Fire, smoke and steam (and LCL freight)

[greyhounds]

The recent discussion on LCL freight restoked an old flame of mine.

As a young whipersnapper I became convinced though study at Northwestern U that the dang US government had driven a significant amount of lucrative LCL freight and revenue from the railroads though misguided (dare I say dumb) ecomonic regulation that prevented the railroads from effectively competing for this freight.

No railroad fought harder or tried to inovate more in order to hold the LCL business than the New York Central. The government just wouldn’t let them adjust to changing conditions - and they’re now a “Ghost of the Rail”.

I’m not a modeler but I found an HO model of a 1920’s New York Central LCL container car on eBay. I just gotta’ have it. And several more just like it. Well, if I’m going to have a model of a 1920’s NYC container train I’ll need a Mohawk to pull it.

Searching for a Mohawk, I found this great song:

Rail and Machine,

Fire, Smoke and Steam.

Has anyone ever said it any better? I don’t think so. Put the sound on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hV9j1LqLYMU

[PNWRMNM]

Ken,

Good pick, fun song and relevant pix.

Mac

[Paul_D_North_Jr]

You’ll also need something like one of Lionel’s 282R portal or gantry cranes to load and unload the contaienrs from your cars. See this still photo and short video (3-1/2 min.) of one in action on the companion Classic Toy Trains website here, at:

http://ctt.trains.com/en/Videos/Product%20Reviews/2009/10/David%20Smiths%20Lionel%20no%20282R%20gantry%20crane%20in%20action.aspx

And to have some real fun of the “What could [or should] have been” sort, how about coupling some loaded multi-platform double-stack cars - including some refrigerated containers - behind that Mohawk ? And/ or some RoadRailers, TOFC, and anything else from the modern era ? [:-,] I promise not to laugh or point out the anachronism [which one . . . if any ?] . . . [:-^]

• Paul North.

[Anonymous]

Good song, and it’s in a minor key which gives it a rather mournful and melancholy ambiance.

[blue_streak_1]

And to have some real fun of the “What could [or should] have been” sort, how about coupling some loaded multi-platform double-stack cars - including some refrigerated containers - behind that Mohawk ? And/ or some RoadRailers, TOFC, and anything else from the modern era ? I promise not to laugh or point out the anachronism [which one . . . if any ?] . . .

• Paul North.

Or an oxymoron?

[Firelock76]

Say, who’s doing the singing? The song came through a little rough, but it sounds like Jim Coffey, the fellow who does the music for TM videos.

[greyhounds]

You’ll also need something like one of Lionel’s 282R portal or gantry cranes to load and unload the contaienrs from your cars. See this still photo and short video (3-1/2 min.) of one in action on the companion Classic Toy Trains website here, at:

http://ctt.trains.com/en/Videos/Product%20Reviews/2009/10/David%20Smiths%20Lionel%20no%20282R%20gantry%20crane%20in%20action.aspx

And to have some real fun of the “What could [or should] have been” sort, how about coupling some loaded multi-platform double-stack cars - including some refrigerated containers - behind that Mohawk ? And/ or some RoadRailers, TOFC, and anything else from the modern era ? I promise not to laugh or point out the anachronism [which one . . . if any ?] . . .

• Paul North.

Well, the good news is that I won the eBay auction for the 1920’s era HO container car. The bad news is that there was someone else who wanted it almost as much as I did. (How dare they!) I wound up paying $53.25 for one HO freight car. But I got it. Hah! I showed him! But now what? I don’t even have a circle of track to run it around.

Paul has given me an idea. I’ll do this diorama thingy depicting the movement of merchandise freight over the past 100 years.

I’ll start with the system as it existed 100 years ago with teams of horses, oxen, or mules dragging wagons over dirt/mud roads to and from the nearest rail line.

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