It has been a week since any traffic has flowed on this forum. Over on another site concerning the New York Central there are two threads going on about "Favorite NYC Steam Locomotive" and "Favorite NYC Diesel." Some of you may have seen them. The general consensus concerning steam is that it is difficult, if not impossible, to pick a favorite New York Central Steamer since there were so many of them and they were all so good. I hate to copy another forum, but let's get some input here, open to BOTH steam and diesel. Happy Easter weekend.
WEll Jim,I know how you voted "over there" so our votes will cancel each other out. Also I have seen that some of the votes are being cast in a manner concerning the ability of a loco to do it's job rather than the intent of the poll,that is..your favorite loco. But anyhow my vote still goes to the J-1. The spoked drivers and all the other pieces just seem to have been put in the right places to produce a graceful steam engine. Take any given part on any given engine and the parts all look the same but put them together in the proper place and it changes the whole picture.Or whatever...... Diesels...well I still like the E-7 as built with silver trucks and two tone grey paint.The PA comes in a real close 2nd. Ron
Ron, you know I voted for the non-streamlined J-3 with non-Selkirk front end and Boxpok drivers. I did neglect to mention over on that "other" forum, the six-wheel truck tender ilo PT. It's interesting, we have different opinions of sub-classes of a single class of locomotives, the Hudson. I must admit, on your J-1, I always liked the classification lights on the front end, and was disappointed when NYC removed them from not only the J-3 but ALL of the Hudsons.
Jim The J-3 always had a more "brutish" look to it,ready to handle some mean work, while the J-1 seemed more like a "lady" and ready to please a passenger train. I could never get used to a J-2 with her "short legs".(However if some one said,right now, that there was a J-2 going on a fan trip next week out of Boston my Lincoln and I would be on our way...) Ron
For sure, and I would be right there with you. Man, got my 3rd and 4th Qtr. Headlights today. Speaking of B & A, how about that spiffy Mohawk, 3004, on the last steam out of Boston, 50 years ago today? What beauty. I have just skimmed the mags, but can't wait to read Tom G's article on Mohawks. Oh, no......more variations. See the photo of the L-2 with Scullin discs? When will this cease? Never, I hope.
I'll admit I'm dumb on the NYC. So, was the Empire State Express and the 20th Century Limited NYC trains? What was the first engine to pull these? Was it steam? They were famous trains, but hardly ever mentioned what railroad they were.
Watash, you be pullin my leg big time, old buddy. You know #$%^& well that both of those trains were poster children for the New York Central. They started with steam, one in 1901 (Twentieth Century) and the other I'm not sure of , but named after NY state, the Empire State Express. Both were great examples of the varnish that got put out of business by the interstate highway system and airlines. Sorry, I'm cranky tonight. Fitz
Let's see.... favourite NYC steam locomotive. That's a tough toss-up. The Hudson is imprinted in the mind of most railfans (even the younger ones like myself). I'm going to have to go with the Niagara, but only because I am an unabashed 4-8-4 fanatic. These engines were simply monsters, and engineering marvels. 6000HP.... that number still amazes me. The Hudson is not to be forgotten as one, either. After all, the mighty Niagara's roots begin with the Hudson. As far as looks, I think the Hudson has the Niagara beaten by a long-shot. Though, I have to admit, that earlier 4-8-4 built for NYC by ALCO (3-cylinder experimental #800) was a pretty good looking engine, and that engine greatly resembled its 4-6-4 predecessors. [ 25 April 2001: Message edited by: SBTX ]
Hhhmmm, I guess I'm impartial because for steam, I only have three types that ran on the Ottawa Division, and two types of diesels. So for steam, I really liked the f12g ones (4-6-0) and diesel, I love watching that one I have on VHS come blasting into Finch from Cornwall after a heavy snowstorm with passengers, which is a RS-3. New York Central's Ottawa Division
Stationmaster, I clicked on your link and got a message from Bravenet that "This URL is currently not in use." What did I do wrong?
Fritz I know a BIG reason why the link didn't work....I wrote it wrong, heheheh. Here is the proper link and I apologize. New York Central's Ottawa Division
Chris, that is an interesting site. I can imagine the frustration you went through trying to find the history of the various roads. Did any of those small towns publish newspapers, and if so are there any surviving archives? I know we have discussed quite a few items by email and I can't remember all of them, but am interested in that area, having spent some time there as a child.
