Maintenance of May

After over a year I was able, a little at a time, to switch out the roster, with my 17mo toddler's help/"help". He is still enamored with all things trains.

Here are some notes on the Maintenance of Way (MOW) roster: This is the first time I've put together a MOW theme.

The Postwar MOW train on Track 1 is extremely reliable, except for occasional derailment of the last two cars at the 45-degree crossover. I haven't recognized anything specific that needs to change to prevent this situation. The UP locomotive continues to be one of the best runners in the fleet, at 68 years young. The searchlight car, with repairs made previously, functions correctly and dramatically (especially in the dark). The locomotive and cars were all manufactured by Lionel in the 1940’s – 1950’s. Union Pacific FA A unit #2023, Lionel Lines searchlight car #3620, New York Central gondola #6462, Leigh Valley hopper #6456, and Southern Pacific caboose #6357.

The SFTA MOW train, which had to be moved from Track 3 to Track 2 to accommodate the scale CNW crane's boom length (see below), is right at home on this O-31 track. Being an entry-level K-Line set, the NW2 locomotive has a couple challenges - 1) While scale in proportions, it's decks are oversized and will impact trains on Track 3 while traversing curves, and 2) it doesn't have a "slow" speed - it goes from still to fast with nothing in between, and it will go even faster still. I can work with this, but it does mean I shouldn't run trains on Track 3 while this one is running on Track 2, and I shouldn't run it if I'm trying to calm myself or anybody down! “SFTA” is an abbreviation for Silver Falls Transit Authority, which in this case is leasing equipment from the Trackside Construction Company. NW2 #104, unnumbered rail transport car, unnumbered I-beam transport car, gondola carrying railroad ties #5630, and unnumbered crane car/caboose.

The CNW MOW train looks very sharp, and is truly O scale in proportions. However, this means that the crane boom, which extends 7.5 inches beyond the car's deck, sticks out quite a ways on corners. With the large hooks and equipment that hang from the boom, this would cause considerable damage to any trains operating on the next track. Originally, this train was scheduled to run on Track 2, but it would have obliterated the SFTA train which was planned to run on Track 3, so I swapped the two trains. My choice of equipment for Track 4 also made this an easy decision. Anyway, the CNW train runs at a slower pace, and I've turned the locomotive around to run backwards, which is prototypical. The cab (and thus, the engineer) is closer to the crane operation, and that provides better line-of-sight to maintenance work. I've observed various MRL work trains operating in a similar fashion, with REAL GP7s and GP9s, albeit with trimmed front hoods :) Lionel CNW GP7 #1518, MTH CNW crane #6359, and matching MTH crane tender #X250948.

And the trusty handcar makes its long way around Track 4. This handcar was built by Industrial Rail and is unnumbered.

As part of the changing of rosters, I entered or completed inventory records for all participating equipment. At this point, 72% of the fleet has been inventoried. Enjoy National Train Day this Saturday, and keep those rails shiny!

Postwar MOW train

SFTA MOW train

Long CNW crane boom

CNW MOW train

Handcar