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Model Railroading > UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in MontanaDate: 05/18/16 21:35 UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: fbe When Athearn announced their new CSA-2 Challengers I was taken by the brutish looks of the locomotives built before the faster more modern 3900 series were designed. I thought I might be interested in picking one up if I could justify one in Montana.
While looking in my copy of the Colorado Railroad Museum Annual 15 for some narrow gauge information I kept reading about the Pocatello to Silver Bow line after standard gauging. There were photos of 3800 series locos as road power as well as the same locos as double headed helpers on Monida Pass. What a sound that must have been! There is a tonnage table in the book showing tonnage ratings for 3800-3839 steamers but blank spaces west of Granger, WY for 3900 and 4000 articulates. I guess I need to get an oil burner reserved. Posted from iPhone Date: 05/19/16 06:16 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: mamfahr > When Athearn announced their new CSA-2 Challengers
> I was taken by the brutish looks of the > locomotives built before the faster more modern > 3900 series were designed. I thought I might be > interested in picking one up if I could justify > one in Montana. Hello, Just out of curiousity, are you modeling the Pocatello - Id. Falls - Butte line? If so, what year(s)? Thanks, Mark Date: 05/19/16 09:02 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: fbe Mark,
No, I will not be modeling the line but modeling a nice UP train to take to free-mo setups would be nice. I can remember seeing trains on the line when growing up and driving to Butte with remote power like DD40s and SD45s so something from the steam era would be nice. These "early" Challengers are an interesting look as well. They mark the transition from the early 1900s 2-6-6-2 mountain helper branch line slow speed designs to the next generation of articulated steam engines. These have notably larger boilers but the appliances are still open and hung onto the boiler with only hints of refinement. You can see where the UP 3900 Challengers and 4000 Big Boys came from but these are still one step away. If I was a much younger man there would be thoughts of modeling Butte, America including Silver Bow. There was GN coming in from the north, NP's secondary mainline running east to west through town, the Electrified Milwaukee Road in from the south and then leaving to the west. The UP coming to Silver Bow and running to Butte. Then there was the BA&P between Butte and Anaconda with tracks all over the mountain serving nearly every mine head frame with box cab electrics. This could be a club size operation in a square format building. Posted from iPhone Date: 05/19/16 15:30 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: mamfahr We'll, if it's of any help, here's a brief sample of locomotives arriving Pocatello in 1952 on various days from the north. It'll give you an idea of the variety of power they used in that area in those days:
Train Locomotive Ex 3552 Roberts Local 3824 1/252 7865 Gay Local 3521 Ashton Turn 3136 Aberdeen Local 531 SLX 1507-1550C-1528B AK Turn 5300 Gay Local 3826 BUS 1522-1516B-1510C-1528 AK Turn 3538 SLX 1560-1554B-1514?-1512C Mackay Local 1188 No. 36 3135 No. 30 3801 No. 34 3138 There are a few 4-6-6-4s scattered in there, so 'looks like you're ok with one of those. (later edit, just found out that "AK" was the old telegraph station call for Idaho Falls, so the AK local was the Id. Falls Local...) Take care, Mark Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 05/20/16 14:22 by mamfahr. Date: 05/19/16 16:24 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: fbe Thanks, Mark. From the CRM Annual there are photos of the Challengers in freight, passenger and helper service. There are also TTT 2-10-2 steamers in freight and passenger service.
The Silver Bow line could be an interesting line and operation to model from the narrow gauge construction to even current day operations with a 70-90 car train and BUGE (Big Ugly GE) power once a day. Posted from iPhone Date: 05/20/16 12:36 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: grahamline A motive power factor on the Gay Mine run would be excessive grades requiring heavy power and a lot of braking capability, as the loaded trip was mostly downgrade. The Aberdeen branch, on the other hand, was flat as a board with much lighter traffic. The Montana sub has heavy grades as well.
Date: 05/23/16 10:42 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: fbe So my order is in not without it's own adventure. I ordered an oil burner with a single stack which comes with a footboard pilot which seems incorrect.
The oil burner with the correct tube pilot comes with a double stack. All I see in the photos of the Butte line seem to be single stack. UP 3835 in passenger service was oil, single stack and a cast pilot. That interests me. I hope Athearn brings in a few extra pilots so I can make a swap. Posted Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/23/16 11:31 by fbe. Date: 05/23/16 10:54 Re: UP 4-6-6-4 CS Challengers in Montana Author: fbe grahamline
The line to Silver Bow was a long uphill grade going north. There are two crossings of the Continental Divde at Mondia Pass on the Idaho Montana border and Deer Lodge Pass just a bit south of Silver Bow. These must have been interesting operations with narrow gauge 2-8-0 steam engines. Posted from iPhone |