When I made to choice to model the Reading, I knew I had two choices, either have my modeling time after the last of steam or I was going to have to build some steam locomotives. There has not been many brass models imported in O scale of Reading steam locomotives. One reading fan suggested “buying a bunch of T-1’s and model 1956 because nothing else has been imported.”

When I was focused on the Elmira Branch of the PRR, I was also focused on 1956 as the date to model. When I first made the choice to model the Reading, I shifted my focused time period to 1953. All of the first generation diesel locomotives I liked were on the roster. And there were only a few Steam locomotive classes left running.

Well as luck would have it, I was able to trade some of my surplus PRR equipment for an SGL Reading G3. They only lasted on the line until the Summer of 1952 and then they were bumped from the King Coal by a pair of GP7’s. I’ve read that they lasted until September of that year even though the GP7’s which replaced them arrived in July. After that point the G3’s were transferred to South Jersey to run out their service life on the PRSL.

So that has set my time to the Summer of 1952.

Steam Classes

Left on the roster in 1952 were I9-sc’s, I10’s, K1-sd/e’s, N1-sd’s, G2-sa’s, G3’s and T-1’s.

The T-1‘s do not seem to show up in the photos West of Tamaqua until 1956-1957. They ran through the mainline to Pottsville and into Saint Clair. There is a really nice O Scale model of a T-1 done by Overland back in the 1990’s. There was also a nice Bob Jones’ Kit for a T-1 that was produced before the Overland run. The finding of a nice Overland T-1 has prompted the move of modeling location to Schuylkill Haven on the line to Pottsville.

SGL imported the Reading G3 back around 2000. While not super detailed, it does have enough detail to be a good place to start. One arrived on my roster in a trade for some of that surplus PRR equipment.

The N1-sd‘s, were built between 1917-1919 and are dimensionally close to a USRA 2-8-8-2. That is my starting point, I have a pair of Sunset N&W Y-3’s that are the going to become Reading locomotives.

The K1-sd/e‘s will have to be built. I found the the wheelbase is very close to that of the Sunset I1sa’s. With modifications to the Sunset frame, new boilers and new tenders, they will take shape.

The I10 uses almost the same wheel base as the PRR H10 so I plan to use the Central Locomotive Works H10 mechanism for this conversion.

The I9-sc was an I9 that was rebuilt with the running gear from the I10’s that became T1’s. So this too will use the Central Locomotive Works H10 mechanism for the conversion.

Diesel Classes

Seen in the photos from 1952 in the Shamokin Division were:  Road Power EMD FT’s, F3’s, F7’s, ALCO FA1’s and Baldwin AS-16’s, Switchers were EMD NW2’s Baldwin VO-1000’s and DS4-4-1000’s.

EMD FT’s:
O Scale is blessed with a couple of choices for EMD FT brass models, Overland or Hallmark. The Hallmarks are detailed for Santa Fe units so they would require some correcting. But they usually show up at good prices at the shows. Overland are a newer model imported in the 90’s and the details are much cleaner but they cost a little more. I was lucky to find a pair at a very good price.

MTH also makes a 3-rail version of an EMD FT, but it is not a scale model. I owned a pair, so I was able to see and measure them first hand.

EMD F3 & EMD F7:
There have been a number of O scale EMD F3 & F7 models available both as kits and brass imports. I am using a combination of Overland F3’s and P&D F3’s and F7’s.

ALCO FA-1’s:
There are again a number of options here in O scale.  Central Locomotive Works has made brass kits for them since before I was born. Key is about to import them, but their price point is not in my hobby budget. Overland has imported them in the past and that is what I have on my shelf.   Also Custom Brass and Sunset both have imported them in the past. I was going to use the Custom Brass models until I found an A-B-A set of the Overland models at a great price.

Baldwin AS-16’s:
The Overland AS-16 is THE option for modeling the Baldwin AS-16’s. The model was imported in the mid 90’s. They do show up at shows and on ebay every so often. So far the models I have found me in trades and one purchase. Overland produced both the early car body design and what modelers refer to as the ’53 body or high hood version.

Again, MTH has produced a 3-rail version that they call a Baldwin AS 616, but the hoods are too wide and too tall, they would require far too much work to correct them.

EMD NW2
All Nation has produced a white metal version almost as long as the prototype has existed. The All Nation model looks like 1940 technology. These have also been produced in brass by a couple of importers over the years.

I started building an NW-2 by combining an All Nation body on top of an Atlas SW9 frame. Life is way too short! I’m now looking for one of the brass imports to cross my path at a good price…..

Baldwin Vo-1000, DS4-4-1000:
I am using a pair of Car Works VO-1000’s and plan to back-date Rich Yoder’s S12 into the DS4-4-1000.

Weaver also make a nice model of the VO-1000 with curved insets in the walkways.

ALCO RS-3‘s and EMD GP7‘s:
While plentiful on the Reading, they did not venture into coal country much at this early date in freight service. That would change as time moves on and second generation diesels hit the roster.

Passenger service is a different story. The RS-3’s and the Gp-7’s did run in passenger service to Pottsville during this period.

Reading OE-10 #79 at Gordon

The Reading class OE-10 applies to both VO-1000 and early DS4-4-1000 end cab switchers. While the majority of the switchers on the Reading where concintrated in the Philadelphia area, the OE-10’s were seen in all parts of the railroad including the Shamokin Division.

The first pair of VO-1000’s #80-81 arrived in August of 1940 and had ovel grills like they early VO-660’s.

Reading OE-10 #80 at Shamokin, PA

The next VO-1000’s to arrive looked very muck alike. They had curved walkway boards, point radaitor grills in the front and single exhaust stacks near the cab.

Reading OE-10 #78

In September of 1944 the Reading received #55-59, their last of their VO-1000’s from Baldwin. They differed from the earlier VO’s by having square cornered walkways.

Reading OE-10 #57 is an example of the later car body style for the VO-1000

Reading OE-10 #56

The next group to be delievered #34-36 were amoung the first group of DS4-4-1000’s to be built. According to the Baldwin book they were built with parts left over from the VO production. The #35 has a VO radiator.

Reading OE-10 DS4-4-1000 with a VO front end

The rest of the DS4-4-1000’s had flat radiators. The DS4-4-1000’s were delievered with four exhaust stacks.

During the war Baldwin had found that the exhaust back-pressure could be reduced with the four stack exhaust and it reduced the heat the generator was subjected to increasing its efficiency. Restrictions from the War Production Board prohibited making the change during the war to the VO-1000’s. After the war Baldwin recommended that the change be made to the VO-1000’s Reading did that to some of their locomotives during later overhauls.

Reading OE-10 DS-4-4-1000 #32

A table of the OE-10 Class Locomotives

References:
Diesel Era – 1996 March/April – Reading’s Repowered Switchers.
Diesel Era – 1998 March/April – Reading’s First-Generation Diesels by by Paul K. Withers
Reading Diesels Volume 1 The First Generation – by Dale Woodland
Photograph’s from George Losse Collection scaned from negatives.

The Reading Company had been a long time buyer from Baldwin locomotive Works. They had bought steam locomotive from them and had been very happy with the diesel switchers made by Baldwin. When the railroad turn to the road switcher models they again turned to Baldwin and bought their AS-16 model.

There are good sources of information on these units in print. Here is a short list:

• Diesels of the Reading Company Volume 1, Paul K. Withers
• Reading Diesels Volume 1 The First Generation, Dale Woodland
• Diesel Era September/October 1991, Reading Baldwin AS-16 Road switchers, Gerald Bernet

While each group of AS-16’s were different they did have a few things in common. They all had walkways over the top of the vent in the roofs. Most had louvers on the engineer’s side of the long hood under the air intakes. They all had railroad applied rain gutters applied to the cab roofs.

All the AS-16’s were delivered in the Pullman Green paint scheme, and they wore it until they were retired. As delivered they had green handrails and low numbers on the ends of the locomotives. During sometime around 1953 the handrails were painted the safety yellow. Sometime near 1956 the end numbers started to move up on the end. I would imagine so that the tower operators could see the numbers.

The first group #530-537 arrived on the property from 7/51-9/51. They were straight freight locomotives without dynamic brakes. They had 900 gallon fuel tanks above the frame directly behind the cabs, leaving the space between the trucks under the locomotive open. Their bell’s were mounted at the top of the long hoods. The long hoods were forward.

The next four locomotives to arrive were 560-563 were dual controlled, steam generator equipped passenger locomotives. They were based out of Green Street engine house. Their 1000 gallon fuel tank was under the frame between the trucks. The 900 gallon tank behind the cab was used for water for the steam generator. The bell was still mounted on the end of the locomotive.

The next group of freight units #538-550 arrived 10/51-11/51. Externally they differed from the first group of freight units only in the moving of the bell from the end to under the frame on the fireman’s side of the front of the locomotive. Not visible to the modeler they were heavier than the first group by 1100 lbs.

The next group of AS-16’s #576-589 arrived on the property between 6/52-7/52. They were equipped with dynamic brakes in the short hood, the bell mounted under the frame, had a 1000 gallon fuel tank under the frame between the trucks and did not have a tank of the short hood end of the locomotive. In addition they were 1300 lbs. heavier than the last group of freight locomotives.

The grill work in the short hood for the dynamic brake required the number boards be moved up the car side to the top of the short hood.

The last group of Baldwins #551-554 arrived 10/53. The order started out a 10 units but the railroad cut the order to just four units. The six locomotives left over at Baldwin were later sold to the PRSL without the Dynamic brake equipment. This was also the first use of Baldwin’s new carbody design which had enough room to move the dynamic brake equipment into the long hood. This order went back to the use of the 900 gallon fuel tank behind the cab. leaving the space under the long hood between the trucks open.

One of the problems the railroad had with the Baldwins was that they could not MU with other locomotives. Worse than that, they could not even MU with each different order. The 1951 locomotives could not MU with the 1952 units until the railroad made modifications to the load regulators, costing the railroad $16,820 per unit for the modifications. This could also account for why early photos of the Baldwins show them MU’ing with other units from the same orders. The 1953 locomotives never were able to MU with the rest of the Baldwin fleet. They had electric throttles which aloud them to MU with other manufactures locomotives but not the other Baldwins.

Most of the photos that have been published have been of the units later in life. This is understandable as they replaced steam locomotives as they arrived and most railfans tried to capture what was going away instead of what was replacing it. Why not, the new units would be around for another 15 years? What few photos are around of the units in their first years show that changes came to them early. I’ve already pointed out the numbers on the ends move higher. The hand rails get painted with safety colors and also they added louvers under the long hood’s air intake on the engineer’s side of the locomotive. This appears to have happened in late 1952 or early 1953, after my modeling period of the Summer of 1952.

Below is a chart of the Baldwin AS-16 roster on the Reading. Some of the data is pulled from the Diesel Era article on the Reading AS-16’s and some from photos. Assignment refers to engine house assignments painted on the locomotive as seen is photos of the units.

References:

• Diesels of the Reading Company Volume 1, Paul K. Withers
• Diesel Era – 1991 September/October – Reading Baldwin AS-16 Road Switchers by Gerard E. Bernet.
• Diesel Era – 1998 March/April – Reading’s First-Generation Diesels by by Paul K. Withers
• Reading Diesels Volume 1 The First Generation – by Dale Woodland
• Photograph’s from George Losse Collection either scanned from negatives or prints.