Athearn Genesis has done so much work detailing the Santa Fe "Topeka Cab" GP7u rebuilds that there is little detail work for me to do on my models of Y&MV GP7s 200 and 201.  These units are intended to represent second-hand former Santa Fe units as they are popular among regionals, short lines, and industrial roads.  

During a recent visit to Discount Model Trains in Addison, TX I stumbled upon BLMA item No. 4551 - "Removed Headlight Covers".  Several of the designs look like patches used by the Santa Fe so I purchased them to try them out.  Since my Y&MV is set in 1996, the marker lights molded on had to go.  

Here is the process I used to remove the molded-on marker lights and install the BLMA removed headlight covers.

1 - With an Exacto knife - slice off the rounded part of the molded light.

2 - Use a push-pin to indent the center of the marker light area to guide the drill-bit.

3 - Drill through each light on the nose.

4 - Sand any remaining raised surface smooth.

5 - Apply ACC to the drilled hole from the inside of the shell.

6 - Place Removed Headlight Cover in position on the outside of the shell (I used the adhesive part of a Post-It note to hande the cover as they are difficult to position.

7 - Sand away any excess ACC.

Chris

I asked my friend Nick Huth if he would mind sharing some photos he took of an excursion on the Arkansas Louisiana & Mississippi in the mid 90's. He obliged, sending some prints in the mail. I have scanned them and created this slide show on my Meridian Speedway website. The experiences I had with the Georgia Pacific railroads during this period led to the inspiration for the Proto-Freelanced railroads of my own Meridian Speedway.

The individuals in the first photo are, left to right, Lowell G. McManus, James H. Selzer, and myself, Christopher Palmieri....

Thanks for sharing the memories, Nick!

Chris

Natchez Trace & Orient B40-8 908 is the latest locomotive in the Meridian Speedway fleet to receive a LokSound decoder as well as LED head light and ditch light installation.  The BradleyDCC "Builder's Video" was posted today:

Chris

The long awaited TCS Wow-Sound EMD Diesel Decoder has finally been released.  There has been some discussion about it in the Y&MV GP7 201 Project category on my Blog.  Arthur Bradley of BradleyDCC was able to secure one of the first decoders available and has installed it on Athearn Genesis GP40-2 NS 3022.  Below is his YouTube review of the decoder.  Of particular interest is the Turbocharged 567 prime mover sound.  Looks like I will move up Y&MV SD35 552 to the top of the sound install list!

Chris

I reached out to long-time friend Lowell G. McManus looking for an article I believed he authored documenting a trip we made to Mexico's spectacular Copper Canyon in 1995.  Though that document did not surface, Lowell did volunteer several of his writings to display in my library.  The first one on the shelves is his research on the Completion of Arthur Stilwell's Kansas City, Pittsburg, and Gulf Railroad which would become part of the KCS we all know today!

This railroad of course is a major life-line to the region served by the Meridian Speedway, intersecting it at Shreveport, Louisiana.  This is a great account of the era of Rail Barons and how they helped shape where communities in America were developed.

Lowell prepared this work for presentation at the 1997 convention of the KCSHS which was hosted in the New Orleans area by my family.  Many thanks to Lowell for allowing this essay to be available for viewing in my library!

Chris

Train Dispatching by Jerry G. Lachaussee

For those of us incorporating train dispatching in our operating layouts this read may be useful!

I am very fortunate to have been able to add this article to my library. It is very special to me as it is a historical account of my craft written by perhaps the first train dispatcher I have met...and about a territory that I know well....

Jerry Lachaussee let me line my first switch and signal as a kid in Mobile, AL. Years later while working as an intern for Amtrak, I was delighted to hear his voice over the radio while in the lead unit of the Sunset Limited. He gave out an authority of some sort with the initials J.G.L. The crew commented on how J.G.L. was a top-notch dispatcher. I smiled and said, "I know him!"

Many thanks to the Mississippi Great Southern Chapter of the NRHS for publishing this article and for allowing me to host it in the library of my Meridian Speedway website.


Chris

My father, Michael Palmieri, had devoted much time to his website called Louisiana Rail Site.  This site was dedicated to all things rail in Louisiana and neighboring areas.  Tragically, the server that housed the site was the victim of Hurricane Katrina.  Recently while surfing the web for something unrelated I came across a link to an essay that my father had published on his website which was saved by web.archive.org.  

Through this link: http://web.archive.org/web/20030308195035/http://lrs.railspot.com/amt819.htm I was able to recover this lost work and post it in my library.  Included on the page is a photograph I took of Amtrak 819 in New Orleans shortly before it was destroyed.  This unit was 20 days old at the end of its career so not many photo exist of it.  I am proud to have "NOT JUST ANOTHER P40" im my library!

Chris

Also currently at BradleyDCC for LokSound Decoder and LED Head Light/Ditch Light installation is my Athearn Genesis GP49 NS 4604.  This locomotive was a gift from my parents - Thanks Mom and Dad!  Since it will be making appearances on the web I figured it was time to create the NS GP49 4604 Page on this site track its journey!

Chris

Anthony Lorch passed on a few images of his earlier KP locomotives as well as his recently completed KP SD60 6321.  I have added them to the KP Model Photo Page.

Chris

Natchez Trace and Orient B40-8 908 is currently at BradleyDCC and will be the next unit to be equipped with LokSound and LED Ditch Lights/Head Lights.  

I have added the NTO 908 Page to the models section of the web site:

Chris

Today an order of ExactRail cars arrived at the doorstep - most picked from the low-stock list at ExactRail.  They look very nice though the weights are loose in all three USLX hopper\cars.  The walkways on the roofs of all three are buckled in places and will require some attention.

Cars received:

USLX 20802 - Armstrong Logo - Evans 4780 Covered Hopper
USLX 20128 - No Logo - Evans 4780 Covered Hopper
USLX 20147 - No Logo - Evans 4780 Covered Hopper
CR 603817 - No Logo - Patch Out - Thrall 2244 Gondola
DJLX 98525 - DJ Joseph Logo - Thrall 2743 Gondola
DJLX 98538 - DJ Joseph Logo - Thrall 2743 Gondola
MP 651061 - UP Shield - Greenville 65' Mill Gondola
MP 651374 - UP Shield - Greenville 65' Mill Gondola

Chris

After I had my NS GP50 7022 upgraded by Arthur Bradley with a LokSound decoder and LED head lights/ditch lights, ESU LokSound has responded to inquiries about the need for a Southern/NS appropriate Nathan P5 horn sound in a big way!  This new sound is just amazing and I shipped my NS 7022 back to BradleyDCC who updated the decoder.

As always, Arthur posted a video on his YouTube site of the finished product: