Large Scale Central

St Maries River Railroad 2-24-17

Prototypes
#1

Did a little rail faning today. I wanted to go to St Maries, ID today to take pictures of the ex Milwaukee now STMA rib side caboose. I am not sure how much longer the STMA will be alive. Hopefully a long time but I think its days are numbered. Anyway before they sell off everything I want to photograph some of their unique equipment for prosperity and future modeling. I lost almost all the photos I had in the past of the equipment. One of the pieces I really love is their rib side caboose. I went down today and got permission to measure it and photograph it. This is high on my priority list for modeling. I want to model the GP9s, the log cars, and this caboose.

I was able to get all I need to make a very close model of it.

After about an hour of measuring and photographing I followed the train on its run to Plummer, ID. It was an unusual day. Under normal conditions the SW1200 switcher #501 will run down to the mill about 1/2 mile away and do its switching. It builds a train of box cars and center beams loaded with lumber and then places empties at the mill. Then it returns to the yard and the crew parks the switcher and brings out two of the three GP9 low nose MU’d long hood to long hood. They do this so they don’t have to turn the locos at Plummer. They just swap ends. At any rate you pretty much know when it is time to leave when the two locos leave. Today was different. The switcher came back and the gp9 #103 came out and got fuel and headed off solo. Then the 501 (switcher) head back to the mill. After a bit I got wise that something different was happening. I called the office, the lady there is nice and patient with annoying train enthusiasts, and she said that they were down to 1 GP9. The other one was getting a main generator overhaul. Not sure what the third one is doing or if they even still own it. She said this had been a situation for awhile and with only one Geep available they were piling up loaded cars. Time to get some cars down the line; so they were going to use the switcher for extra motive power. This led to an interesting arraignment for them. The Geep ran long hood forward with abut 2/3 of the consist and then the switcher ran backward with the rest of the cars. When they got to Plummer they split the train at the switcher. He put his load on one siding and then used the other siding to head home. Then the GP9 pushed his cars onto the same siding and connected them and dropped them off for an eventual exchange with UP. He then backed down and hooked onto his return consist of empties and hauled them back by himself short hood forward.

Well the weather wasn’t the best for pictures and I really wanted to catch them crossing the Pedee trestle. So far the one shot I have never gotten on a route full of picture worthy locations. To get them on the trestle requires a short hike. It also was on a snow covered trail. As such I took a vid and a couple lousy pictures just out of town and then beat feet to the trestle. So for your enjoyment here are a few items from the days run.

Just out of town. Notice the unusual arraignment.

About two or three miles out of town. One of my favorite picture spots.

The Pedee Trestle. The STMA runs on the old Milwaukee Road. Pretty typical steel trestle of the Milwaukee.

Here the train is coming into the Plummer wye which is the interchange with UP.

This spot affords a great view of the tops of these locos. Fortunately there are several spots where you can get close up shots of the top. also makes for a nice picture.

Hope you enjoy. I didn’t get shots of UP they had already done their business and were pulling out just as I was getting to the wye.

#2

Wow man, that was an interesting operation. Think that’s the first time I’ve heard of an SW-something being used in the manner of distributed power or a mid-train helper! :wink:

#3

That’s what I thought too. But I guess you have to do what you have to do.

#4

I think this is an awesome post. Thanks Devon.

#5

Devon Sinsley said:
That’s what I thought too. But I guess you have to do what you have to do.

File it in the folder “There is a prototype for everything”

#6

All the more reason I need a USA Trains NW 2 switcher to.convert it to an sw1200 so I can throw it in the mix.

#7

Great looking pictures and video there Devon. Of course you could have said something and maybe had a passenger/helper to go along. According to the web site of the group that owns the STMA, their plan is to use the engine facility to rebuild and refurbish locomotives because the shop is state of the art. I also don’t see the lumber mill shutting down anytime soon, so other then getting rid of some equipment I hope they keep everything going.

Did you see the passenger cars down in the yard? There were 3 last time I was down though there. Hopefully the owners are still looking at doing the dinner train.

#8

Chuck,

This was a spur of the moment trip. But John Hair wants to come up when the weather is a bit better and take it in. For sure you can come. I think he wants Dennis to come and whoever else. I am hoping I can call down there and tell them we have a model RR club that would like to take a tour. They are pretty good about accommodating rail fans. If we could poke around for a couple hours then when they leave town around 10 we can follow. I have several places where you can get great photos.

I actually spent quite a bit of time talking to the folks there one day last year. I think they have a total of 5 passenger cars from the White Cloud in CA another line they own. The owner of STMA is a 1:1 model rail roader. He owns the short line that runs through Pullman, the Washington and Idaho I believe its called, and he also owns the Bountiful Grain in Lewiston or whatever its called. At any rate he is an innovator at keeping these short lines alive. The plan is to possibly run an excursion train from St Maries to Clarkia. He salvaged the track rights so they are no longer considered abandon. As of now the excursion train is at best a maybe.

As for the shops the loco shop is impressive. If you haven’t seen it then it is a must see. It really is an impressive facility for a po dunk middle of nowhere shop. They can pretty much totally overhaul a loco. The other thing they have talked about getting into is the scanner things on the sides of cars that is basically like a grocery store bar code. It identifies the cars and their locations. They are looking at installing that on cars. Of course there is also car storage which is a big deal and everywhere you look STMA has cars parked on sidings.

The mill is still very active but that isn’t necessarily a good thing for the STMA. Since they interchange with UP at Plummer anyway it was talked about when Potlatch decided to give up the railroad that the trackage and shops might go to UP. They could maintain a small crew there with a switcher to handle the two mills in town and then when they make the run from Spokane to pick up the Plummer mill they could just come down to St Maries.

Well all of this info is a year old. I would love to have a sit down with the GM and get some updates. Maybe we can put something together.

#9

Very cool! Do you think there was crew in the middle loco? We’re they controlling it or do you think they have some sort of distributed power control from the front? Hey I’m a steam guy…I don’t know these things.

By the way, when I lived in Connecticut, I used a lumber yard which was served by the New Haven main line, they often had a couple of those Center beam cars until loading, now I know where they came from! I never saw them delivered, they did that at night to avoid all the fast passenger (Amtrak Acela, and commuter) trains on the line.

#10

Eric Schade said:

Very cool! Do you think there was crew in the middle loco? We’re they controlling it or do you think they have some sort of distributed power control from the front? Hey I’m a steam guy…I don’t know these things.

By the way, when I lived in Connecticut, I used a lumber yard which was served by the New Haven main line, they often had a couple of those Center beam cars until loading, now I know where they came from! I never saw them delivered, they did that at night to avoid all the fast passenger (Amtrak Acela, and commuter) trains on the line.

Eric,

I can say definitely that there was crew in the switcher. He waved every time they came by me. My guess is that he was having to control it. When I seen him he had a mic in his hand. In talking to the receptionist she said he was the shop foreman and not the regular engine crew. Here is my thought. Normally they run two GP9s at the front connected by a MU cable. The unmanned loco is controlled by the crew in the manned loco via this telemetry cable. This is a shoe string railroad and I doubt they have invested in any kind of wireless telemetry that might be available. Since they don’t normally do this and certainly not with the switcher I doubt it was being controlled by the lead loco. Most likely he was told to throttle up by the lead loco or maybe even a bit by feel.

At first I wondered why a mid train approach; why not run the switcher MUd behind the Geep. But then it dawned on me that I have never seen a MU plug on the switchers, of course I haven’t looked that close either, and then I doubt the switcher would be designed to take the strain of that many cars on a 3.5% grade which is what they have to negotiate. A switcher moves a few cars at a time on flat ground for short distances. I think the mid train approach was to limit the strain on the switchers frame. But that’s a guess.

This is by far the longest freight haul I have seen them do. Normally its 5 to 10 cars. When they hauled logs they ran way longer trains with two Geeps. But with mixed freight never. So this was an unusual circumstance all around.

As to center beams well in N. Idaho they are everywhere. Nothing to see here. Its probably the single most used car locally.

#11

BTW,

Maybe I am a bit biased, but I think that the STMA has a very nice paint scheme. And they keep them painted up and cleaned. My GP9 is in piece on my work bench getting a make over. Right now I am having to remove the paint which is stubborn. It was cracking and flaking so it is going to go down to bare plastic and built back up in the STMA livery. In addition the nose is getting chopped and the two front 36" fans are getting replaced with a single 48" fan. The back fans are not getting replaced but a winterization hatch will be added.

Eventually I want to build two of these for prototypical running. I love the STMA, everything about it. So while the CR&N narrow gauge is my main love the STMA is a close second.

#12

Very interesting!

BTW, what is that yellow thing to the left of the caboose in the first photo? It looks like the tender from a steam locomotive.

#13

That yellow thing is a cool piece of equipment in its own right. Something else to model. It is a flanger.

and in front of that is a plow

The STMA was what was leftover after Milwaukee died. I think they more or less inherited a bunch of stuff in the deal. I have never seen this stuff even moved in all the years I have followed them. They have no need for serious snow removal. But the St Maries was a main staging are for the Milwaukee and they had a big pass to maintain east of town at Roland Summit. So I think this major snow equipment was used for that and was just basically abandon. They also have this neat Jordan Spreader.

Now you can see why i love this railroad and want to model it. I mean this is just the beginning of what sits in their yard. Their yard is kinda like a rail museum.

#14

I keep asking but they don’t seem to want to give me any of it.

#15

Count me in for the road trip, Devon.

#16

I kinda already was Steve lol

#17

Devon Sinsley said:

… they don’t seem to want to give me any of it.

How un-neighborly.

#18

Some fascinating pictures in this thread and an equally interesting video. I was particularly pleased to see the ex MILW caboose and the former MILW trestle. Most of the railroads that run or ran through the mountainous parts of the USA have some fantastic trestles and viaducts. A shame my backyard is too small to model any of them.

I am sure I am not alone in looking forward to updates about some of the lines mentioned here. (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

#19

Alan,

I will start a new thread today with some of the stuff that the STMA has. It is almost all Ex Milwaukee.

#20

My bi-centennial car, done for me by Shawmutcar shops, in PA.

Not the colours are reversed to the STMA loco livery.