WPMA-40 is a seven days a week job the switches the piers and RailPort, its sign on times varies. WPMA-40 is one job that still uses a caboose on a daily basis as it normally shoves its cars to the piers. Got a couple shots of 40 as it was departing Mannheim Yard.
Grand Valley's 26 is the last of the road's Consolidations to be equipped with a Du Pont-Simplex Type B stoker. It's been shown to improve both locomotive performance and fuel economy, and is boon for firemen on the line's heavy grades. This latter benefit is especially important, as additional LPBs have been hired to run these formerly crewless locos.
The stoker engines (seen beneath the cab in the photo above) were made from parts included with Athearn's bay window caboose kits. I could never determine what exactly they were meant to represent, although I have modified a few for use as K-type brake cylinders under freight cars. For use as stokers, a small nub was removed from one end of each part (two parts are required to represent this type of stoker engine), and the opposite end was trimmed until the parts were short enough to not protruded beyond the width of the cab. After that, they were simply cemented in place. I omitted the steam lines necessary to operate the real ones, but those could be easily added using brass wire.
As for the crews, no LPB blood was shed, despite several amputations and at least one transplant of an arm from a suitable donor.
I like the stoker Doc. In the states sometime in the 1930's uncle Sam mandated that all locomotives over a certain weight were equipped with stokers. This was a reluctant change for the SH&D, but soon the bean counters realized that they could eliminate the second fireman on most runs, they popped up on everything almost overnight.
With firebox's like those the stokers were a big help.
My other car is a locomotive, ARHS restoration crew
Here we have Mikado #1234 pulling a mixed freight up a steep grade going under flux mine conveyor feeding Gerns WVa plant. That place runs 24-7and generates a lot of traffic.
Les
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A CNW GP15-1 dropping of coal for the Narrow Gauge locos, and picking up empties.
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