This blog post is entitled “Motive Layout Power” to make it very clear that the locomotive roster I’m using to operate the CNJ Bronx Terminal is not prototypical. I have introduced CNJ #1000 in an earlier blog – the first commercially successful diesel locomotive in the US that for a while was the only locomotive on the site. According to the (CRRNJ) Bronx Terminal website, the locomotive roster after the transition to diesel in 1925 also included for a short time #1023, an ALCo HH600, and later on #1001. The latter was a small Davenport DE35 switcher which was probably added in 1954 when #1000 was retired. Before #1000 took over the switching of freight cars on the Bronx Terminal in 1925, CRRNJ #840, a Baldwin 0-4-0 steam engine did the switching. The Kaufman Act banned steam power from all New York boroughs as of January 1926. With that, #840 disappeared from the Bronx.
To add some fun, I have included some diesel switchers on my layout that could never be seen on the prototype. First of all, the CNJ Bronx Terminal was a small rail yard. Its design and the way it operated would only have permitted temporarily more than one locomotive at a time. Furthermore, the cramped yard with the tight curves would make it unsuitable for most of the switchers that began populating larger rail yards in the 1940s. Curve radii are actually a limiting factor for the N scale models too. I spent a fair amount of time making sure that all the locomotives are able to negotiate at least the outer circular track without derailing. All the locos I use are based on a prototype that was part of the CNJ Diesel Roster during 1925 and 1955, however.
AGEIR 60T Boxcab – CNJ #1000
The CNJ #1000 AGEIR Boxcab is the signature locomotive on the Bronx Terminal. The layout wouldn’t be complete without this locomotive that served for almost 30 years on the prototype yard. Check my blog on CNJ #1000 to learn how I built this historical switcher based on a Bachmann 44T switcher chassis using a Shapeways 3D printed shell.
EMD SW1 – CNJ #1011
This EMD SW1 switcher is my favorite on the layout even though it has issues negotiating some of the turnouts. It is a Arnold (Hornby) SW1 with an ESU LokPilot V4.0 Micro decoder. The locomotive shows excellent details, a good weight given its size, and a strong motor with good slow speed characteristics and strong low-end pulling power. Unfortunately the wheel gauge on both axles is tight and even after several attempts to adjust them, the locomotive still derails – most likely because of the relatively wide wheel flanges. The switcher represents CNJ #1011 which also was an SW1 locomotive that was put in service in 1942. I repainted the model (which was in Penn Central livery when I bought it) in CNJ’s dark Pullman Green, added a yellow stripe along the frame and the Statue of Liberty logo on the cab sides.
ALCo RS-3 – CNJ #1542
This ALCo RS3 switcher acquired by CNJ in the early 1950s is far too large for the CNJ Bronx Terminal and was never seen in that part of the Bronx. But the Atlas model with the road number 1542 is my most reliable locomotive on the layout. Even with its considerable length, it negotiates the tight curves like no other locomotive in the roster. It easily pulls and pushes box cars into the inner loop and out if it again. It has no problem getting over all the 28 turnouts and is my benchmark for testing turnouts after construction and repair. The only modification I had to make to the model was to add a TCS Classic N (CN) decoder for DCC.
Baldwin VO-1000 – CNJ #1064
CNJ owned a few Baldwin VO-1000 introduced in 1944. As the SW1, this type may have been found on other marine terminals along the Harlem River but not on CNJ’s. My model is a fairly detailed Atlas model with the road number 1064 that runs well. Unfortunately, its cast under-frame prevents it from working the tight circular tracks without issues. I have been able to improve its running characteristics on tight curves by milling the frame but I don’t think it’s possible to completely remove the limitations without damaging the structural integrity of the frame. Nevertheless, #1064 is a nice model on the Bronx Terminal and it runs well equipped with a TCS VO-1000 decoder.