-1 leaving Weehawken,  the train slows as it approaches West Mill.

The long string of empties slowly rolls by.

Cappy Foster, Yardmaster at West Mill, sends out one of his minions to talk to the crew in #6533.  Its stopped about 200 yards past the tower.  "A good way to get some exercise!",  promises Cappy.

The plan is for UHC-1 to pick up a few more empty hoppers here...

 ...but while preparing to make that move, manifest freight WV-2 (Weehawken to Selkirk) which has been running hot right behind the coal train is expected to pass by any minute.

 Another red indication on the signal tower heralds WV-2's arrival.

WV-2's lead unit overtakes UHC-1.

WV-2 continues through West Mill toward Selkirk.

WV-2 approaches WM tower and an ACI scanner that will track the cars on its much touted computer system...which works great as long as the ACI plaques on the cars aren't covered with dirt!  WM's towerman has come down from the tower for a visual roll-by inspection.

As WV-2's caboose passes by, WM's towerman completes his roll-by inspection and heads back upstairs. 

That's it for now!   Next up:  UHC-2 arrives from the North to set up "Meet Me at West Mill!"