Producer: John Pechulis
Locations: Allentown, Pennsylvania
Timeframe: 1978-1979
Length: 78 minutes
Source: Bednar collection
Continuation of the Bednar series. Centered around the Allentown, Pennsylvania area. Conrail is making changes to the railroad. Traffic remains busy. The guys venture out to the Middle Division, for some fast paced action.
Standard approach in Volume 7. A Chapter Menu. No other extras. Soundtrack is natural audio. Excellent quality. Single DVD-R.
Film is restored 8mm color. The film appears beautiful. Well balanced. Accurate looking. Easy viewing. JPM is excellent in this area!
Mike Bednars is the regular narrator. A career Railroader. Knowledgeable and funny at times. Good storyteller. Viewers get the, Inside Story.
We start at Allentown. On the heavy side of the yard. This is frequently filmed in 1979. This is at R Tower. Limited time, prior to removal. EMD switchers were the daily yard power.
Conrail had a huge fleet of locomotives. It took years to unify the blue paint.Many Lashups are mixed. Black and Blue Lashups, we’re pretty common. Former Erie Lackawanna and Reading paint, was around. Lehigh Valley and Penn Central cross outs, too.
F7 units could still be occasionally found. At Catasaqua, an ex: Penn Central F7A, leads a couple Geeps. This train gets a short chase.
Pops as Mike refers to his Father. Loved to film these type of scenes at Allentown Yard. A cornucopia of freight cars, are within this show!
A unique Tower visit with Mike Bednar. In part, he is hungry, and a rescue train brings him food!
Conrail was converting to a single hump classification yard. Multiple scenes of construction.
The Bednars trip to the Middle Division yields plentiful action! Various types of freights are seen, at high speeds.
A scene of old Pennsylvania. Former Lehigh Valley Alco RS11 pair on the job. This large factory no longer exists.
Delaware & Hudson approaches the new signals. This location was the former tower. New designation is a Control Point.
A Barnum & Bailey Circus Red Unit. This train is pulled by three Conrail locomotives, past the former Lehigh New England bridge spot.
Conrail’s port window caboose. Flys past on the Middle Division. Originally, was a Pennsylvania Railroad design.
Mike Bednar was a dedicated, career Railroader. He is a great Railfan, as well. Cheers Mike!
Railfanning with the Bednars Volume 7. A fast moving show. Looks great and sound to match. Mike’s singular viewpoint sets it apart. A fine show!
Rating: 5 Stars
American Train Video Reviews 