Welcome to my Blog. The scope of this blog is to record the trials and tribulations of building and maintaining an HO scale layout, the trains and all of the ancillary projects that go with it. In 2017 New York Central subsidiary short line Empire Belt Railroad came into existence. The New York Central / Penn Central and Empire Belt are now the major railroads featured.
New York Central Alcos
NYC RS32 #2040 leads a trio of R32s hauling Train NY-4
This is the first of our traditional virtual ops for 2019. Four of our five virtual ops layouts, the K.P.D., A.P.R.R., R.C.R. and my N.Y.C.T.L. will be participating. The Los Feliz & North Western is currently out of service due to electrical work. We hope to have the L.F.&.N.W. back for P.C.C.M. 59. We pick up the action at Terminal Yard after the conclusion of P.C.C.M. 53. The Coal Job with a pair of NYC H16-44s prepares to depart Terminal Yard with a train of empty coal hoppers for Hudson Coal.
The empty hoppers sit on main 3 while the engines run back to grab the caboose and pick up the loaded coal hoppers.
The Coal Job works Hudson Coal pulling the loads. Six loads will go Kings Port Steel on the K.P.D. and six will go R.M.O. Electric on the A.P.R.R.
The Coal Job spots the loaded coal hoppers on Main 2 and will then shove the empties on Main 3 into Hudson Coal.
The switch work done the Coal Job heads back to Terminal Yard. The next train out of Terminal Yard is the Bedford Turn, Train BT-27, behind two four axle GE locomotives.
BT-27's first stop is T&R Gravel to pick up two PC PS-2 covered hoppers loaded with locomotive sand for the A.P.R.R. Engine Terminal and to drop off three empty PS-2 hoppers.
BT-27 has made its way thru Bedford to the Heileman Brewery where they'll pick up these three boxcars. The NYC Hi-Cube is loaded with cases of tall neck bottles of beer and the brown IC car is loaded with cases of 12 oz cans of beer. Both are consigned to Reynolds Beverage in Kings Port NY. The TP&W boxcar is an empty car for now.
BT-27 has shoved back to Hostess and Berk Enterprises where they'll switch out both industries. The empty ACFX Hostess covered hopper at Hostess will be going to the large Cargill facility in Rock Ridge NJ.
Green 40' TP&W boxcar #627 that left Heileman Brewery empty has been placed at Berk Enterprises to receive it's next P.C.C.M. load. BT-27 waits on Main 3 as Train EC-1 lead by a pair of six axle E.B.R.R. units heads from Terminal Yard to the Empire Belt's North Side Yard in Empire City NY on Main 2.
With EC-1 now clear Bedford Tower operator 1/87th scale John B has lined BT-27 onto Main 2 to cross over the High Line and use the Empire City west side reverse curve.
Meanwhile over at Bedford Park the Bedford Park Yard switcher is pulling a pair of empty Evans breadbox trough coil coaches from the Ford Plant steel track. These cars will be heading back to Kings Port Steel in Kings Port NY for reloading.
The BPY switcher is pulling the empty Celanese Chemicals car from the tank car track. The empty car will be heading back to Celanese Chemicals in Denver CO for reloading.
The BPY switcher has placed the outbound cars on the BP lead and they are picked up by BT-27 has it heads back to Terminal Yard.
BT-27 heads back to Terminal Yard with cars for the A.P.R.R., K.P.D and R.C.R. layouts.
With BT-27 now on track #4 the next train out of Terminal Yard is BP-41 with cars for the Bedford Park Ford Plant. This is a tightly choreographed operation as the loaded cars need to be delivered to Ford without delay to keep the assembly lines humming along without interruption.
BP-41 with loaded 86' boxcars, empty auto racks and fresh steel coils heads thru Bedford. On the return trip BP-41 will be identified as train BP-12.
BP-41 comes thru the Empire City west side reverse curve. NYCTL Mgt continues the practice of assigning non EMD power to BP-41 when possible to keep the Ford folks happy.
BP-41 has come back over the High Line into Bedford and has dropped cars for the steel track and chemical track onto the BP lead where they are picked up by the BPY switcher for placement.
BP-41 is now pulling the empty boxcars. PC Hi Cube #272747 will be heading back to Gates Rubber Co in Denver, CO. via the R.C.R. to be reloaded with automotive belts and hoses.
The empty NYC and PRR boxcars will be headed back to IDEAL Auto Parts in Rock Ridge NJ via the A.P.R.R. The auto racks are headed to the Ford National Vehicle Distribution Center.
BP-41, now identified as BP-12 heads back to Terminal Yard.
We'll cut it here for today and follow up tomorrow with the Empire Belt RR gathering cars from around Empire City to forward to Terminal Yard. Then we'll check in at Terminal Yard and catch the Yard Job building the outbound trains and we'll get them dispatched to the other layouts.
Greetings All, The recent southern expansion of 1:1 Sir Neal's Atlantic Pacific Railroad had 1/87th scale senior engineer Sir Neal spreading purchase orders to many of the rail served businesses of Bedford, Bedford Park and Empire City to get his expanded model railroad up and running. Let's take a look. Our story starts at Neal's Lumber & Hardware in Empire City where 1/87th scale Sir Neal is preparing to ship a bulkhead flat of lumber to his Atlantic Pacific RR Southern Division. Neal's Lumber & hardware is known worldwide for supplying benchwork lumber to discerning model railroaders. 1/87th scale Sir Neal is at American Hardware Supply in Bedford Park picking up a 40' A.P.R.R. boxcar loaded with track nails. Next we catch 1/87th scale Sir Neal at Moore & Company in Empire City overseeing 1/87th scale PC Ralph picking up two A.P.R.R. 50 RBLs loaded with HO scale track.
Next we find 1/87th scale Sir Neal at Bruce Electric Equipment picking up a boxcar of electrical components and a flat car with a large spool of wire. 1/87th scale John Bruce inquires if that one large spool of wire will be enough. Sir Neal says he's going to use mostly manual turnout controls and thinks it should be.
Yard Job B couples the cars from Bruce Electric onto the growing train of A.P.R.R. South supplies. Note the three eras of A.P.R.R. boxcars. The orange & black of the 1950s, the jade green of the 1960s and the white of the 1970s.
Later that afternoon 1/87th scale Sir Neal is at T&R Gravel as 1/87th scale Alco Joe is picking up two PC PS-2 hoppers of ballast for the A.P.R.R. South. We hope it's enough!
1/87th scale Sir Neal protects the shove move on the new transfer caboose as Alco Joe shoves the PS-2 hoppers into Terminal Yard.
Yard Job B comes around to collect the PS-2 hoppers with 1/87th scale Big Mike riding the back porch of modified Clinchfield caboose #1064 and under the direct supervision of the district superintendent. The caboose is being refurbished at the Terminal Yard car shop for delivery back to the Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth, Georgia
Meanwhile the guys head over to the yard to inquire about available road power, cabooses and schedules.
A.P.R.R. 58 is available and being picked up by Yard Job B.
1/87th scale Sir Neal heads over to the engine terminal to see what power is ready. Kar Knocker lets him a know a three engine consist with an A.P.R.R. engine is on track 1. 1/87th scale ATJOE (Alco Joe) tells Wet Willie not to to panic he'll get the engines.
1/87th scaleATJOE's already low opinion of Wet Willie and his laziness is further confirmed by the dusty condition of this AP GP38. Better not let 1/87th scale Sir Neal see this!
While ATJOE attends to the motive power the caboose is coupled on and 1/87th scale Kar Knocker and his men get to work.
ATJOE has brought the engines from the terminal and coupled them up to the train. The jitney to the left will take Conductor John back to the caboose.
1/87th scale senior engineer Sir Neal and fireman PC Ralph prepare to board the lead engine as Kar Knocker reports the train is good to go.
Most of the 1/87th scale guys have gathered to give the A.P. South Special a roll bye inspection as it leaves the yard.
Greetings All, Welcome back to the P.C.C.M. 57 series!!! It's time to pull out the empty covered hoppers that came in on train GRT-2 and get them rolling back to Empire Grain on PC Ralph's Kings Port Division. 1/87th scale Big Mike's bellyaching over the new transfer caboose has not sat well with the Terminal Yard Superintendent and today we find no cabooses available and Big Mike assigned to ride a spacer flatcar.
1/87th scale Big Mike has connected the air lines and given the signal for the Yard Job to start pulling the empties.
Protecting the shove aboard empty NYC 892019
Uncoupling the empty LV car from the loaded TP&W car.
1/87th scale Big Mike protects the shove back to the Pier 16 Grain Silos aboard a loaded TP&W covered hopper.
Over on track 8A 1/87th scale PC Ralph has been called for Empty Grain Train GRT-3 that will be heading back towards the Kings Port Division's West Mill Yard and Empire Grain.
Word is these U Boats are very slow to load as 1/87th scale PC Ralph guides GRT-3 thru Terminal Yard.
The big PC GEs depart Terminal Yard for Selkirk and West Mill on the River Line. For reasons not yet known it was reported that the Penn Central discontinued the use of the U Boats on this line in 1970. The U Boats then returned to the line in Spring 1975.
Rolling slowly into Bedford NY GRT-3 finds 1/87th scale Alco Joe and his freight train waiting on track 3. Alco Joe is out to give the the time honored 'What's up Ralph?!!' and GRT-3 a roll by inspection.
GRT-3 is held at Bedford Station as Bedford Tower operator 1/87th scale John B is threading the Bedford needle. 1/87th scale PC Ralph is out on the porch to say hi to 1/87th scale Sir Neal and give Train EB-2 a roll by inspection.
1/87th scale PC Ralph is on his way as towerman John B has come out to give GRT-3 a high ball and roll by inspection.
Next Stop West Mill!!!!
That concludes the N.Y.C.T.L. portions of P.C.C.M. 57. Be sure to follow the action on PC Ralph's Kings Port Division
Greetings All, PC Ralph and I are running a short turnaround P.C.C.M. 57 focusing on a loaded unit grain train running from Ralph's Empire Grain to the unbuilt Pier 16 grain silos on my Terminal Yard for overseas shipment. Trying to use a Penn Central practiceI've designated the loaded train as GRT-2. GRain Terminal yard -2 (loaded). Penn Central GP30 #2228 and GP38-2 #8150 have run from West Mill on the K.P.D. thru Selkirk and are pulling unit grain train GRT-2 onto the Empire City High Line.
GRT-2 makes its way thru Bedford NY
GRT-2 approaches the Terminal Yard tunnel
and arrives at Terminal Yard.
GRT-2 rolls by on arrival track 8A
The Yard Job gets right to work on the loaded grain cars. You can probably hear the grumbling from a certain crew member riding the transfer caboose.
Loaded grain hoppers get shoved towards the Pier 16 Grain Silos.
Two loaded green NYC covered hoppers lead the second cut from GRT-2 as they are shoved into place.
The grain hoppers from Empire Grain and GRT-2 are on the right two tracks and ready for unloading. Empty covered hoppers sit to the left ready to be made into a departing train.
Finished for the day the Yard Job pulls away from the silos and heads back to the office as the transfer caboose debate rages on.
That concludes the arrival portion of the Unit Grain Train from from Ralph's Kings Port Division. Tomorrow I'll pull the empty GRT-2 hoppers from the Pier 16 Grain Silos and build them into an outbound train and send it back to Empire Grain.
Greetings All, Ten years ago I decided to focus my modeling attention on the New York Central and started to try my hand at stripping and painting engines and freight cars that I already owned. At the time I did not possess much knowledge of NYC engine numbering and just picked convenient number blocks from the decal sheet that looked 'engine like'. All was well for for several years but as I gained prototypical diesel info on the NYC and more prototypically numbered engines were added to my locomotive fleet these original NYCTL NYC engines ended up in the purgatory box. With the recent success of my NYC GP35 #2399 Project I decided to make the effort to change the numbers on five NYC engines. Let's check out the project. NYC GP30 #2728 at the Engine Facility ready for renumbering. Or a smack with a hammer.
GP30s #2526 and #2324 (not shown) await their new numbers.
Using the tried and true Walthers Solvaset and an eraser I was able to remove the cab side numbers pretty easily. Don't worry if the work is not perfect. Remember as delivered the NYC GP30s were numbered 6115 - 6124 and were later renumbered 2188 - 2197 for the impending merger with the Pennsylvania Railroad. So evidence of renumbering is OK.
NYC GP30 #2188(former #2526) has rolled out of the Patti O Paint Shop and is back in service. #2188 is the lowest number GP30 on the NYC.
The new NYC #2194. I used small numbers from my Empire Belt decals for the number boards so the GP30s would be identical.
NYC #2197 was the highest numbered GP30 on the NYC roster.
These two might be a head scratcher. A pair of Bachmann Plus B23-7s masquerading as U30Bs in a NYC U25B paint scheme. I didn't care for the very spartan NYC U30B pre merger paint schemes that consisted of emblems on the cab sides and road numbers below that. Instead I chose the full NYC U25B paint scheme but had numbered the units 3683 and 3893. Here is the newly renumbered NYC #2834 fresh out of the shop.
The newly renumbered NYC #2835. Both the 2834 and 2835 are now correctly numbered incorrect engines. You understand that right? I'm not even sure I do.😉 All I know is they look much better to me in these new 2800 series numbers.
