Uploaded April 2019 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Two rare end-cab switchers in Conrail paint make some noise taking six loaded cars up hill from the rail yard to a warehouse several miles down the mainline! While it was a thrill for a railbuff to see these switchers in action, the conductor had other opinions about them…
“They belong at the bottom of a river!” Switchers like these were built for light duty yard or industry switching, being advantageous where room and weight limits are tight. They are not often sent out on the mainline due to limited size and power, as we see NS 2107 in this video struggle with just 6 loaded cars on a ~1% grade.
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NS SW1001 2107 and SW1500 2221 were both built in 1973, still wearing blue paint 10 years after the split of Conrail. These SW1001’s were built for Reading Railroad, so it is neat to see them still in home territory over 40 years later.
Electro-Motive Diesel (previously General Motors Electro-motive corporation) built end-cab switchers as far back as World War II, the SW “Switcher” series ceased production by the mid-1970’s, with the exception of the SW1001 which was produced until 1986 alongside the more robust MP “Multi-Purpose” end-cab switchers. The number is simply the amount of horsepower; however, the “1” in SW1001 denotes this is an upgraded model to the SW1000, using an improved cab design with a 645 engine, instead of the earlier 567 series.
Today, SW series switchers are almost complete gone from Class I railroad rosters, only to be seen on tourist or shortline railroads. NS 2107 and NS 2221 were both retired in 2011 when Norfolk Southern purged most of their SW’s. 10 years later, 0 SW1500’s remain, and 5 SW1001’s are kept as shop engines at Juniata and Enola. GP “General Purpose” road switchers, like the GP38-2 and GP40-2, have replaced most end-cab switchers.
Recorded June 29, 2009 in 1080p with a Canon VIXIA HG20
Thanks for watching!
Central Penn Rail Productions 2019
Two rare end-cab switchers in Conrail paint make some noise taking six loaded cars up hill from the rail yard to a warehouse several miles down the mainline! While it was a thrill for a railbuff to see these switchers in action, the conductor had other opinions about them…
“They belong at the bottom of a river!” Switchers like these were built for light duty yard or industry switching, being advantageous where room and weight limits are tight. They are not often sent out on the mainline due to limited size and power, as we see NS 2107 in this video struggle with just 6 loaded cars on a ~1% grade.
youtube.com/c/CentralPennRailProductions
On Facebook:
facebook.com/CentralPennRailProductions
NS SW1001 2107 and SW1500 2221 were both built in 1973, still wearing blue paint 10 years after the split of Conrail. These SW1001’s were built for Reading Railroad, so it is neat to see them still in home territory over 40 years later.
Electro-Motive Diesel (previously General Motors Electro-motive corporation) built end-cab switchers as far back as World War II, the SW “Switcher” series ceased production by the mid-1970’s, with the exception of the SW1001 which was produced until 1986 alongside the more robust MP “Multi-Purpose” end-cab switchers. The number is simply the amount of horsepower; however, the “1” in SW1001 denotes this is an upgraded model to the SW1000, using an improved cab design with a 645 engine, instead of the earlier 567 series.
Today, SW series switchers are almost complete gone from Class I railroad rosters, only to be seen on tourist or shortline railroads. NS 2107 and NS 2221 were both retired in 2011 when Norfolk Southern purged most of their SW’s. 10 years later, 0 SW1500’s remain, and 5 SW1001’s are kept as shop engines at Juniata and Enola. GP “General Purpose” road switchers, like the GP38-2 and GP40-2, have replaced most end-cab switchers.
Recorded June 29, 2009 in 1080p with a Canon VIXIA HG20
Thanks for watching!
Central Penn Rail Productions 2019
![Reading & Northern on the PRR Schuylkill Branch [4K]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vvYhj72_ilk/mqdefault.jpg "Reading & Northern on the PRR Schuylkill Branch [4K]
On March 27, 2015, a train of 100 empty crude oil tank cars are bound for storage on the former Pennsylvania Railroad Schuylkill Branch between Reading and Hamburg, Pennsylvania. This was the first move of many made to store 100s of empty tank cars across the Reading & Northern system. With declining prices and demand for oil, the once busy method of shipping crude by rail between 2012-2014 has significantly dwindled. Many of these rail cars were built between 2011-2014 and have seen very few mileage, but with a lack of demand for crude by rail, thousands of these tank cars sit idle across the country, for how long? Who knows...
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The power for the train, symbol PNTE (Port Clinton - Temple) had power on both end of the trains, with RBMN SD50M 5049 and GP39RN 2530 pulling the train down from Port Clinton to the Norfolk Southern interchange and BELT (Belt Line Junction) just north of the city of Reading, and RBMN SW8M 802 on the rear for the shove north toward Hamburg, which is the present day terminus of the branch and home to the Reading Company Technical & Historical Society museum and preserved railroad equipment, some of which you see scattered along the branch in this video.
The PRR Schuylkill Branch used to be a line that paralleled the Reading Railroad from Philadelphia to Delano Junction, but is now split into segments with the abandonment of most of the line. This segment runs between Laurel Junction in Temple, PA to Hamburg, PA. This section of track has not seen revenue service in many decades, and the days of the Blue Mountain & Reading steam have come and gone two decades ago. Therefore, seeing a train on the PRR side of the Schuylkill River is incredibly rare, especially on the full extent of the branch.
Hopper cars had been stored on this line in the past, but rarely north of GLEN, which is where the switch to the Glen-Gery Brick Plant and old Pennsylvania Railroad Signal bridge sit derelict. This was the first of such rare mileage empty oil can moves made, and was perhaps the first revenue freight train to run above Shoemakersville in over two decades!
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