Suggestions for Locomotives?

[Amalynn]

I'll be honest, I tend to like how the majority of 527-engined locos that you just named. And naturally, if you're gonna model something, you should like the something, right?

If I may pass on some of my thoughts? I been modeling short lines and switching roads since the 60s and have studied and visited those I could and when I plan a new short line or switching road I based my locomotive needs on the expected tonnage and grades-if any.
As a example my Slate Creek Rail handles 960 cars a year or around four cars a day 5 days a week. A EMD SW8 does the job and parts are readily available. A SW7 is a backup locomotive.

Summerset Ry handles 1600 cars a year which is around 33 cars per week or 6-7 cars per day. A SW1500 handles the work while a Alco S-4 is the back up locomotive. The S-4 was Summersets first locomotive and remains in excellent mechanical condition .

So, I've been looking at short lines and regionals a lot as I grew up and now as an adult, and the majority that I saw did use SW-units like you mentioned. The one local to me has access to pool power from the holding company that owns it, so you occasionally do see more than that from the others locally. I believe the one here in town uses an SW1500 as its regular motive power. I've always liked the image of the little switcher puttering along with 10 cars or so in tow.

My short line would handle an average of about 10-15 cars per day, most of them beer-related, and a few cars go out to a large bakery. Average grade is about 2%. My first good quality models were a GP30 and GP40, so I have always had a fondness for them, which is probably the biggest reason I am looking at them over SW-type units. I like the SWs as well, just a personal thing for the Geeps, honestly.

I would go the switcher route, but he is modeling a 40 mile short line, so I can understand why road switchers would be preferred. Speed, curve radii, money in the coffers (both prototype and modeler), and plain preference. I remember reading on another thread about transition era being a wide variety of locomotives, but to me, late 70s to present are also a plethora of varieties in diesels from 1st generation to new and including rebuilds.

A railroad also has to decide on price and availability. In some cases, a road switcher was cheaper than the end cab switcher.

As far as gravel trains, yes the connecting railroad would often supply the locomotive for the gravel shuttle, but there are also short lines would use their own power to bring some gravel hoppers to the interchange OR, BETTER YET, transfer them to a barge (I.e. whatever short line is running the old Maine Central Rockland Branch).

The bottom line is, there are no rules. it's your railroad and you make up the rules. As a freelancer, I think the idea is to have an explanation as to WHY the railroad does why it does to give it plausibility. The beauty of this is that there is often a multitude of reasons why it was done all being of different methods.

Now, as a modeler, coming up with the cash and building the layout from scratch is another story. I always recommend an expandable switching layout, domino or TOMA style, and Bachmann 70 tonners for expense (not putting in too much of an investment to end up with a pile of wood, track, and partial scenery). George Sellios' layout started out as a 4x8 layout.

It is worth noting, I am a she. My name is Amanda. lol Perhaps the solution is fewer locomotives in general. I don't know. I just want something realistic to handle what I have in mind. I'm doing more than just a normal freelance road. It's based on a few specific prototypes but is not a strict copy of a prototype. It ties into a real place, but there are elements that are freelance and strictly grounded in reality. It's a proto-freelance road.

I wouldn't say there are no rules, but there are only the rules that I define.

I have a roughed out track plan already, just waiting until when I have space to build a railroad. It will be a while, so for now I am just doing other stuff that I will need to get for it anyways and doing projects now that I will need to do anyways.

[Brakie]

You can use your GP30 and GP40 since they are second generation diesels in fact I can see where your short line could MU them and use them on your stone train and a SW1500 or any EMD end cab switcher could work your industry job.. The beer trains can be handled by your GP30 and GP40 before their run to the quarry and bakery-another crew would handle this run. As far as a yard crew most short line crews make up their own train before leaving the yard.

As any short line manager will tell you it's always good to have a backup plan in case your connecting road doesn't have any "spare" six axle locomotives for the stone train since they will cover their motive power needs first. I should have remembered that but, old age slipped in and cause my memory to go south-well that's my excuse. :o

[Mike Kieran]

Don't worry Larry, at least you still have your youthful looks.

Amanda, I keep meaning to ask you, what year are you modeling?

If you go to one of my layout threads, you'll notice that I do what I call a carload chart. The reason for this is to narrow down locomotive choices and figure out how long I want for my longer sidings.

I agree with Larry/Brakie, a GP 30 & GP40 would work well. You can use either locomotive individually for whatever local/switcher job, bring them back to the yard, and MU them together for the quarry run. Of course, if you are only running a few cars per week from the quarry, I would just have one of your locals/switchers also handle the quarry.

I also try to run things from the payroll perspective, would a railroad run a train if it didn't cover the crew's salary + benefits.

[Mike Kieran]

BTW, sorry for using he and not she. Trains are also girls toys too, as my daughter reminds us. My wife tough that the Kieran Recessive Train Gene was only with the boys. Hahahahaha.

[BR60103]

Another look through the Trackside Guide shows a lot of SW1500 and some SW1200. Most of them are industrial, restricted to plant use, but a lot of the short lines have a single SW mixed in with the GP and SD. (Ontario listings only)

[Brakie]

Another look through the Trackside Guide shows a lot of SW1500 and some SW1200. Most of them are industrial, restricted to plant use, but a lot of the short lines have a single SW mixed in with the GP and SD. (Ontario listings only)

Then you have urban industrial switching roads that uses end cab switchers from EMD and yes, some Alco end cab switchers. By far various types of Geeps is favored by short lines while some regionals favors GP38s/38-2s/40 and 40-2s with 6 axle SD units. Some terminal switching roads uses EMD end cab switchers, Geeps and SD units.

[Mike Kieran]

I love end cab switchers because I like to run at slow speeds and you don't need large radius curves to operate them (18 inch radii suffice).

Amanda, I forgot to mention, the GP30 is an EMD 567 prime mover while the GP40 is a 645 prime mover. While both engines have different parts inventories, it's not at all uncommon to have rosters with such variations. Sometimes railroads didn't even have rosters from the same builders. The New York Dock Railway had GE, ALCO, and EMD locomotives. Railroads would often buy locomotives based on what was available for the right price (though they weren't always a good fit). The New York Dock bought a pair of RS-3s that constantly derailed because they ran on curves that were too sharp. The same thing happened when the Stocton Terminal & Eastern ran NW2s which couldn't handle the sharp curvrs that the ALCO switchers could.

[cn nutbar]

Exohead---maybe a few pictures may help you to choose a locomotive---or maybe not

a Proto 2000 GM SW800


or maybe an Athearn GM SW1200


Proto 2000 also has a SW1200


How about an Alco---here's an Atlas S4


If you don't want a switcher why not consider a GP9


Hope this helps

[Amalynn]

If anything, I think you made it harder, nutbar lol

[Brakie]

If anything, I think you made it harder, nutbar lol

I believe you have a good start with your GP30 and GP40..I would be tempted to add another GP30 for the stone train..
Here's the truth. :o <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnEprIUC0TQ">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnEprIUC0TQ</a><!-- m --> a brace of GP30s still looks great.

As far as your SW1500 I would give her a good cleaning and remove the metal contact strip and solder wire for the pick up from the trucks.

[Amalynn]

If anything, I think you made it harder, nutbar lol

I believe you have a good start with your GP30 and GP40..I would be tempted to add another GP30 for the stone train..
Here's the truth. :o <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnEprIUC0TQ">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnEprIUC0TQ</a><!-- m --> a brace of GP30s still looks great.

As far as your SW1500 I would give her a good cleaning and remove the metal contact strip and solder wire for the pick up from the trucks.

I don't actually at present have most anything that's been listed here. I unfortunately sold a large number of my models when I got out of the hobby years ago, so I will be getting new models. I do think that a pair of GPs on their own would probably cover like 90% of my motive power needs, since the quarry would be switched by locos from the NS.

[Amalynn]

I am in the process of un-burying the box that has what's left of my models in it from my storage unit. I am not even sure what I still have in it.

[MountainMan]

The correct answer in every single instance is the cheapest unit to operate that will handle the existing traffic on the existing line, to include grades.

In many cases, a switcher is more than adequate.

[Amalynn]

Erm, to exclude the two old locos I have on display, I misread SW1500 as SW1200 because of nutbar lol

[Amalynn]

The correct answer in every single instance is the cheapest unit to operate that will handle the existing traffic on the existing line, to include grades.

In many cases, a switcher is more than adequate.

That makes perfect sense. To be honest the main reason I am looking at Geeps is because I like them and they were my first "big kid" models after my first train set, and I know I can generate the traffic and a good enough story to warrant them.