The Strasburg Rail RoadÂ’s Plymouth Gasoline Mechanical #1 also emerged from the railroadÂ’s car shop yesterday freshly painted, and ready for service.

The locomotive, delivered in 1926, is the only new locomotive ever built for the Strasburg Rail Road. It ended the use of steam locomotives on the line, until their return 34 years later.

What is special about this shot isnÂ’t the paint job, but what is underneath it. Every piece of sheet metal in the body is brand new, and made of stainless steel. Some may remember #1Â’s appearance hasnÂ’t been the best these last years to say the least. Rather than replace rusted out sheet steel with more of the same, only to have to repeat the process several decades down the road, the new stainless body should last indefinitely. This should be a hint as to how long the Strasburg Rail Road intends to remain in business.

The locomotive is used occasionally to switch the railroadÂ’s shops, for servicing the steam engines, the way God intended internal combustion to be used.


Strasburg Rail Road

kelly@strasburgrailroad.com

Great work as usual.

You guys are true artists.

Guess I'll have to grab my digital camera and stop in for another visit.

When can we expect a new roundhouse!

> Great work as usual.

> You guys are true artists.

> Guess I'll have to grab my digital camera
> and stop in for another visit.

> When can we expect a new roundhouse!

Mike you are RIGHT! Those guys are a class act! I don't think we could expect a new roundhouse, however a NEW paint job on the engine house could be expected.

edrailco@aol.com

> Mike you are RIGHT! Those guys are a class
> act! I don't think we could expect a new
> roundhouse, however a NEW paint job on the
> engine house could be expected.

Stainless steel carbody you say? Strangest looking E5 I have ever seen!
Don C.

old_fxrs@msn.com

> Stainless steel carbody you say? Strangest
> looking E5 I have ever seen!
> Don C.

Don: I don't know about an E5, I was thinking maybe "Little Alice."

Les

midlandblb@cs.com

Strasburg does fine work and they put on a great tourist railroad, but this little engine isn't a critter anymore. Industrials should be dinged up and rusty in their natural habitat. Perhaps we should consider this change as an adaptation with the environmental evolution from industrial to entertainment? Mechanical Darwinism?

Dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

"The locomotive is used occasionally to switch the railroadÂ’s shops, for servicing the steam engines, the way God intended internal combustion to be used."

I love it. Sounds just like something Al Phillips would say...

Remember, EMD = Enemy Motor Division.

TVRM Shop Updates by Steve Freer
aw90h@cs.com