Western Railroad Discussion > F Units Haul the Freight on the SC&MB

According to the current issue of Trains Magazine(May, pg. 10) only five railroads in North America still use EMD F units in freight service and just one of those is west of the Mississippi.The Santa Cruz & Monterey Bay Railway(an Iowa Pacific road) uses its two F9's(1101 and 1102)to serve customers on Watsonville's west side and connect them to the UP interchange at Watsonville Jct., CA. Mount Hood R.R. GP9 89--the SC&MB's regular power until recently--is earning some revenue on lease to Graniterock in nearby Logan, CA.

It's been over 40 years since EMD F units made regular appearances at the former Southern Pacific yard in Watsonville Jct. and that's where the pair are seen early this afternoon in the first two photos preparing to return west to Watsonville. The third shot shows the pair a little earlier with 11 cars at m.p. 2.75 next to the Hwy. 1 bridge. North Star Biofuels(inbound tallow loads) and Big Creek Lumber(inbound forest products) account for most of the traffic resulting in several runs a week for the SC&MB crew and their classic power.

---

---

---

Making their interchange run to the UP today the train jockeys for space on Walker St. in Watsonville and is then seen in two more views at the old SP yard at Watsonville Jct.

---

---

---

Heading back west the train is seen on the bridge over the mighty Pajaro River crossing from Pajaro into Watsonville. In the final look the 1102 and 1101 are seen on the spur leading to North Star Biofuels. The 1102 is the oldest operating F unit in freight service in North America having been built as Baltimore & Ohio F3A 165 in 1948.

---

---

---

Those are nice!! I love F's and I love that color they're in. Great shots!!

Great shots and I bet they sounded good, too!

Love the F's but I don't know about those bug eye class lights. Also wish they had regular headlight too.

When do they run?
-- Eric B.

tomstp Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Love the F's but I don't know about those bug eye
> class lights. Also wish they had regular
> headlight too.
Just for the record, both of these units are former B&O locomotives that were rebuilt around 1981 for the MARC Train Commuter service in Maryland, so they have head-end-power generators in them.

Any idea what the loops are on the left rear corner of the roof on 1102? They can be seen pretty clearly in the 1st, 2nd and next to last shots.

It's great to see these still in service! I'll have to look for them next time I'm in the Santa Cruz/Monterey area.

SAMaase Wrote:

> Any idea what the loops are on the left rear
> corner of the roof on 1102?

They used to hold the exhaust muffler for the HEP genset:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1967700

Thanks Evan. Looks like the 1101 still has a comparable exhaust in place.

At least that paintjob helps hide those hideous pilots......

AlcoRSD15 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> When do they run?
> -- Eric B.

On duty at noon but operations based on customer demand with no set days of the week.

Great series, that street running shot is very cool!

Great shots! Yes, it's a fun job to chase and has some pretty neat power too! Thanks for sharing!

-Nick

Very cool! Are they getting much reefer business down there, too? There are about 3-5 spurs that could generate that traffic in the Watsonville area.

Are these the former Spirit of Washington dinner train units?

I LIKE Pic 4!!!

SD45X Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> At least that paintjob helps hide those hideous
> pilots......


Are those pilots from ALCO FA's? It sure looks like it.

m420 Wrote:

> Are these the former Spirit of Washington dinner
> train units?

Yes: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?1,2916844