Producer: Highball
Locations: Keystone, Mance, Connellsville
Timeframe 1992
Length: 2 Hours
CSX on the Sand Patch Grade route. Shot on Memorial Day weekend in 1992. The former Baltimore and Ohio trackage is busy. Besides CSX, there are predecessor paint schemes.
A single DVD-R. Live environmental audio. No extras. Reminiscent of simply playing a VHS tape. Not modern video standards. Historical value tape.
No Main Chapter Menu. Push play. Narrator is Peter Falconi.
Sand Patch Grade is about 100 miles long. Mountain territory in Pennsylvania and Maryland. The former B&O mainline is double track. CSX is the operator in 1992.
To the Trains… 👉
Begins at Keystone. CSX 7758 (C40-8W) leads a freight. GE power dominates the initial trains. The Western Maryland bridge is in the background.
Amtrak Capitol Limited is Westbound at the end of day one.
Train 381 is at the summit at 8:00am. Engine 7538 has the lead.
The Horseshoe Curve at Mance. A good amount of trains seen in the area.
East Sand Patch Tunnel at the summit. Engine 8226 (SD40-2 )stops here with Train 376. B&O 2100 is a GP38.
Train 353 has a dead lead engine, CSX 8405. Leaves the two trailing units on their own. This freight slowly struggles upgrade in Run 8.
Six units with two trailing in Chessie System on a Westbound Piggyback and COFC at Mance. 1 hour
CSX 6085 leads a Westbound freight through twisting trackage at Mance.
Chessie System WM 6211 (GP 40) leads a 90 car Piggyback downgrade. The four locomotives recall a past era in the all Chessie lash-up.115ms
This guy films in the rain. Seaboard System 2619 leads an Eastbound on a dreary Sunday. Rainy weather results in mostly second rate train watching. The last 30 minutes are substandard due to the weather conditions.
Sand Patch Weekend
This line is loaded with great scenery. Interesting mix of: mountain grades, tunnels and curves. Model Railroaders can find much inspiration here. As the slower moving traffic is filmed at length. The overall pace is a relaxed speed.
Narrative is on the sparse side. Generally, some good information on the trains and train sounds as it passes. Levels are balanced. Videography is well done until the wet Sunday footage.
The Sand Patch line has been done in higher quality. This release is not a necessary one.
Rating: 3 Stars
American Train Video Reviews 