The Atlantic & Southern Saturday Report

[ReadingBob]

Another wonderful report!   

[Judge]

Greg and Rollin - Thanks for the comments.  I thought I had lost my readers due to a three-week absence from the forum. 

The coal loads are just storebought plastic inserts.  Probably from a variety of manufacturers.  Many of them are between 30 and 40 years old. 

For some reason, coal loads, pulpwood loads, and other products of that sort are unavailable from sources such as Walthers.   I wonder what is causing the shortage? 

[Judge]

Thank you, Bob.  Now all three of my readers have reported.  Happy Days!

[PRR Modeler]

Another great story and video. I forgot to post earlier.

[ACL1504]

Hey, I read it as well.

Tom

[Judge]

Gangbusters!  My readers have increased by 25%!

[Zephyrus52246]

Great video and story, Judge.


Jeff

[Judge]

Thanks, Jeff, for taking the time to read my little stories and for your kind remarks.  OHE

[jerryrbeach]

Judge,


I'll echo everyone's comments.  Great story as usual and the video is the icing on the proverbial cake.

[jbvb]

C'mon, this forum software does report 'Views'.

[Judge]

Saturday Report - June 20, 2020.  Beautiful weather in Central Florida this first day of summer.  The temperature is 82 degrees at 11:00 a.m. and the blue sky has a few clouds.  It may rain a little later in the afternoon. 

The Board of Directors meeting was scheduled for Friday this week.  An unusual, but necessary, move due to the scheduled memorial service for our good friend and model railroader, Jim Miller.

The Board reviewed the disappointing performance of the recently shopped Pennsy K4s.  The engine would run normally for a while and then lose sound.  Tom installed three different decoders and performance was not improved.  Either we had three defective decoders or something else was causing the problem.  We contacted the A&S Director of Maintenance, Will Fixer, and he focused our attention on the Sagami can motor.  This motor has served with distinction for over 40 years, having been installed in the 70s.  It has now passed its expiration date and may be placed on display for celebration of its longevity.  Readers should be reminded that the K4s was acquired from the collection of Richard N. DeWitt, who passed away on Christmas Eve, 2006.  Dick was the owner of DeWitt's Railroads, Orlando's premiere train hobby shop.Dick bought the K4s in the early 1970s and it ran almost continuously on the hobby shop layout for many years.  Fortunately, Northwest Short Line can provide a replacement motor.

The main activity of the day was to video a scene to go with this week's story.  The video link is provided at the end of this week's story.  In addition to the video, your reporter ran an A-B-A consist of E-7 Pennsy diesels pulling a mixed freight while the K4s decoders were being detached and attached.

The roundhouse crew is going to (hopefully) complete the shopping of the C&O K-3 this week.  This engine will be put into heavy freight service.

The idea for this week's story came from the October 1938 edition of Trains magazine.   

                                                                                                                  The Spotter

    Railroads like to keep tabs on the performance of their crews, especially on passenger trains.  Sometimes, the railroad will hire an ex-employee from another road, usually a boomer, to be a "spotter."  This individual receives a free ticket from one point on the road to another and sits and observes the quality of service and the conduct of the crew on the trip.  A report of any rule violations is later rendered to the management and action is taken where necessary to correct faulty service or the conduct of the crew during the trip. 
    The Atlantic Coast Line has a passenger train (Number 42) that makes a daily trip run from Sanlando to St. Petersburg back each weekday, with a number of local stops on the way.  The train, consisting of two ACL FP7 locomotives, four headend cars, and three coaches, is typical of local passenger service on the ACL.  The ACL had 44 of the FP7s.  They were basically F7s that had been stretched four feet to accommodate a boiler to provide steam to heat and cool the passenger cars.  Nineteen of these units had their boilers removed in later years and were used exclusively in freight servicel
    One summer afternoon, Number 42 pulled out of the St. Petersburg Station and eased out on the mainline on its way back to Sanlando.  The conductor, "Hap" Hatter and the head brakeman, Bud Millstone, who both hailed from Tahope, stood in the vestibule of the last coach, chatting.  While Hap chewed a plug and Bud had a smoke, a scruffy looking passenger came through on his way forward to the next coach. Hap remarked, "Bud, I ain't seen that passenger before on this run, and I know all the regulars.  "I ain't seed him neither," said Bud.
    The next day a report was received by the superintendent that the crew was violating the rules by using tobacco during the trip.  Both Hap and Bud were called on the carpet for it and they promised it would never happen again.
    A few days later, while the train was heading north from St. Pete, Hap and Bud saw the same scruffy passenger sitting in the last coach.  The cleaning crew had not cleaned the train after it arrived in St. Pete and there were candy wrappers, newspapers, and other trash scattered around in the cars.  Hap and Bud were too busy to police up the trash so it did not cause them concern.
    The next day another report was filed and Hap and Bud were called on the carpet once again.  This time the warning was more serious.  "If you want to keep on as the crew on Number 42, there better not be any more complaints," said the superintendent. 
    Hap and Bud put their heads together and decided there must be a spotter on the train.  That didn't sit right because the ACL never used spotters on local passenger runs.  Hap got up close to Bud's ear and whispered, "Bud, I think there is someone trying to get us bumped off this run."  "Who would do such a thing?" asked Bud.  "I suspect it may be that shiftless skonk Short Stack, who just got promoted to brakeman.  He's had his eyes on this run ever since he got promoted."  "Well," said Bud, "that stranger shore ain't Short Stack.  Must be one of his friends or maybe even one of his kin."
    Bud kept an eye on the new passenger the next time he boarded the train.  When he took off his coat and hat to put them in the luggage rack, Bud saw an ACL Rule Book sticking out of his hip pocket.  Bud reported this fact to Hap, who suggested they needed to discourage further spotter activity.  They decided not to approach the passenger directly just in case he was a real spotter and not one of Short Stack's agents. 
    When the train arrived in Orlando, Hap made a quick telephone call from the ticket agent's office and returned to the train.  "Don't worry, Bud, everything is under control," he said. 
    About that time, another stranger boarded the train.  He was a tall, muscular type with a scar on his cheek and a brakeman's club in his right hand.  He approached the unsuspecting passenger and bodily removed him from his seat.  He escorted him to the nearest vestibule where Hap and Bud were waiting and removed the rule book from his pocket.  "Where'd you git this," Hap demanded from the terrified passenger?  "Short Stack give it to me," he said, "he's my cousin."  "Whuts yore name, you slimy worm, Bud demanded?  "Newt Fisher" came the reply.  "Newt, meet Bruce Bonebreaker, a friend of mine who was just released from state prison.  He's gonna put you off in Sanlando and we better never see you on this train again."  "Don't worry none," said Newt, "just don't put me off until the train stops."
  "Waal, Bruce, its good to see you again old friend," said Hap.  "I heared you'd been released after that prison stint you got in ORange County and I'm glad I could get in touch with ya."  "My pleasure," said Bruce, "I don't reckon you'll be seein' Short Stack's cousin any more on this train.  Happy to have been of service to ya."

There is a link below to a video depicting Numer 42 on its way through the cut near Perkins Farm.  The engineer, Uncle Henry O'Leary, provides some diesel horn music for the photographer.
     

                                                                                            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7rD6at8IXo

[ACL1504]

Judge,

Great story.

Tom

[GPdemayo]

Great story with a happy ending.....can't beat that Bill. 

[PRR Modeler]

Great RR story Bill.

[S&S RR]

Judge


I enjoyed the report, the story, and the video. Very nice work. Please keep them coming.