Nostalgia & History > Three SP "oldests" in one 1968 shot - name 'em

Three items seen here were each the oldest in their respective SP categories on the date of photo. What were they?

As always, correct answers will receive a tasty selection of virtual Bulgarian Peas (further below). Bonus peas for naming the location.

Date: 6-21-1968
Locomotives: 6462, 3003, 6213

EO

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Ok, I'm stumped on more than one unless I research the road numbers against build dates, nevertheless-  The "Del Monte" oldest named train on the SP?

I'm not an SP expert, so this is tough. For me anyway. Looks like San Jose/College Park area.

Del Monte must have been SP's oldest name-train at the time.

6462 - wasn't that the former SSW unit? Did that make it the oldest commute unit at the time?

Foreground black-widow F unit. Was it the oldest operating SP F unit? At least  it was the oldest SP color scheme still extant at the time.

Nice action shot in a terminal area.

Best regards,

Rob L.

San Jose engine terminal, FP7A, GP-9, F-7A. w/b Del Monte Train 141 in the background

rob_l Wrote:
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> I'm not an SP expert, so this is tough. For me
> anyway. Looks like San Jose/College Park area.
>
> Del Monte must have been SP's oldest name-train at
> the time.
>
> 6462 - wasn't that the former SSW unit? Did that
> make it the oldest commute unit at the time?
>
> Foreground black-widow F unit. Was it the oldest
> operating SP F unit? At least  it was the oldest
> SP color scheme still extant at the time.
>
> Nice action shot in a terminal area.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Rob L.

Rob, you're almost there, buddy! There were older F's running around - the 6190 and maybe a couple of B's (I haven't checked on how many B's), so what was it about the 6213 (other than the paint scheme)?

EO

hogheaded Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> rob_l Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I'm not an SP expert, so this is tough. For me
> > anyway. Looks like San Jose/College Park area.
> >
> > Del Monte must have been SP's oldest name-train
> at
> > the time.
> >
> > 6462 - wasn't that the former SSW unit? Did
> that
> > make it the oldest commute unit at the time?
> >
> > Foreground black-widow F unit. Was it the
> oldest
> > operating SP F unit? At least  it was the
> oldest
> > SP color scheme still extant at the time.
> >
> > Nice action shot in a terminal area.
> >
> > Best regards,
> >
> > Rob L.
>
> Rob, you're almost there, buddy! There were older
> F's running around - the 6190 and maybe a couple
> of B's (I haven't checked on how many B's), so
> what was it about the 6213 (other than the paint
> scheme)?
>

Hmmm. Were all the older Fs originally passenger units (and thus equipped with water tanks), whereas 6213 was the oldest freight F cab unit left? (Such questions could be answered by pulling up a roster, but mine's not handy.)

Best regards,

Rob L.

rob_l Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> Hmmm. Were all the older Fs originally passenger
> units (and thus equipped with water tanks),
> whereas 6213 was the oldest freight F cab unit
> left? (Such questions could be answered by pulling
> up a roster, but mine's not handy.)
>
> Best regards,
>
> Rob L.

Your powers of deduction are spot on, Rob! The 6213 was the oldest F7A freight unit on the roster for a couple of years (I think - my rosters aren't handy, either). Accordingly, it certainly was the oldest unit with a cab left in Black Widow, as you suggested. This makes it a "double-oldest", something that I had not contemplated. This gets you awarded even more Bulgarian peas plus some Alka Selzer! Nice going!

For the record, the train is the westbound Del Monte - SP's oldest name train at the time - passing the servicing and ready tracks (note the goo) at San Jose's Lenzen Roundhouse. The 6462 was built/painted in Daylight colors as SSW 306 in 1950, well before the lower-numbered, built-for-SP-proper FP7's of 1953. The 6213, built in June, 1949, originally was the 6156D (passenger 6190, the oldest F7A overall, was built the same month). Below is the whole enchilada, with ex-TNO 369 and SP 6436. Note the early F3 muffin cooling fan atop the 6213 (not original equipment), and College Park Tower framed by the signal bridge.

EO



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/26/15 13:54 by hogheaded.

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Uh, 6392 in full Widow was still running in August of 1972, anybody mention that?

Out

6392 was not BW..........grey/scarlet

6432 was BW and still running in September, 1972



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/26/15 15:30 by WAF.

WAF Wrote:
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> 6392 was not BW..........grey/scarlet
>
> 6432 was BW and still running in September, 1972

6432 was the last of the freight F7A's, any color.

EO

I shot 6392 in August of 72 and it was Black Widow.

Out

Wait..  Did you take this photo?
If so, surely YOU'RE the oldest SOMETHING!

That's 4 old things!            I smell Bonus Points!!!!!!!!!!!

(at least I think that's what that is... )

SR



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/26/15 17:18 by BoilingMan.

callum_out Wrote:
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> I shot 6392 in August of 72 and it was Black
> Widow.
>
> Out

Nope. I'm looking at a picture of it at Roseville in 1971. Still grey

WAF Wrote:
> callum_out Wrote:

> > I shot 6392 in August of 72 and it was Black
> > Widow.

> Nope. I'm looking at a picture of it at Roseville
> in 1971. Still grey

Photos of 6392 in red and gray in 1967: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,1414221,1414224#1414224

Evan_Werkema Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> WAF Wrote:
> > callum_out Wrote:
>
> > > I shot 6392 in August of 72 and it was Black
> > > Widow.
>
> > Nope. I'm looking at a picture of it at
> Roseville
> > in 1971. Still grey
>
> Photos of 6392 in red and gray in 1967:
> http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,
> 1414221,1414224#1414224

Which leads to the obvious question, when was the last BW passenger F  repainted in G/R? I don't recall seeing any after 1964, but that doesn't mean anything.

EO

I HATE PEAS !!!

Posted from Android

Out_Of_Service Wrote:
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> I HATE PEAS !!!
>
> Posted from Android

Oh pea-lese!
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?18,3719642,page=1

EO

Evan, you guys are obviously right, the unit I remembered in Black Widow was the trailing
GP9, train was a Bakersfield/Fresno Hauler.

Out

callum_out Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Evan, you guys are obviously right, the unit I
> remembered in Black Widow was the trailing
> GP9, train was a Bakersfield/Fresno Hauler.
>
> Out
============================================
>Wait..  Did you take this photo?
>If so, surely YOU'RE the oldest SOMETHING!



(at least I think that's what that is... )

SR
============================================
But he IS right on this point. I'm old, but YOU are even older Rich.

V

SLOCONDR
 

> Which leads to the obvious question, when was the
> last BW passenger F  repainted in G/R? I don't
> recall seeing any after 1964, but that doesn't
> mean anything.
>
> EO

That's the best I can say too, for the dedicated passenger units. SP 6458, FP7, was to the best of my idle research the only FP7 to get icicle breaker bars while still in BW colors, and lasted to some point in 1964 in that scheme. Thus it was most likely the last FP7 repainted, and that might have happened as late as 1965.

The passenger-equipped F7As (boiler controls and pass-through steam lines, possibly 60:17 gearing) are a different story. SP 6389 made it to 1966 in BW, possibly 1967. At least one or two others may have lasted to 1967 in BW, and were used as helper power for 102 out of Roseville with the new SDPs. One or two might have lasted longer. But once the mail contracts ended in 1967 and the SDPs took over with shorter trains, the remaining passenger pool F7As went over to freight and were not generally seen with frequency in regular passenger service again. (SP 6462 is the exception.) And most of those had gotten S&G by the middle 1960s if not sooner.

And that's my definitive, completely equivocal, utterly insufficiently documented last word. :-)

~ BZ 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/02/15 20:37 by Notch16.