COMMENTARY BY ALEXANDER B. CRAGHEAD
whiteriverproductions.com
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KEVIN EUDALY
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from our readers are always welcome. Please contact the editor for details.
EDITOR
E. STEVEN BARRY (862) 354-3196
EDITOR@RAILFAN.COM
Oddball engines like Genesee & Wyoming GP38 No. 50, battered but still working, sometimes earn a special place in our hearts. DAVE SCHEIDERICH PHOTO
Engine, Engine Number 9...
WE ALL HAVE GROWN ATTACHED TO A posses- sion, once upon a time. This may be due in part because it is good at being whatever it is, and in part because of good memories that we attach to that thing. It can also be from a certain sense of character that object exhibits. Is there anything else in the world like one’s first vehicle? Or that recliner from your uncle Harold? Or your grandfather’s first camera? Given that it is human to give meaning to
objects, it should come as little surprise that railfans often grow attached to locomotives. Whether steam, diesel, or other less common forms of propulsion, people in this hobby can develop startlingly passionate feelings around manufactured hunks of steel. This is, at first, a bit puzzling. Consider the
most common example of this, the sense of a favorite type of engine. Many railfans favor one type of engine, despite the fact that the vast majority of them have no direct experi- ence of operating one, much less anything more than a rudimentary understanding of their workings. Further, over the last 20 years, the external designs of most locomo- tives have become so generalized that differ- entiating models takes an eye trained to spot highly esoteric details. Can anyone really say that the Dash 8-40CW is ugly but the AC45CCTE is beauty itself? Some trains represent a piece of our youth
quickly receding into the rearview mirror. Did you ever think you would miss the ubiquitous F40 or the SD45? Second-generation U-boats are also making their way into museums. It will only be a few years before an SD90MAC might be a candidate for preservation. Before you scoff, look at the handful of Union Pacific DDA40Xs scattered around the country. This favoritism often progresses further to
feelings for a specific engine — look, it’s the 5543! Sometimes this is puzzling — what difference does it make that this is not the 5542 or the 5544? Sometimes, though, the preference becomes more understandable, such as when locomotives age. Over time, these mass-manufactured products begin to take on unique identifiable qualities, thanks to wear, tear, and weather. The 6334 has a minor fire that leaves a scorch-mark on its back; the paint on the 3900 fades and bubbles
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and peels; the 4414 survives in its original color scheme when all others of its type have been repainted. Think of how numbers are associated
with our favorite mainline steam excursion engines. They have a magical quality all their own. Just say “Six-eleven” or “Seven-Sixty- Five” or “Forty-Four Forty-Nine” to a fellow fan and watch the foam fly. But the preference of one engine over
another is not always rational. Sometimes it is a matter of crude numerology, as when an engine number is also that of a special date. Sometimes it is because a railfan encounters one engine over and over again, so that despite the ordinariness of its type, that specific locomotive becomes anticipated and familiar. And sometimes it is because the equipment in question is, despite its generic appearance, actually quite rare on some esoteric level. How many railfans can look at an engine number and spout off amazing volumes of esoteric data, like a baseball fan recalling a decade’s worth of a player’s batting averages? Yet it can grow far, far more serious. Consider, for example, the case of someone with money enough to actually buy a locomo- tive. It’s not as expensive as you might think. It is sometimes still possible to buy old diesel-electric locomotives for used automo- bile prices. $15,000 for an NW2 switcher? $30,000 for an old E9 streamlined passen- ger engine? This can be done. You’re already thinking about it and doing the math... There are of course other problems than
money — where do you put it, after all? Most people can’t just build a track up the cul-de- sac and plop a spur into their front yard, and if they could, the neighbors would hardly love you for it. Before you dismiss the idea, however, consider this — in addition to being the ultimate collectable, a locomotive once restored could be leased to a shortline or industry, and earn its keep. So it’s not entirely impractical, and when
you think about it, doesn’t that make it a better purchase than, say, a boat?
Consulting Editor Alexander B. Craghead is a transportation historian, photographer, artist, and author.
EDITORIAL ADDRESS RAILFAN & RAILROAD P.O. BOX 554
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ASSOCIATE EDITOR/ART DIRECTOR OTTO M. VONDRAK
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ASSISTANT EDITOR LARRY GOOLSBY
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS MICHAEL T. BURKHART MIKE SCHAFER JEFFREY D. TERRY
CONSULTING EDITOR ALEXANDER B. CRAGHEAD
NEWS COORDINATOR KEVIN C. SNYDER
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