The Best of Michigan

Producer: Midwest Video

Locations: Carleton, Romulus, Battle Creek, Durand, Del Ray Jct…

Timeframe: 1998-1999

Length: 2 hours 19 minutes

Source: Gary Melford

The first item to know. MVP has not culled best scenes from multiple shows. This is a one-off. A singular release covering Michigan railroads circa 1998-99.

Be certain to view in 4×3 full screen mode!

Another one to know. Although MVP has a less than stellar reputation on video quality. Play them in full screen mode. The 4×3 aspect ratio gives the best appearance. Oddly enough, there is zero aspect notification. A given DVD player may or may not auto select the correct format.

A single DVD-R.  No chapters, on-screen graphics, or maps. Narrated with some mispronunciations of locations.

Historical value imagery. The colors are saturated but can be good. Although a tendency for dark images. Fair to good, overall.

Excellent sound via live environmental audio. Edits are a shade long and get clumsy with the longish black screen pauses.

Over 100 trains in this release. There is a plethora of assorted railroads and train action. Grand Trunk, Norfolk Southern, Conrail, CSX, Canadian Pacific, VIA, and Amtrak are featured. Even more with run-through and leased locomotives.

To the Trains… 👉

Canadian National is South of Detroit at Wyandotte, Michigan. CN train 385 is led by 2509. Traveling Southbound. Montreal to Flat Rock.

CSX SD40 pair crosses Grand Trunk at the old C&O Tower in Carleton. Plenty of traffic here.

Conrail 6247 with coiled steel on CSX Q690 to Detroit. Carleton circa 1999

Norfolk Southern 1379, a slug 9741, and 5098 at another hotspot. Romulus crossing. Train 121 from Detroit to Decatur, Illinois, in 1999.

GT 5919/6410  performs switching at Durand. This train 456 goes onward to Pontiac. Durand sees a chunk of trains.

Conrail 1686 on the Jackson Turn at Ann Arbor.

Amtrak 350 makes a stop in Detroit.

A look at the CN Shops in Battle Creek. This was the primary engine service facility on Grand Trunk Western. 1998

Chessie System B&O 2040. CSX local C-744 with empty reefers from Detroit Produce Terminal.

Canadian Pacific 5637/ 5512. Symbol is 514 from Oakwood Yard. Moving through Del Ray Jct. enroute to Canada.

Grand Trunk 572 at Delray Jct. with CN 5294 on the point. Detroit to Flat Rock Yard.

The Best of Michigan

Michigan is a fine state for Railfanning. The presentation has focused on some key hotspots. Reliable volume of trains at select locations.

There is nice variety. Main stars are: CSX, CN- GT, and NS. Assorted foreign engines show up.

The script is good. The majority of trains are symbol identified along with route information. Fast paced and interesting.

The older camcorder is the weak point. Inconsistent exposure on many scenes. Still, over 100 trains may make this worth a buy.

So, High volume of trains, fine narrative, good audio, and less than ideal visual quality. If you are picky on the picture, maybe take a pass.  Call it a basic good for everyone else.

Rating: 3 Stars