EMD FP9s still in service - near my home.

[mqqn]

Mapleton Illinois - still seeing regular use on the Keokuk Junction Railway.

Caught them sitting still on a sunny cold February day -

Picture taken with my cell phone and compressed for web.

best

mqqn

 

[Burlington Bob]

I believe they are all ex-Algoma Central units. The B unit is still wearing AC paint. They are sure a nice sight to see coming down the track! I hope they keep them well maintained and running for a long time to come. Now if they would upgrade the track to allow faster running,..........that would be icing on the cake!

 

[Old 97]

WoW! What a treat!

 

[Old 97]

Found their website: http://www.pioneer-railcorp.com/Subsidiaries/KJRY/kjry.html

 

[diburning]

Pan Am Railways uses two ex-CSRX (Conway Scenic) exx-CN FP9s for their OCS.

Here's a video that I shot a while back of them flying (bouncing) down the jointed rail main line

[youtube]DczYT-1Nybo[/youtube]

 

[Old 97]

Great video!

 

[Rico]

Great pics and video, thanx!
I have pics of VIA units turning at warman road somewhere, I'll dig.

 

[mqqn]

Thanks folks -

That is a cool video - thanks for sharing it.

I feel lucky to live so near to a lot of great railroading.

best

mqqn (Andy)

 

[DaveTheTrain]

You're lucky indeed! I grew up in Toronto and watched these things all over the place. Never thought the day would come when they'd be gone.....

 

[diburning]

Here's a more recent, but not so good video that I shot last year. The consist is PAR 1 (FP9), PAR 2 (FP9), NS 4726 (F7B), NS 4720 (F9A), ST 100, ST 101 (Pan Am OCS cars), NS Generator Car, and the NS OCS.

[youtube]HSsj2C0c7H8[/youtube]

It was leaving out of Ayer, MA (the eastern end of the Pan Am/NS Patriot Corridor) to go to Mechanicville, NY to celebrate the efforts to reopen the Mechanicville intermodal yard (which has become a grassy field since it was closed more than a decade ago). The yard was rebuilt to expand NS's intermodal service into New England. (The yard was once owned by Pan Am. It was transferred to a joint company between NS and Pan Am (Pan Am Southern). Pan Am contributes property, NS contributes money, and they both split the profits)

I was at Shirley, MA (next town over from Ayer) and heard over the radio that the OCS was delayed at the station because PAR 1 had a stuck handbrake. After an hour and a half and no train, all the railfans stood around and held conversations while waiting patiently for the train to radio the dispatcher saying that they were good to go.

The train never radioed the dispatcher, so when it came flying around the corner, we all had to scramble to get rolling and shooting. In my case, I set up my tripod next to a tree. The shadow wasn't over my tripod when I set it up, but when the train came, the shadow had moved, and there was no time to move the tripod.

The detector at Shirley didn't report any defects, but when the train got to Gardner, MA (~10 miles away) the detector went off shouting hotbox. Turns out they decided to drag it, hoping that the handbrake would release itself.

It did release itself afterwards as all the other detectors along the way did not report any defects.

 

[CbarM]

COOL vid!!!!! If I ever win the lotto then thats what I am gonna buy...a set of F units to blast around my 2 miles of track. When I get bored of that, I will fire up my AC4400 and give that a whirl...hahaha...wishful thinkin I now...but at least when Im broke, I will have somethin to show for it...better then blowin it in Vegas...