New model trains for the week of March 23, 2017

Atlas Model Railroad Co. HO Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive HO scale locomotives Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive. NJ Transit. Four road numbers. Illuminated, directional light-emitting-diode headlights, ditch lights, and red marker lights; positionable non-functioning pantograph; factory-applied railings, air horn, and antenna; modeler-installed grab irons with drilling template; and Kadee couplers. Direct-current model with 8-pin […]

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CN, CP retiring more full-bodied, cowl units NEWSWIRE

Canadian National SD60F No. 5542 as seen at Stillwell, Ind., in 2009 is among the list of cowl units now retired or set to be scrapped. Greg Mross CHICAGO — The ranks of operating cowl locomotives on class I railroads is thinning once again, as Canadian National and Canadian Pacific purge additional locomotives from their […]

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Trains Presents: West Chicago

Join Trains Magazine Assistant Editor Brian Schmidt for a day trackside at West Chicago, Ill., in July 2016. We’ll see Canadian National and Union Pacific freight action, along with ubiquitous Metra commuter trains. We’ll also look at JB Tower, which guards the junction of the two freight carriers. […]

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Trains Presents: West Chicago

Join Trains Magazine Assistant Editor Brian Schmidt for a day trackside at West Chicago, Ill., in July 2016. We’ll see Canadian National and Union Pacific freight action, along with ubiquitous Metra commuter trains. We’ll also look at JB Tower, which guards the junction of the two freight carriers. […]

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Hunter Harrison named CEO at CSX Transportation NEWSWIRE

E. Hunter Harrison Associated Press JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — E. Hunter Harrison was named the CEO of CSX Transportation today, less than seven weeks after stepping down early from the top job at Canadian Pacific. Harrison, 72 — widely regarded as the industry’s best operations CEO — will begin immediately, CSX said today. He transformed Illinois […]

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Poling on railroads

A Canadian National worker moves a car using a pole on the pilot of CN No. 6310 in 1958. Gordon B. Mott, Louis A. Marre collection Q When did railroads stop using poling pockets seen at all four corners of freight cars and engines? – John Bronn, Eagle, Alaska A Poling was the once common […]

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New model trains for the week of February 9, 2017

HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division F45 diesel locomotive. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (“Kodachrome” scheme); Burlington Northern (Great Northern patchout); and Great Northern. Three road numbers per scheme. Road-number-specific details, Flexicoil-C truck sideframes with high brake cylinders, and 4,000-gallon fuel tank. Direct-current model with 8- and 9-pin connectors for Digital Command Control decoder, $179.98; with […]

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Close encounters of the 4-6-4 kind

Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo’s two ex-NYC J-1e’s were among the Hudsons that captivated a Buffalo boy in the late 1940s. Frank Clodfelter While growing up in Cleveland and Buffalo after World War II, a close encounter with a Hudson-type locomotive was just a train ride away. My first memory was as a four-year-old. My family […]

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2017 Railroad Hobby Show report

Atlas Model Railroad Co. HO scale Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive HO scale locomotives Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive. Agence Métropolitaine de Transport (Montreal’s commuter agency). Details, release date, and price to be announced. Atlas Model Railroad Co., 908-687-0880, www.atlasrr.com Atlas Model Railroad Co. HO scale Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode locomotive Bombardier Transportation ALP-45DP dual-mode […]

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CP agreement: Hunter’s open options include CSX, NS, and KCS NEWSWIRE

E. Hunter Harrison Associated Press CALGARY, Alberta – Former Canadian Pacific CEO E. Hunter Harrison is barred from heading to Canadian National, BNSF Railway, and Union Pacific, CP disclosed in a regulatory filing today. That leaves open the possibility that Harrison could seek management opportunities at CSX Transportation — as reported — or Norfolk Southern […]

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