U-Boat sighting!!

Greetings Blog Followers,

Passengers at the Empire City Station were ecstatic to see four unit set of GE U-Boats leading a unit grain train through the station. Lead by a U28C 6533 the four unit consist made a great sight and passengers waiting on the platform were treated to a steady ground rumbling as these behemoths rolled through the station.

U28C Background... Built by General Electric in 1965-66. The locomotives were 65'6" in length and weighed in ay 183 tons. They boasted 2,800 HP. Although they weer not big sellers they paved the way for later offerings of six axles high horsepower diesels such as the GE U30Cwhich succeeded the U28C in 1966 and sold over 600 units.

On the layout the U-28Cs see service on high speed long haul freights just as their manufacturer intended them for. They are quite impressive in multiple lash ups and can handle my toughest assignments.

PC SD40 & GP40 haul priority freight train through Empire City

Greetings Blog Followers,

Track work in Empire City has resulted in many freight trains being rerouted through Empire City Station. Local rail fans have been able to catch a lot of the action and I'll be posting a few of their short videos over the next several days.

Sharks Swim into Empire City

Greetings Blog Followers,

This past week saw one on my Bachmann RF16A units suffer a mechanical failure for the second time in two months. The rear universal coupling has been separating from the metal shaft on top of the truck. This is a "press fit" and the only unit so far that has had this happen. After the first occurrence I press fit the coupling back into place and the engine ran fine for a few days. After the second time I added a little CA and hope this solves the issue. The RF16 diesel engines were made by Baldwin and nicknamed "Sharks" due to their appearance. They were powerful but somewhat unreliable. The New York Central Shark fleet was downgraded from road service to transfer service. On the New York Central Layout the "Sharks" still enjoy being assigned to priority freight trains.

Here is a short video of my NYC Sharks in action

Penn Central Power Move

Greetings Blog Followers,

A recent Penn Central power move was caught passing through Empire City Station yesterday.

Enjoy!

New Penn Central Diesels

Greetings Blog Followers,

The New York Central Layout Purchasing Department recently contracted with Neal M Diesel Consultants  to independently test one Bachmann DCC GP38-2 and one Bachmann DCC GP40. Upon completion of rigorous testing N.M.D.C. issued a satisfactory report and supplied links to facilitate the purchase of new engines.

The new PC diesels arrived on Father's Day and were put to the test today. Out of the box both the PC GP40 and GP38-2 ran well. The GP38-2 is a little more detailed than the GP40 and a little quieter as noted in the N.M.D.C. review report. Both ran well singly and M.U.ed. The diesels were assigned a 15 car freight train which they handled with ease.

Later in the day the Penn Central Train master authorized a none unit power move with the GP38-2 and GP40 providing the power. Once again the new diesels handled the assignment with ease.

 Bachmann DCC GP38-2 #8148 and GP40 #3007 lead a freight train on the upper level

Bachmann Plus GP35 #2320 rounds out the power trio 

EMD Power on point of freight train Two newest PC diesels facing forward with older GP35

PC GP38-2 #8148

Latest arrivals put right to work

Penn Central Power Move...GP38-2 on point with GP40 right behind

At the crossing just before entering Empire City Station

Two EMD F7s in the middle of the power move

 Two GE U-boats bring up the rear of the power move

A special guest tucked in between the EMS and GE units, an Alco RS2 

A trip to the real Empire City

Greetings Blog Followers,

Here are some pictures of my recent trip to the real Empire City in the Empire State

The Kings Highway Station

Local Coney Island bound Q train calls at Kings Highway

Express Coney Island bound B train stops at Kings Highway

 South bound B train leaving Kings Highway

The world famous Empire State Building

Trees Grow in Empire City

Greetings Blog Followers,

My New York Central Layout recently received about a dozen new trees made from the Sedum plant. The dried flowers were picked off the plant this past winter and allowed to dry. I sprayed the foliage with an insecticide and they sat untouched for a few months to further dry out. I then coated the tops with diluted white glue and dipped them into a bowl of green scenic material. The trees were then sprayed with a clear flat spray paint as well as some hair spray. Holes were drilled into the layout and the trees planted.

A close up of the new Sedum trees

 

NYC Pacemaker Freight Truck sits alongside a PRR Tructrain tractor trailer

Al's Victory service sees some police activity and some new trees in the background

Newly planted trees add some nice touches to the industrial area.

The trees look nice, add some realism and do not take up much space.

The trees are in. Time for some additional ground scenery.