Greetings All,
By 1970 the Penn Central realized it did no good to run the wheels off a train out on the road and then have it wait outside of town for yard space. Penn Central's yards at this time and throughout their existence were places for derailments and delays. The two 1970 orders for 19 2300 HP GE U23Cs recognized this and they were intended for use as hump engines however both the U23Cs and SD38s did see infrequent work as road power to clean the accumulated carbon deposits out of their engines.
I added PC U23C #6718 to my fleet back in January 2020 and although pleased with it's performance I always felt Terminal Yard would be better served with a pair of such units.
Penn Central U23C #6710 has arrived in Terminal Yard. Like the 6718 it is an Athearn BB U28C product. The donor shell from my purgatory box received a change of numbers and some yellow paint. 
In other yard assignments the U23Cs easily handle this seven car cut coming out of Terminal Warehouse and Cold Storage
These Athearn U Boats with their large flywheel equipped motors provide good power and nice slow running capabilities. Changing their numbers to the U23C 6700 series and adding some painted details gives them a proper look for yard service.
Thanks for reading and watching!!!
See ya soon!!!
Nice work on the U23C engine! They look good in cosnsist and show they have no issues pulling those cars. It was neat to see those RF&P box cars. They look good with those bi letters on them.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the compliments Sir Neal!!!
ReplyDelete#6710 looks great coupled to its sister unit! Nice work on the yellow railings, steps, and the unique safety panels these units sported. 1/87th Big Mike and his buddies might dislike the big GEs but it looks like the six axle U Boats will earn their keep at Terminal Yard!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ralph!!! We know how Big Mike feels about the U Boats but I think Robert R and Alco Joe sometimes known as GE Joe will appreciate the new unit.
DeleteHello John! Great work on your latest U23C unit remanufacturing! While reading and looking at your photos, I could just hear the sound of a 12 cylinder FDL prime mover chugging in my mind.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the compliments Robert R!!! Much appreciated!
DeleteP.S. I do recall from one JPM Railroad video where Big Mike said the crews DID like the D&H U33c's.
ReplyDeleteLook at that! In the Mike Bednar - Jerry Hoare oral histories Big Mike and Jerry lambasted the U Boats and praised the SD40-2s.
DeleteYes, I remember that video, quite a good one. I remember Jerry saying that the GE's he ran were slow loading and then you would have to throttle back because they would over compensate. Mike said those old U23B's were worn out when he ran them on the Reading & Northern. I'm guessing the U33C's on the D&H were a much improved model.
DeleteVery true! Mike reports the engineer on the new LV U23Bs told him GE should have stuck to toasters which made me laugh. I think this was in Bednar #5. Whatever their prejudices were towards the GE units it may just been that the GEs were different from the dominant EMDs of the time.
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