Postwar New Haven Video

[Len]

Found an interesting video of postwar New Haven operations. It's put together from 16mm silent film clips and has some interesting operational scenes, especially running in the street to switch an industry near Providence, RI. It starts with some B&M footage, then moves the the New Haven, primarily around Providence. Lots of Alco action, including DL-109's, FT's and PA's. If you look quick there's even a C-Liner in one shot. Also lots of RDC shots, including a shot of an RDC-3. Right around the 33 min mark there's a little bit of the electrified area down in SE Connecticut.

Be ready to hit the 'Pause' button, because there are a lot of ideas for layouts in there...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5VwTFo7q-s

Len

[Len]

In the later half of the video a couple of really unusual road switchers, wearing shiny black paint and US Army Transportation Corps marking, makes an appearance. They are ALCO built, for GM's part of the contract, Military Road Switchers, MRS-1's, with multigauge trucks. GE also built some. The giveaway these are ALCO units, aside from the roof line, is the 'B', for boiler, in front of the road number. 50 of the ALCO units had boilers for passenger use in the short hoods. None of the GE units did. The truck side frames stick out so far because the wheelsets could be shifted between 4' 8-/12" standard gauge and 5' 6" wide gauge. They were running around in New England at the time for clearance tests on the sharp curves and small tunnels. They were the closest the Army could get to what they might run into in Europe.

Some technical info on the units can be found here: https://www.classicstreamliners.com/lo-alco-mrs-1.html
Interestingly, for the times, they were the most expensive diesel locomotives ever built.

Len

[jonathan]

Couple of steamers snuck into the shot early on.  So of course, I was paying attention after that. 

Man oh man, sound would have been quite a bonus.

Enjoyed it.  Thanks, Len.

Regards,

Jonathan

[Len]

It's a compilation of 16mm home movie clips from the late 40's until the mid 50's. Unfortunately, most home movie cameras of the time didn't have sound. Even so, there are some nice shots of New Haven equipment in there. Even some showing the loco and car roof detail in the second half. That's something that can be hard to find since most photos and film are shot from ground level.

A few scenes I thought were interesting for layout ideas were a bit dark. So I hit pause, took a screen shot, and lightened things up using a photo editor. Definately made it easier to see the buildings and bridges I was after.

Len

[Trainman203]

Very heavy duty northeast urban railroading, the polar opposite of how I remember things.  Accordingly, new and interesting.  Around 27:00 more or less are some heavyweight coaches being pushed around a very model railroad-like tight radius curve!  Wonder what the radius in inches would be in HO?  I bet you could hear the flanges squealing and complaining two miles away.

[Len]

Those tight curves could be found in a lot of places on the New Haven. Which is why clearance tests for the MRS-1's were run up there. And yes, the squealing from the wheels was something to hear. Even a 40' boxcar would wake the dead being shoved around some of the curves where tracks ran down the streets.

Len

[Trainman203]

Biloxi MS had some standard gauge street trackage that remained in the 1940's to serve some fish packing plants after an interurban/streetcar system was abandoned.  It turned street corners just like automobiles.  Box motors running off overhead catenary shoved 40' reefers in and out.  I bet there was some flange noise there too.

[Len]

The New Haven wasn't the only one with tight curves and squealing wheels. From the overhang of the cars, that might be a 28" radius curve in HO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYPBJl-vq9Y

Len

[RAM]

well they had one hopper car covered with a trap that should have been out of service.  I couldn't read the first letter -ex 15162