Nice topic Arnold.
I grew up in Yonkers, NY in between the Putnam Division and the Harlem Division of the then New York Central and the then New Haven Railroad. The Hudson Division was not too far away, either. So, I was literally surrounded by trains. My dad worked in Manhattan and I always enjoyed a Christmas-time trip with him to the train stores down there. Every summer in the 1960's-70's my mom dragged me out to Western Pennsylvania, by train over The Pennsy. I still remember passing Horseshoe Curve many a time. So, I've been in a bit of a lifelong tug of war between the New York Central and Pennsylvania Railroad for many years now!
I was out of trains for a few years and got back in the 1990's when my wife bought me a #2037 steamer from a local antique store. Thanks to getting reeled back in, I ended up writing a book on the Hudson Division and I'm just as proud of my articles for the Pennsylvania Railroad Technical & Historical Society's quarterly magazine, The Keystone.
Not sure how I became addicted to my prewar steam switchers, as my parents in the early 1960's could only afford a cheap plastic Lionel steamer and a Texas Special ALCO FA diesel. Steam locomotives on most real railroads had disappeared before I was born. While most "normal" people opt for what is available nowadays, I went backward in time to rescue a bunch of these prewar switchers, that first appeared in 1939, which was 21 years before I was even born. I think they offer just the right amount of detail and toy-like qualities, at least for me. Just to watch one running slow with its chunky rods moving is a bit mesmerizing.
I think my switchers have been a good source of therapy for a stressful job and they were made in the US when craftsmanship was at its peak. If you ever had the opportunity (or maybe more like torture!) to take one of these apart, they are built like a fine German clock with just as many parts. Most of mine are going on 79 years as we approach 2018. They can easily go another 79 years, which I think is great.
Tom
