PCM Y6b Latest Web site update and Pot Stirring Pt. II

[nw-modeling-list at nwhs.org]

It was the remarkable "Hooters on Blue Ridge" DVD which finally tied
my heart to the N&W in the 1950s, even though I have never been within
a thousand miles of the N&W territory. Some of the sequences on that
video are among the most thrilling, indeed spine-tingling, railroading
scenes I have ever seen on DVD/video. The remarkable combination of
high-quality 16mm film, and high-fidelity stereo-audio recording must
have been among the best produced at that time.

The scenes of heavy freights ascending Blue Ridge, many headed by the
classic Y6+A combination, are unforgettable. And those hooters!!! The
N&W freight loco hooter must be one of the most haunting and evocative
railroad sounds ever heard. (Did any other railroad use it?). So many
of the scenes shot by Hank Peterson on this DVD feature the hooter. It
first appears in all its glory in about the eighth episode, with an EB
coal train "along river, just east of Narrows VA". You hear the
wonderful hoot ending with a wailing coda, as you see in the distance
a headlight, and very quickly the Y6 with its train.

It was this and other scenes which prompted me, when I finally bought
an HO model of a N&W steamer, a PCM Y6b, to get a sound-equipped
model. As I don't have a DCC set-up, I haven't as yet tried it out. I
realise that it will probably not capture more than a fraction of the
quality of the original - but just a fraction will I hope be enough to
give a flavour of the great days of American railroading.

Frank Hung

 

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[mailto:nw-modeling-list-bounces at nwhs.org] On Behalf Of
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Sent: 22 July 2006 22:30
To: N and W Modeling List
Subject: Re: PCM Y6b Latest Web site update and Pot Stirring Pt. II

The sound on Hooters on Blue Ridge is some of the very best available.
Forgot about that source.

I don't know all the exact details of this, but as far as Link's
recordings are concerned, I believe O.
Winston Link Railway Productions in Roanoke (Joan
Thomas) has the rights to those recordings, not the estate.  Link set
up OWLRP years ago.  Anyone with better info, please correct or add.

Jim raises a good point.  There are several sources that exist for
good recordings of N&W steam power. 
Acessibility for use is another problem entirely.

I listened to the sound clips of the PC Y6b.  The variety amazes me,
but the sound itself isn't that impressive, particularly the exhaust.
Maybe I'm expecting too much from an HO model.

Dave Stephenson