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Good morning Switcher Saturday faithful!  Off to a more conventional start time this weekend.

Switcher Saturday is a weekly thread celebrating the smaller locomotives that do the big work of railroading.  Whether it's a modern dedicated diesel Switcher,  a multi purpose road switcher used for freight and possibly tourist service,  an small steamer, a nimble juice jack, a yard goat , (well you get the idea)...

All switcher locomotives are fair game here no matter the scale or gauge.

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For this weekend's kickoff image we have a shot from the archives. While the engines above are all different sizes, they are all O gauge. 2 lionel,  1 wbb,1 ets , 1 Hornby,  and 1 K-Line in this photo.

So please,  share your photos,  videos,  and stories.  Keep it somehow Switcher related,  follow the ogr tos regarding pictures,  and everyone have fun.

Have a great day all!

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Good morning fellow switcher fans!  JHZ563 thanks for notching out the throttle and getting us rolling this morning!  I hope everyone has a most enjoyable and safe weekend!

This week on the Free State Junction Railway ... Shutterbug Ferguson, the company photographer, has been out and about the FSJR property snapping oodles of  photos of the company's switchers in action.   The FSJR is doing a promotion to capture more on line customers.  The first photo captures a MA & PA crew, with their SW 1 and a freshly painted caboose, at work in Lower Patsburg.  That's brakeman Credence Clearwater on the deck and brakeman Riley Smoot on the ground. IMG_0355

B&O number 97 smokes it up as she brings a flat car of timber and a caboose across a bridge on the Mountain Division. IMG_1139

Later  a Pennsy 44 tonner trundles onto the bridge with a short ore train. IMG_5614

B&O SW9 takes on sand. Got to have grit on the iron. IMG_0381

Brakeman Snooky Curry rides the strap of an REA reffer as 0-8-0 number 75 pushes a string of reffers onto the perishables track for unloading. IMG_0393

Number 97 takes a rest as she's been working hard in the yard.  IMG_9353

Having taken on water and a fresh load of sand 97 is ready to get back at it in the yard. IMG_8951

Glancing across the yard, we see a Pennsy A5 taking on water at the tank.  fullsizeoutput_62e

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Last edited by trumptrain

Good morning, SwSat fans!  Today your Yardmaster snapped295659DC-F318-4D75-9981-2433DF90CFB33DAC0A38-3F6C-4A03-BBFD-D978BB8E747A B&M’s “ Blueberry Special” on its run from Worcester, MA to Peterborough, NH,  There is something very unusual about this consist, however; what is  a NH Alco RS3 doing heading up a B&M train?

B&M had a contractual agreement with the NH to use the latter’s steam service facility in South Worcester.  By 1953 NH was dieselized, so it was anxious to close the steam facility.  To eliminate the Mogul used on the run, NH leased the nearly new RS3 to B&M for $1.00 a day, until B&M could replace it with it’s own diesel power.

I wonder if the Mogul used on the “Special” was 1455, now preserved at the Danbury (CT) railroad museum?

John

@Steam Crazy posted:

Good morning, SwSat fans!  Today your Yardmaster snapped295659DC-F318-4D75-9981-2433DF90CFB33DAC0A38-3F6C-4A03-BBFD-D978BB8E747A B&M’s “ Blueberry Special” on its run from Worcester, MA to Peterborough, NH,  There is something very unusual about this consist, however; what is  a NH Alco RS3 doing heading up a B&M train?

B&M had a contractual agreement with the NH to use the latter’s steam service facility in South Worcester.  By 1953 NH was dieselized, so it was anxious to close the steam facility.  To eliminate the Mogul used on the run, NH leased the nearly new RS3 to B&M for $1.00 a day, until B&M could replace it with it’s own diesel power.

I wonder if the Mogul used on the “Special” was 1455, now preserved at the Danbury (CT) railroad museum?

John

John (Steam crazy), I’m getting an “image not found” when viewing your post.  I’m not sure if it’s just me or something due to the way you posted it.

Yay! SWSat is rolling along!

Nice posts so far everyone.
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Work train for the weekend. I saw them this summer while on my vacation. These guys were fixing the track along the former NYC Adirondack Division. The Adirondack Scenic RR are trying to bring passenger service back to Tupper Lake Junction (Faust) after losing their service from Sananac Lake to Lake Placid to a rail trail a few years ago.

5A04481F-218E-4EED-91E0-09F8027D4506DC9D9335-3F3F-4AE3-8A8A-28AB8C4E047DD3E9DDFC-D5E1-4B78-BE0A-BB9020FE8B308C92446F-0B7F-4D85-A88D-9BDDA4402FB6These are just from my everyday life of commuting life. Sometimes I get to see old GE work engines on work trains. Also a sign of life these days.

Have a good weekend I can’t wait to see what you guys post.

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Photos show three of my recent diesel switcher models – New York Central EMD GP9 #6001 (MTH Premier PS3), Boston & Maine ALCO S-2 #1274 (MTH Premier PS3) and New Haven ALCO RS-3 #531 (ATLAS O TMCC). They run well (conventional) and I run them often.

On my layout, I sometimes run locomotives from different railroads and I ask myself where it might have been possible to see locomotives of these railroads simultaneously. On a previous SWSAT, I asked the question in reference to the three railroads represented by these engines, but I didn’t see any answers. So, just for fun, I’ll try again.

Can anyone tell me in what city, cities or railroad facility, locomotives of all three of the railroads represented by these engines could have been seen together sometime during the 1950s or 1960s? The locomotives need not have been the types shown here. I will eventually provide an answer...

MELGAR

MELGAR_2021_0910_01_THREE_SWITCHERSMELGAR_2021_0910_02_THREE_SWITCHERS_WIDEMELGAR_2021_0910_03_THREE_SWITCHERS_WIDEMELGAR_2021_0910_04_THREE_SWITCHERS_WIDE

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Wow everyone, its only 0930 here in Texas and already we have a really super line of postings.  Dave Ripp, Rusty, Silver Lake great shots from real life.  I had never seen an MTA work train before and Rusty is that an actual Camelback?  Trumptrain as usual (although there is nothing "usual about your skill with pictures") a great photo story.  Can't help but ask...is brakeman Clarence Clearwater going to have a "revival"? RSJB18 - neat K line Plymouth in PRR colors. Jesse, Tom and Steam Crazy - great photos capturing reality.  Tom you may be interested to know that near where I live in Crawford, Tx we have a grain facility that is even smaller than the one you pictured on your layout.  It has just one siding for loading/unloading hoppers and a pick up spot for trucks.  I have been thinking about photographing it for future modeling, its small enough to actually fit on a layout. tnkMarx...as a Marx collector I love your scenes, great display integrating the switchers with the dome car.

OK, enough musing...here is my contribution today.  Its actually a video (assuming I can get it to load) of my little RMT PRR "Beep" switcher moving a few K=line, Lionel postwar and MPC cars plus a Lionel lighted SP type caboose.  It is exiting the "mountains" (one tunnel) on the L&S and headed past the suburban station.

Best wishes Don

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Happy SWSat to all this fine day! Here's a picture of my Lionel UP RS3 . It's an oldie but it will be heading to the back shop for a complete rebuild.  I've been thinking it over and I want to build a CNW booster unit.  Not a yard slug or calf, CNW used several old RS units as extra traction mated to their ALCO C425 pairs. They pulled the prime mover and added a concrete weight inside.  Then the booster units were placed in the middle of the lash up.

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Watch for my thread as the work begins and progresses.

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MELGAR, you could see NH, B&M and NYC (B&A) together in Springfield and Worcester, MA.  The three roads also served Boston, but only the B&M ran into North Station, so you couldn't see see B&M trains with NH and NYC trains at South Station.  BTW, I read your review of the Sunset B&M GP7 in the B&MRRHS Newsletter.  Nice job!

ctr, Wikipedia says Union freight ran it's own locomotives until 1953.  From 1953 until it closed in 1970, the road leased locomotives from the parent company, NH.  I have seen something about reviving the line, but I don't recall where.

John

Steam Crazy,

You are correct! Springfield and Worcester, Massachusetts. Somehow, I expected you would know this. Thanks!

The Union Freight was still running on Atlantic Avenue when I arrived in Boston as a college student.

By the way, I really liked your photos of B&M #1455 and NH #538 on the Worcester to Peterborough run. The next thing you need on your layout is a model of the Worcester Station...

MELGAR

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@MELGAR posted:

Photos show three of my recent diesel switcher models – New York Central EMD GP9 #6001 (MTH Premier PS3), Boston & Maine ALCO S-2 #1274 (MTH Premier PS3) and New Haven ALCO RS-3 #531 (ATLAS O TMCC). They run well (conventional) and I run them often.

On my layout, I sometimes run locomotives from different railroads and I ask myself where it might have been possible to see locomotives of these railroads simultaneously. On a previous SWSAT, I asked the question in reference to the three railroads represented by these engines, but I didn’t see any answers. So, just for fun, I’ll try again.

Can anyone tell me in what city, cities or railroad facility, locomotives of all three of the railroads represented by these engines could have been seen together sometime during the 1950s or 1960s? The locomotives need not have been the types shown here. I will eventually provide an answer...

MELGAR

MELGAR_2021_0910_01_THREE_SWITCHERSMELGAR_2021_0910_02_THREE_SWITCHERS_WIDEMELGAR_2021_0910_03_THREE_SWITCHERS_WIDEMELGAR_2021_0910_04_THREE_SWITCHERS_WIDE

Great pics MELGAR!!!  I will take a crack at answering your question .... Boston's South Station is where locomotives of the NYNH&H, NYC, and B&M would have been seen in congregation.  NYC because that company had control of the Boston and Albany.   I don't know of other cities these three railroads served, however, I'm sure you do.  I look forward to your answer.

@trumptrain posted:

Great pics MELGAR!!!  I will take a crack at answering your question .... Boston's South Station is where locomotives of the NYNH&H, NYC, and B&M would have been seen in congregation.  NYC because that company had control of the Boston and Albany.   I don't know of other cities these three railroads served, however, I'm sure you do.  I look forward to your answer.

Patrick,

Thanks for answering.

There are (were) two railroad stations in Boston about a mile apart - North Station was used by the B&M and South Station was used by the New Haven RR and the Boston & Albany (a subsidiary of the New York Central). Especially in later years, the Boston & Albany ran locomotives with New York Central livery into South Station. The Union Freight was the only rail connection between the two stations and hauled freight cars between them (just a few at a time) at night through the streets of Boston. If you arrived in Boston as a passenger and wanted to go from one station to the other, you had to take the subway to make the connection...

If you think about it, a similar situation existed (and still does) in New York City. If you arrive at Pennsylvania Station in Manhattan on Amtrak, you need to take the subway to get to Grand Central Terminal (from which the New Haven Railroad operated) to take Metro-North Railroad into Connecticut...

But, as Steam Crazy said, the cities were Springfield and Worcester, MA.

MELGAR

WOW Guys, sure are some great photos of your switchers and real ones! I always like to come and see what folks are going to post!

I am sorry nothing from me today, My day was spent under the layout wiring buildings. I think I burnt up a Buck converter, but I will check again tomorrow. It looks like heavy rain all day tomorrow so another day in the train room!

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