PAR Locomotive Fleet - General Discussion

Waiting on Watco?

atholrail wrote:No oil or sand at Deerfield... Billerica maybe in F it mode...

That seems to have been the MO for quite some time now.

jaymac wrote:Waiting on Watco?

Since 1983???

Will anyone from Waterville/Billerica be in the audience raising his/her hand to make a bid? While the GP38-s units to be auctioned are 40+ years old, many of these units are equipped with electric parking brake (what is this?) and some have air conditioning.

http://www.blackmonauctions.com/auctions/258/

johnpbarlow wrote:Will anyone from Waterville/Billerica be in the audience raising his/her hand to make a bid?

http://www.blackmonauctions.com/auctions/258/

Unfortunately, I wouldn't count on it......

Why buy more locomotives if they can't put fuel/water/oil/sand in the ones they've already got?

It's a net gain of +30 units at this point if they just get their own crap running. I bet the leasers are costing them more in absolute $$$ than stocking Waterville with parts and consumables would cost for returning the self-owned fleet to full strength. Waste money to save money: it's the Billerica way.

Spend dollars to save pennies. That's always been the Guilford way, but Pan Am is taking the concept to new heights on an accelerating curve.

Its unsustainable ... it can't go on forever.

What would make a locomotive so it was only supposed to be a trailing unit?

gokeefe wrote:Its unsustainable ... it can't go on forever.

33 years and counting... or you could be kind and say 30 to be nice since the strikes.

Mikejf wrote:What would make a locomotive so it was only supposed to be a trailing unit?

Any number of FRA defects.
Its a long list, but usual suspects are in no particular order:
headlight bulbs inoperable,
non-functioning alerter,
non-functioning event recorder,
missing seat(s),
inoperable toilet,
etc.
You get the idea, anything that is required for crossing protection, or crew safety/well being, but is non-essential to make the unit operable will make it trail only. Externally, its pretty much headlights, the bulk of 'trail only' defects are in-cab issues, as you would expect.

Thanks Ksmitty. Thought it was something along those lines.

You would think though if it was light bulbs they would put new ones in. But if they aren't buying oil...

Isn't this the same outfit notorious for stealing light bulbs?

Or I think one time I heard NS had to swap a Pan Am engine off the lead because the exhaust fumes were venting straight into the cabin