Mix and Match?

[Bob Collins]

Hi Carl;

Thanks very much for all the good information. I really do appreciate it.

I am 100 miles up the other way from Springfield on the BNSF line that runs southwest from St. Louis through Springfield and I believe on to Tulsa. I will have to watch more closely here although I liver away from the tracks and usually only see them when I have to wait at a crossing!! All I have ever seen are the "usual" mixture of motive power that BNSF uses and a Conrail or demo once in a great while.

Thanks again.

Bob

 

[60103]

Bob:
On your run-throughs, make sure the leading unit is compatible with the signalling and dispatching system you use; otherwise you will need to use a home-road diesel as pilot. All being equal, the crews will pick the most comfortable or cleanest (in the cab) unit for lead.

 

[brakie]

Here is something for you Chessie lovers like me. If you are modeling the Chessie(C&O) then you would need a Chessie C&O unit in the lead.If you model the Cheesie B&O,then a B&O unit would lead.

Does anybody know why this was the case? I worked on the Chessie/C&O and I will answer later,but,frist your answers.sorry there is no prize to be won if you know the answer.. No BOOS if your wrong.Remember this is both fun and something to learn.

 

[pcentral]

Hey Brakie,
This is just a guess, but is it for when you come to an interchange with another RR the other freights can identify your train. Example: dispatch sends word to B&O freight 75 that C&O freight 96 will be waiting on siding for clear track. As you can tell I'm sure, I am no expert on RR lingo.

 

[CarlFidy]

Signals on "wrong" side???

Brakie,

Was the C&O one of the railroads that put their signals on the left side of the track and therefore had the engineers seat on the left in their locos. Where as most "normal" railroads have their signals and engineers on the right.

Bob,

Missouri Pacific & Rio Grande would be two other lines that might have shown up anywhere on the UP system. I haven't seen a MP in a long time, but just saw a Rio Grande unit in the last three months somewhere between Denver and Ogden, UT. Looked kind of like the same situation as Tulsa, older locos still in premerger paint schemes assigned to local duty. This one was "parked" with an UP unit next to a grain elevator.

 

[Wolv33]

Bob,

I live on the Sedalia sub between Jeff City and Sedalia, and I have seen mixes of UP, CSX and SP motive power in the main consists and as helpers.

As for rolling stock, most of the coal unit trains have a mixture of their merger roads (C&NW, DRGW, SP) and even some ex-BN and some CSX cars. When they roll through, one train might have a mixture of Bethgons and Ortner hoppers, another may be just straight Bethgons.

Other freight, there is a mixture of a lot of DRGW, C&NW, SP, WP, and some older cars like SOO, NP and even Frisco I have seen come through here. I see lots of BN or ex-BN cars with the UP too. Maybe they are just pulling for BNSF. I dunno. An autorack train came through here yesterday morning, and it was a mixture of all kinds of different roads.

For the most part, the motive power is UP but there are occassions where it is not.

Later.

PS You can pick up radio chatter on shoutcast.com of the Sedalia sub. Be warned though, it is pretty dead till after 7:45pm.

 

[brakie]

Ok, One of the reasons was due to the signals. C&O use the standard signals.The B&O used positions lights.So in order to aviod any signaling problems a C&O unit lead on C&O and B&O lead on the B&O.Of course this did not always work out,but as a rule it was done.

Recall the C&O did not own nor was it merged with the B&O.The C&O had 51% of the stock and thus controlled the B&O.The merger would not come untill April 30th 1987.

The C&O/B&O/WM was under the parent company of the Chessie System.However the C&O/ B&O did gain full control of the WM in 1967 and the WM went into the Chessie in1973. The B&O/WM finally merged on May1st,1983.The CSX merged the C&O on August 31st,1987...

And that is why you saw more B&O lead on the B&O and more C&O lead on the C&O.

WHEW!