Switcher Saturday September 9, 2023

Bob, I love how you start Switcher Saturday in the wee hours of Saturday morning.

Here is one for those New England fans out there. The switcher is an MTH PS3 Boston & Maine diesel switcher:

Arnold

Rutland GE 70-ton diesel switcher #500 (Williams by Bachmann #23504) and wood-sided caboose #36 (by MTH Premier) are the only two Rutland items that I own. I’ve been awaiting the arrival of #36 so that I could run the engine and caboose for Switcher Saturday. I ordered caboose #36 from forum sponsor Public Delivery Track on June 22, 2022 and received it on August 23, 2023. The Williams model of #500 is very nice but does not have speed control and only runs conventionally – which is fine with me. I bought it from forum sponsor Trainworld at a good discount.

Each truck of the locomotive model has the inner axle powered and the outer axle free to rotate, and it also has only one traction tire on the wheels of each powered axle. A clever design built to a price but it seems to work well.

Rutland #500 was built in 1951 and switched the yard in Rutland until the railroad was shut down after a strike in 1961. It was the only engine of its type on the Rutland – Class DES-2. It had a continuous tractive effort of 23,600 pounds, a 600 horsepower 6-cylinder engine, and a maximum speed of 55 miles-per-hour. #500 was sold to the Clarendon & Pittsford Railroad in 1962, and the Rutland Railway was formally abandoned in 1963.

The Rutland Railway transported milk from Vermont to Chatham, New York, from where it was taken to New York City over the Harlem Division of the New York Central Railroad. It also ran milk trains 53 miles between Rutland and Bellows Falls, VT. That milk went to Boston on the Boston & Maine Railroad.

Photos/videos show #500 and #36 running at 26 scale miles-per-hour on my 10‘-by-5’ freelanced New England-themed layout.

MELGAR

My only switcher, SP 1102 SW8! I need more, but they're hard to find in Southern Pacific and Western Pacific.

Here's a photo of SP 1195 SW900R idling in Niles Canyon Railroad Brightside yard. I was riding behind the Skookum 2-4-4-2 excursion train when I took this photo April 2022. We were going to fast to get more than one shot. It was recently painted classic SP red and grey in 2018.

@WesternPacific2217 posted:

My only switcher, SP 1102 SW8! I need more, but they're hard to find in Southern Pacific and Western Pacific.

That is a sweet looking engine!!!

Good morning early risers! Happy Switcher Saturday!

I’m continuing with my Pennsy work train…….

However, we have now cross over into the Penn Central era, too early for even the PC letters to be over-sprayed on NYC or Pennsy markings…….the PostWar flat with trucks has been switched to a K-Line New York Central model.

Have a great and safe day, everyone!

Peter

It's October 1956.

The Martian (Jasson Dominguez, the 20 year old phenomenal switch hitting NY Yankee center fielder from the Dominican Republic, who hit a home run the very first time he swung the bat during his 1st at bat in the Major Leagues, hit 4 home runs during his 1st 6 games in the Major Leagues, hit a homer last night, and runs like a deer) will not be a gleam in his father's eye for another 47 years.

He is called The Martian because he plays baseball so well that people say he plays out of this World. Some say he is the next Mickey Mantle.

The original Mickey Mantle born in Oklahoma, who was a phenomenol switch hitting NY Yankee center fielder, hit tape neasure home runs (the phrase tape measure home run was invented because on numerous occasions Mickey hit homers completely out of Major League stadiums), and ran like a deer, is playing in the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers after batting .353, hitting 52 homers, driving in 131 runs and winning the Triple Crown in 1956.

Now, for the trains: the locomotive in the video below is an MTH PS3 B6 steam switcher that I love, and the passenger cars are K Line with figures for passengers inside that I love:

The original Mickey Mantle was my childhood hero, I am now very excited about The Martian, and I obviously love baseball and O Gauge trains, among other things.

I hope I have entertained you this morning. Arnold

Good Morning SWSAT people. Bob sorry you don’t feel well you will be remembered in my prayers. Yes I also like how you start very early too so let’s get to it. Today we have some old pics of “Buzz” on the layout maybe I can get some new ones soon. Enjoy your weekend.

@MELGAR posted:

Rutland GE 70-ton diesel switcher #500 (Williams by Bachmann #23504) and wood-sided caboose #36 (by MTH Premier) are the only two Rutland items that I own. I’ve been awaiting the arrival of #36 so that I could run the engine and caboose for Switcher Saturday. I ordered caboose #36 from forum sponsor Public Delivery Track on June 22, 2022 and received it on August 23, 2023. The Williams model of #500 is very nice but does not have speed control and only runs conventionally – which is fine with me. I bought it from forum sponsor Trainworld at a good discount.

Each truck of the locomotive model has the inner axle powered and the outer axle free to rotate, and it also has only one traction tire on the wheels of each powered axle. A clever design built to a price but it seems to work well.

Rutland #500 was built in 1951 and switched the yard in Rutland until the railroad was shut down after a strike in 1961. It was the only engine of its type on the Rutland – Class DES-2. It had a continuous tractive effort of 23,600 pounds, a 600 horsepower 6-cylinder engine, and a maximum speed of 55 miles-per-hour. #500 was sold to the Clarendon & Pittsford Railroad in 1962, and the Rutland Railway was formally abandoned in 1963.

The Rutland Railway transported milk from Vermont to Chatham, New York, from where it was taken to New York City over the Harlem Division of the New York Central Railroad. It also ran milk trains 53 miles between Rutland and Bellows Falls, VT. That milk went to Boston on the Boston & Maine Railroad.

Photos/videos show #500 and #36 running at 26 scale miles-per-hour on my 10‘-by-5’ freelanced New England-themed layout.

MELGAR

Mel thanks for the info and great pics and videos I like the small mix manifest too thanks for sharing.

Hello SwSat fans and thanks, Bob, for getting us rolling!  Your Yardmaster is amazed at the number at the number of early birds today!  

He is in a NYNH&H RR state of mind, probably due to MELGAR’s influence.  NH Alco RS3 no. 538 is seen leading a local freight with an assist from NH EMD GP9 no. 1205.  Both locos are MTH Railking models; no. 538 is a circa 2000 5 volt PS2 engine equipped with a BCR and no. 1205 is a dummy.

Photos of select NH rolling stock are also included.  All are MTH except the boxcar red car; it’s probably a Weaver.

John

Love @MELGAR 's  70 tonner. I have one too, and also the Rutland caboose. Mine arrived with a broken front truck so it's going back to Beth @PDT this week.
Williams by Bachman also issued a very nice 44 tonner. Same drive train as the 70, might even be the same exact chassis now that I think of it. I bought both of mine from Trainworld at a great price. Love to see more road names issued in both.

@Arnold D. Cribari- Actually took Mel's suggestion on starting the topic each week. I do the write up and save it as a draft on Friday. I'm always up late, so once the clock strikes 12 I can just hit publish and we are on our way for another week. Beats having to get up early on Saturday morning. And I don't turn into a pumpkin in the process..

@lee drennen- Welcome back. Hope you've had a good summer. Thank you for your prayers. I think this Covid thing has become like the seasonal flu. Something we are going to have around for the rest of eternity. Just need the hysterics surrounding it to calm down.

Here's a short video of my 44 ton in PRR livery.

Back to the postwar era on my Super O layout we have the Lionel 621 Jersey Central switcher picking up an operating barrel car and milk car as the horses in the corral on the adjacent siding watch. Enjoy your weekend and stay cool inside your train rooms  

Switching out the crew on this Switcher Saturday.

Have a great day!

Is it Williams switcher day too?  Here’s your Yardmaster’s D&RGW 44 tonner leading a train of empty ore Jennies.  

John

MTH Premier Western Maryland VO1000, doing double duty, as it was recently posted elsewhere. As far as I can discern, the only difference between the Premier version, and the Railking version, of the VO1000, is smoke.

The C&O legacy S2 is patiently waiting for her first run up the under construction Piedmont District to the newly developing timber related industries.  But, it’s going to be a few more busy Switcher Saturdays before she will be able.

Happy Switcher Saturday!  Really good stuff today and glad Bob is over his covid trifecta.  I was up late last night running my newest switcher that arrived  yesterday afternoon, the special run VO1000 from Nassau Hobby.  It’s a very good knockoff of the Baldwin DS4-4-660 used by the LIRR from 1948 to 1965  for switching, passenger service and freight hauling.  She runs fantastic and is nicely detailed.  So nice, that I’m probably not going to weather her like I planned. I’m so glad I stumbled across the Nassau Hobby Labor Day sale thread. Who knew that you could still get a new premier diesel for less than $400 in these inflationary times?

Great start Bob from Lionel set New Yorker bought sealed a few years ago. God speed all!

Mark - traded Lionel 8223 in for MTH 8223 when it first came out years ago in PS2. Lost in Sandy; replaced with the above PS 3 version. Not knocking Lionel. Just liked having sounds and cruise control. Not crazy about the smoke though. Looks like the engine is waiting for Santa to come down the chimney!

Glad you're feeling better Bob. Thanks for kicking things off again. Great posts guys.

Andy

@Mark V. Spadaro posted:

Mark - traded Lionel 8223 in for MTH 8223 when it first came out years ago in PS2. Lost in Sandy; replaced with the above PS 3 version. Not knocking Lionel. Just liked having sounds and cruise control. Not crazy about the smoke though. Looks like the engine is waiting for Santa to come down the chimney!

Mark a nice trade in wtg!

Thank you for a great start on Switcher Saturday, Bob!  Excellent photographs, videos, and descriptions of switchers, everyone.  When I saw @Rich Wiemann post his Jersey Central 621, I knew what I would post.  Yes, I can be a copy cat.  Ask anyone who posts on Boxcar Sunday.  Those who know me know I am a Western Maryland and B&O fan, and also a DCS operator.  However, Our older daughter found this 621, it's complete set of cars, a nice 2026, and it's complete set of cars at the local St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store years ago; all for $10.  She gave it to me for Christmas 2013.  Finally, back when I was 57, someone gave me a train set for the very first time.  After researching, I discovered that someone could have given that train set to a child for Christmas 1956; my very first Christmas!  So, yes it is special.  

@Mark Boyce posted:

Thank you for a great start on Switcher Saturday, Bob!  Excellent photographs, videos, and descriptions of switchers, everyone.  When I saw @Rich Wiemann post his Jersey Central 621, I knew what I would post.  Yes, I can be a copy cat.  Ask anyone who posts on Boxcar Sunday.  Those who know me know I am a Western Maryland and B&O fan, and also a DCS operator.  However, Our older daughter found this 621, it's complete set of cars, a nice 2026, and it's complete set of cars at the local St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store years ago; all for $10.  She gave it to me for Christmas 2013.  Finally, back when I was 57, someone gave me a train set for the very first time.  After researching, I discovered that someone could have given that train set to a child for Christmas 1956; my very first Christmas!  So, yes it is special.  

Very nice story Mark those type of Lionel engine are the best in my book.

@WP posted:

That is a sweet looking engine!!!

Thanks John @WP, I really like it too! It's a Lionel Legacy product #2133630. If you're interested in adding one of these to your western roads roster, there might still be a few out there for sale. It would look great on your layout!! :-)

Wow, RSJB18, Bob, you are an early riser, great photographer, great videographer, and very nice to kick off Switcher Saturday, and also @MELGAR, Mel, is always a great starter of this fun to review thread and all the folks that contribute and showing their cool switchers, videos, of both real and model. Small switchers are so much fun to see, they creep slowly and patiently while doing their jobs moving important goods throughout the USA…. Happy Switcher Saturday Everyone….

Happy Switcher Saturday!

Showing my MTH Railking Reading SW 1500 Switcher (30-2189-1) Early PS2 and still runs great.

Ray

@RayKay posted:

Happy Switcher Saturday!

Showing my MTH Railking Reading SW 1500 Switcher (30-2189-1) Early PS2 and still runs great.

Ray

Very nice I like the reading lines

@Sitka posted:

Great start Bob from Lionel set New Yorker bought sealed a few years ago. God speed all!

Nice set, Mark! Does the RS-3 have "K-Line" drive?

Well hello SwSat fans, I am late today because I got to go to a TRAIN SHOW!! These are increasingly rare in my part of the world and this one was sponsored by my TCA Division, the Lone Star Division and it was in the Dallas area...a mere 144 miles away

144 miles is "just around the corner"...this is Texas y'all.

I have been wanting a NW-2 switcher for some time, but the price has just been too high.  I know that  @Strap Hanger he talked about a great deal at finding a new diesel for $400...He is right that diesel he pictured is gorgeous, but such a sum to me is out of the question.  So...let me show you my little NW-2.  This is the Lionel #8770 EMD Demonstrator.  Made as part of a set in the early days of MPC 1977-1978.  This one has no electronic features...it goes forward, backward, and has a headlight...that's it.  However it cost $42 and it runs well and works well on my 0-27 and 0-31 curves and switches.  I love it!

Here she is in close up.

Here she is with a short consist, leaving the yard and headed for the freight main.

Here is a short video of her in motion.

Well I know she can't compare with the modern super detailed fancy electronic ones of today, but she's mine and she does the simple tasks I want from her.  So finally I have my NW-2.

Best Wishes hope your weekend is going well

Don

@lee drennen posted:

Very nice I like the reading lines

Thanks.

@Don McErlean,

Don,

The NW2 is very nice. I hope you enjoy it. Looks like you're fixing the video...

Also looks like quite a collection on the shelves.

MELGAR

My late contribution for tonight has MTH ALCo ESPN RS-1 #57 moving one of my favorite Atlas boxcars (from @Golden Prairie Railroad) into the evening sunset:

This RS-1 began life as WATC #57 in Dec 1948. She's now in private hands, hopefully to be restored for excursion service. Here she is being moved by a couple of SEPTA SW1500's (?) in April of this year. The move starts about 2 min in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7yXU2lqXHs

Good evening fellow switch fans!  Thanks Bob for being in the engineer's seat this morning and getting us off to a great start!  As usual, wonderful posts by everyone!   Since we've been such extremely high temps here in the mid Atlantic region the last few day, I thought I'd post a photo I posted several years ago. ( These photos I took a few years ago )  This is one of Waste Management Corporations's locomotives with a window AC unit and generator for cooling the cab.  WMC's plant is located in Annapolis Junction, Md. off the CSX mainline between Baltimore and Washington.  I'm sure that window AC unit was running full tilt boogie over the last several days!  

Pat, The Waste Management switcher is neat.  Here WM not to be confused with Western Maryland 😉 processes the garbage into reclaimed strip mines.  I don’t know that there is any rail line there, though.  I’ll have to look into it.

Another great week on SWSat! Thanks to all who participated. Thanks for the well wishes too!

@Don McErlean- Great NW-2. They don't all need to be fancy and stuffed full of electronics to be fun!
@trumptrain- Pat- I wonder if the AC was added to beat the heat or the smell........
@Bill Swatos- An ESPN may wind up in my collection one day. Sharp looking paint job.
@Strap Hanger- That VO-1000 looks and sounds great. MUST....RESIST......THE....FORCE!

See you next Saturday!

Bob

Don, nice pickup, very handsome and runs well.  Made that 144 mile trip "around the block" worth while.  We don't have a lot of shows here in SC, maybe I should start to consider the ones that are 2 hours away.

I love your tunnel.

@RayKay posted:

Happy Switcher Saturday!

Showing my MTH Railking Reading SW 1500 Switcher (30-2189-1) Early PS2 and still runs great.

Ray

Had this switcher, too. Really like its looks. Despite 5v system, had a lot of miles on the odometer and time on the clock. This picture was taken at my former, now defunct, club. First Sandy, and a few months later, club was evicted. At that point, my club participation was nil.

I have a pic of both a road switcher and a yard switcher from my Loop & Nowhere RR (L&N)

@MELGAR, @RSJB18, @coach joe:  Thank you all for the kind words on my new NW-2 switcher...I think she will be a lot of fun and is well suited to my very tight layout.  Coach Joe - you might think about traveling some to the train shows, around here there isn't much choice its drive or no show.  Of course here the trip is light traffic, 3-4 lane freeways at 75-80 mph speed limits so the time is not too bad.

Best wishes eveyone

Don

@Mark V. Spadaro posted:

Had this switcher, too. Really like its looks. Despite 5v system, had a lot of miles on the odometer and time on the clock. This picture was taken at my former, now defunct, club. First Sandy, and a few months later, club was evicted. At that point, my club participation was nil.

Mark, that's to bad about the club situation, I remember Sandy, It didn't hit us as hard in CT like other areas.

The Reading (#2758) was my first PS2 Switcher and introduced me to how much I love DCS and cruse control with slow speeds and proto couplers.

Ray