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Dave Blaze Rail Photography
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NECR 603 Building 611
NECR 603 Building 611

New England Central train 603, the morning Palmer switch crew, is building 611s northbound train and have pulled up to about MP 65.9 on the Palmer Sub just south of the US Route 20 overpass. They have three units including 3845 and 3857 (EMD GP38 and GP38AC blt. Aug. 1969 and Apr. 1971 as Gulf, Mobile and Ohio 704 and 730 respectively) which are the final two original blue and gold units in service on the property dating from the New England Central Railroad's startup when Railtex acquired the Central Vermont property from CN.

The gorgeous Bahama blue and gold colors ushered in the NECR era in 1995 during the early Railtex holding company era when each of their component roads had their own color scheme and logo with an independent and local flair. Alas that era was fleeting and within a few years Railtex adopted a standard red and gray system wide image supplanted by RailAmerica red, white, and blue and ultimately the Genesee and Wyoming orange and black of today.

I'm not 100% sure but I belive there were 17 unique units that wore these colors some briefly and some for decades. I think (but correct me if I'm wrong) based on my research of online photo databases that there were 15 different GP38s and two GP40s so dressed. Of that total only four remain in service today, NECR 3857 and 3845 on home rails, 3855 on the Connecticut Southern and 4049 down south on the Bay Line.

Trailing is NECR 2168 a GP38-2 that came from Norfolk Southern began life as a high short hood SOU 5114 blt. Jan. 1974.

Sharp eyes will note something interesting at right. FMWX 8524 (GE B39-8E built in 1987 as an LMX leaser it's been owned by many different parties including a stint in D&H inspired lightning stripe paint working on the defunct Saratoga and North Creek) is stored on the Mass Central which runs parallel to the NECR here. The unit recently showed up here from Chattanooga and I don't know if it's operable, who owns it, and if it's just being stored or if MCER intends to use it. If anyone knows more I'd love to find out.

Palmer, Massachusetts
Friday March 15, 2024

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Taken on: March 15, 2024
Sets appears in:   • New England Central Railroad   
Camera: Canon EOS R6m2, f/8.0, 1/400 sec, 105mm, ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Canon EOS R6m2
Aperture: f/8.0
Exposure Time: 0.003 sec (1/400)
Focal Length: 105mm
ISO: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: No Flash
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual
Metering Mode: Center-weighted average
White Balance: Auto
Color Space: sRGB
Software: Snapseed 2.0
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NECR 603 Building 611

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