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CrispyBassist
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No Ordinary Crane
No Ordinary Crane

Here's a shot of what may be the most unusual piece of equipment at the Danbury Railway Museum: GCT #1, a double-ended electric wrecking crane (ex-PennCentral 50021, ex-Conrail 50021, ex-Metro-North 001). Built in February 1914 by the Industrial Works, the one-of-a-kind piece of equipment was built specifically to serve in the tunnels of Grand Central Terminal, where limited space precluded the use of a typical wrecker with a pivoting body and boom, and having a boom on both ends meant it could approach from either end of the tunnel. As Grand Central Terminal was and still is electrified by third rail the wrecker is also powered by third rail, and also has a large number of batteries for working at a derailment site where third rail power would be turned off. While this piece is unique now, it was not at the time. There were a total of four similar double-ended wreckers built: PRR 490797, built in 1911; GCT #1, built 2/1914; NYC X-45, built 8/1930; and CUT (Cleveland Union Terminal) X-99, built 8/1930; GCT #1 is the only one that has been preserved.

Philip Goldstein has compiled a great - and exhaustive - history and description of these four beasts, which is definitely recommended if you want more information!

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Taken on: August 28, 2022
Sets appears in:   • Metro-North Railroad    • New York Central Railroad    more » • Penn Central Transportation Co.    « less
Groups appears in:   • Metro-North Railroad    • Your Best Railway Photographs (no 30/60 group restriction)    more » • Railway Photographers    • Juice Jacks    • RailwayWorld    • The Railway Age    • American Rails    • LIFE ON THE RAILWAYS    • Trains, Rails and Railroad Equipment    • Your Best Railroad Photos    • All Locomotives, Trains and Trams    • 3 Trains (or more) in Photo    • Railroading in the City    • Eastern Railroads    • Urban Railfanning    • Railfan Atlas    • Rail Pictures North America    • Team Sony    • flickrailroad    « less
Camera: Sony ILCE-7M2, f/8.0, 1/500 sec, 25mm (=37mm), ISO 500 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Sony ILCE-7M2
Lens: E PZ 16-50mm F3.5-5.6 OSS
Aperture: f/8.0
Exposure Time: 0.002 sec (1/500)
Focal Length: 25mm (35mm equivalent: 37mm)
ISO: 500
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual
Metering Mode: Multi-segment
White Balance: Auto
Sharpness: Hard
Color Space: sRGB
Software: Adobe Lightroom 5.4 (Windows)
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