Mission acccomplished (trucks/wheel sets)

[Bob Morris]

As a new returnee to N scale, I've completed converting all my rolling stock so they'll run on code 55. They all now sport MT trucks/couples with replacement Atlas low profile metal wheels.

My locomotives roster will soon be complete: two Atlas E-L GP7's (one a torpedo tube in maroon and grey, the other a non TT in the early black and yellow) and a soon to arrive eBAY'd Atlas U25b, to handle the freight; and an old Con-Cor (Kato) E-L PA1 with the new Con-Cor E-L lightweight cars to handle the passenger business. I rode the old Phoebe Snow from Vestal to Owego as a boy so that has particular nostalgic value!

I'm also gathering my NYC engines: an Atlas RS3 lightning stripe; and my reservation is in at Wig-Wag for the Intermountain F units (A&B) when they come out in the spring.

The area I'm modeling (Southern Tier NYS and North Central PA) had shared traffic between the two roads from Gang Mills, N.Y. down to Williamsport, PA (interchange with the Reading) and two spurs to Blossburg, Pa. (E-L) for coal and steel castings and Wellsboro, Pa. (NYC) for the Corning Glass plant and Borden's factory.

Now if I could only figure out a track plan that can condense all that into the available space!

Thanks to folks here for helping me find the right parts to make all the rolling stock compatible! The lack of consistency on wheel flanges/couples certainly made the early stages interesting

Bob

 

[BNSFtheLeader]

Your a lucky man let me tell you.

I've been converting my stuff to MT for about 3 years now and I still have about 150 cars left and on top of that I just converted a couple of my CC Flats and CC Auto Racks to body mounts and let me tell you what, the differance in protype is extrordinary. Now I have to worry about redoing them as well although it shouldn't take more than about 2 months more to do as long as I don't buy anymore cars (Yeah Right).

 

[sams]

bob,
thats an interesting area you're modeling.
kind of like a "nexus" between other major roads.
are you from that area?
familiar with it?
do you know or have a track plan of the rails (past and present) of that area?
(added)...
did that area have its own local rr?
or was it all just kind of a meeting place for the other roads?

 

[Bob Morris]

It sure helps when you're converting a couple dozen cars vs. a couple hundred!

I do live in the area (Wellsboro, Pa.) and used to live in Vestal, N.Y. in the 50's to 70's. I've had fun researching the rail history of the area and have found the track plans from the area past and present. There have been several local railroads over the years. Blossburg was a major anthracite provider and the mine had it's own railroad until it was bought out by the Erie Railroad. Interestingly it delivered coal to Vestal! Hurricane Agnes ('72) stopped rail service on the Blossburg (Tioga) branch line however.

The old NYC line from Wellsboro Jct. to Williamsport through the Grand Canyon of Penna. also suffered during Hurricane Agnes and was eventually ripped up. There was a huge coal tipple at the Junction back in the days of steam and two water towers. The junction is now home to the Tioga Central passenger line.

In fact, currently Wellsboro has two operating railroads (!). The Wellsboro and Corning uses an SW8 and handles the freight for the local industries between Wellsboro and Gang Mills. It uses the old NYC/Conrail line. The Tioga Central is a passenger/tourist train using several RS1 and RS3 loco's and some restored passenger cars from various roads. It has trackage rights over about 18 miles (out and back) of the W & C.

Gang Mills remains a very busy yard for Norfolk Southern with connections West to Buffalo/Chicago and East to Binghamton and on to NYC. The Wellsboro and Corning has a great entrance into the yard actually entering from the North after crossing a river and negotiating a wye. It's essentially a loop! How many times do you see that in a prototype I was able to use the National Geological Survey maps from the internet to follow the trackage from Wellsboro to Gang Mills. You can still see the old wye at the Wellsboro Jct. even though the trackage is gone, and the wye at Gang Mills is very clear. Cool stuff!

Bob