RatonRail

Welcome to Santa Fe Locomotives!

In November 2004 Amarillo was hit with heavy snow. The snow flakes were unusually large and fluffy for Amarillo. Usually snow in Amarillo, when we get it, is more like sleet and is blown by high winds so that it come down horizontally. This snow however was quite different.

Amarillo was born when the Fort Worth & Denver and Santa Fe Railroads crossed paths in the Texas Panhandle. Even though the Fort Worth & Denver and Santa Fe Railroads no longer exist, Amarillo is still and large hub of railroad activity for the Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroads. Some of the footage in this video from the personal collection of Sam D. Teague, has never been seen before, such as, interior of the Santa Fe Building, interior of the roundhouse and the original Fort Worth & Denver Roundhouse exterior. Recommended Links: Santa Fe 3751 in Amarillo https://youtu.be/RN3Z0aANtcY BNSF Transcon Third Mainline Installation https://youtu.be/K-kirDgqdKQ Inside Junior Tower https://youtu.be/lgdTlRquYkk

BNSF 1661, with unusual rack on cab, with engines 1764, 1609 and BN 3027 becomes head end power for an eastbound intermodal originating in Amarillo. As the four units get pulled from the ready line and placed on the front of their train, other Intermodal freights arrive and depart Amarillo on the BNSF Transcon. All of this action is filmed with the camera very close to the Transcon mainlines along the BNSF South Yard in downtown Amarillo providing an up close experience for the viewer.

In September 1992 AT&SF Steam Locomotive 3751 came to Amarillo with Santa Fe's "Employee Special." The train ran from Los Angeles California to Chicago Illinois via the Transcon. Amarillo was fortunate to be one of 3751's scheduled stops for an overnight stay on the way to and from Chicago. Recently discovered photos of this event were found in our archives and we decided to share them with you. Related Links: Santa Fe's Raton Subdivision Model Railroad. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXOH9b00Tbk8i6lm5GhWeIw

The World's Largest Freight Car, capable of transporting loads weighing 1,000 Tons up to 347 feet in length came through Amarillo in March 2005. Schnabel Car CEBX 800 transported a Hydrotreater from the Port of Houston to Commerce City, Colorado. The Hydrotreater was made in Italy and was transported to Houston by ship. Top speed for the BNSF train lead by brand new ES44DC 7687 was 15 mph between Houston and Commerce City. The trip took over two-weeks.

Third mainline installation for Amarillo's BNSF Transcon which was installed in 2005. It is interesting to see how they install a new mainline right next to the two other active mains of the Transcon. Also, track laying is much different nowadays with concrete ties.

In the Spring of 2005 we were allow to go inside Junior Tower. There was a very small elevator we rode to the top floor and when the elevator doors opened we were in the observation room. Two yardmasters were working at the time and allowed us to take photos of them working and then we were allowed to go outside and stand on the balconies and take photos about six stories up. It was kind of scary because the balcony is very narrow and the observation glass tilts out at the top. Also the floor of the balcony is wire mesh and you can see all the way down to the ground below. We hope you enjoy this very rare opportunity to see inside Junior Tower and the views from the top.

EMD's GP (General Purpose) 4-axle locomotives are great for switching or road work. Their high horsepower and four axle trucks put a lot of tractive effort on the rail. In this video you will see Geeps, switching in the yard, working industrial sidings, on the lead and in the middle of freights. Gp7u 1317 is a slug mother and very useful in switching operations pulling strings of heavy grain cars out of the grain elevator.

On Raton Pass, dynamic braking is a must. In this video you will see different types of locomotives using dynamic braking to keep their trains under control as they descend the steepest grade in the United States.

Dash -8's, C30-7's, F45's, SD40-2's, SD40F's, GP35's, GP38's, GP20's and GP30's attack Raton Pass in Run 8.

I started composing this piece in June of 2022. Sometimes it takes 1 - 2 years or more, for me to finish one of my original compositions. This was the case with Sonata 622. I hope you enjoy it! What is a Sonata? Music for a solo instrument or group of instruments that can have one or more movements.

This video highlights distributed power units (DPU), which are typically inserted mid-train as helper units. They are controlled by a radio signal system in the lead locomotive. Enjoy the action as the freight trains, assisted by DPU's tackle the grades of Raton Pass and surrounding areas.

This is the first video we have produced with our new enhanced realism sound effects. Our system uses a combination of Tsuanami2 sounds installed in the locomotives and real prototype sounds we recorded live. A grain extra comes into Raton New Mexico and stops in the yard where the caboose is removed. Then yards switchers remove cars from the train and take them to a local business. Extra cars are picked up from a yard track and added to the train. The caboose is reinstalled. Manned helpers are added to the rear of the train and the train departs eastbound.

Occasionally, Burlington Northern locomotives can be seen on the lead of trains working over Raton Pass. This video highlights several of these occasions at different times of the day. We show BN powered trains running over the pass at night, sunset and mid-day. Some with BN crews and some with Santa Fe crews. You will be able to tell by the caboose. You will see coal trains, mixed freights and grain trains. We think you will enjoy watching BN power run over Raton Pass using everything from GP30s to SD60Ms. Standard BN, Executive and White Face paint schemes are featured.

The Santa Fe's Red and Silver Warbonnet paint scheme was world famous. Watch the parade of warbonnets go by our cameras as they travel Santa Fe's Raton Subdivision Model Railroad.

This is the first episode of the "Watching Trains" series. It has been over a year since we announced the series, but we think you will agree that the wait was worth it. This video features all the members of the Legacy Fleet steam locomotives, including AT&SF 5000 (Madame Queen), 3780, 3829, 3751, 2926, 1050 and 900. The first episode is all steam powered trains, both freight and passenger. Plus, you will see a MOW train and steam locomotives operating without cars, while they are being serviced and moved around the yard in Raton. Great shots of many different types of steam operations on Santa Fe's Raton Subdivision Model Railroad. Enjoy!

The Q-EPKC is a priority intermodal train between El Paso and Kansas City. The train makes a crew change in Raton New Mexico. Our cameras pick up the Q-EPKC as it is stopped in Raton for its crew change. While the "Q" is stopped, a BN powered unit tank train goes by eastbound and climbs Raton Pass to get to its destination in La Junta. Shortly after the unit tank train leaves Raton a BN powered coal train with two SD60M "Tri-Clops" on the point, passes by the "Q" on the way to its final destination at Jansen Colorado, where it will be weighed on the scales in the C&W (Colorado & Wyoming) Yard. AT&SF Company Brass are riding in the "Topeka" Business Car on the rear of the Q-EPKC so everyone must do a perfect job on this trip. Follow the journey of all three trains as they make their way from Raton, over the pass, and downgrade on the Colorado side, as they travel east to their respective destinations.

Almost every train, (especially Q-Trains) that passes through Amarillo make a stop for a crew change. This train for some reason did not.

There were Intermodal "Q" trains that regularly traveled Raton Pass. One of them was the eastbound ELKC (El Paso to Kansas City) and the westbound KCEL.

We recently added a coal train to our collection and wanted realistic looking coal loads. See how we did it and the results in this video!

We worked very hard removing and reinstalling our photo-realistic backdrops of Raton Pass on our layout. This video shows the first train over the pass after the backdrop reinstallation. We think the hard work paid off; we hope you agree. Let us know in the comments what you think.

Most people think that Willie Nelson wrote this song, but it was written by Fred Rose about 1946. It has been recorded by almost everyone.

When we first built this model railroad, we thought it would be moved to another location in a few years. To make this planned relocation easier we installed the photo-realistic backdrops with Velcro. Ultimately, the relocation to another site was abandoned and over time the Velcro has started to cause problems. The only way to correct these problems is to remove the Velcro and glue the backdrops to the wall. This is a tedious and somewhat scary project as a lot can go wrong trying to reach across a completed model railroad and rehang the backdrops like wallpaper. This video shows the entire project start to finish.

Santa Fe’s Raton Subdivision Model Railroad places a high value on the history of the Santa Fe Railway. No other railroad approaches their achievements in all fields of railroad operation, design, and engineering. One way we honor this history is through the Legacy Fleet Program. The Legacy Fleet focuses on historic steam and diesel locomotives, freight and passenger cars and equipment, MOW equipment, cabooses, named trains such as the Super Chief and California Limited, used by the Santa Fe Railway between 1869 – 1969. To be eligible for inclusion in the Legacy Fleet program the equipment must be designed and built during the first one-hundred-years of the Santa Fe Railway. On Santa Fe’s Raton Subdivision Model Railroad, the modern era of Santa Fe Railway operations is between the years of 1970 and 1995. Legacy Fleet equipment will be used in the modern era of service of the Santa Fe Railway (1970 – 1995) as if never retired. Therefore, on Santa Fe’s Raton Subdivision Model Railroad you will see steam locomotives working alongside modern diesels. You will also see vintage passenger trains, such as the California Limited, and other famous name trains, hauling passengers in the modern era. You may even see vintage logos and graphics featured on modern day cars and equipment so keep your eyes open. Legacy Fleet - Steam Locomotive Roster: 1. 0-6-0 #30. 2. 2-8-0 #840. 3. 2-8-2 #3283. 4. 2-10-4 #3829. 5. 2-10-4 #5000. 6. 4-4-0 #48. 7. 4-6-0 #356. 8. 4-8-4 #2926. 9. 4-8-4 #3751. Legacy Fleet - Diesel Locomotive Roster: 1. E8A #84 2. E8A #86 3. FTA #100L 4. FTA #100A 5. FTA #100B 6. FTA #100C 7. F3A #16L 8. F3A #16A 9. F3A #202L 10. F3A #202A 11. F3A #202B 12. F3A #202C 13. F3A #202D 14. CF7 #2489. 15. CF7 #2496. 16. CF7 #2649. 17. F3 #16. 18. F7A #37L. 19. F7B #37A. 20. F7B #37B. 21. F7A #37C. 22. F45 #5980. 23. FP45 #92. 24. GP7 #1317. 25. GP7 #2655. 26. GP7 #2692. 27. GP7 #2752. 28. GP20 #1132. 29. GP20 #3167. 30. GP30 #1236 31. GP30 #1274. 32. GP35 #3356. 33. GP35 #3364. 34. NW2 #2353. 35. NW2 #2429. 36. NW2 #2438. 37. PA1 #51L. 38. PB1 #51A. 39. PB1 #51B. 40. RS1 #2395. 41. RS2 #2099. 42. RSD5 #2125. 43. RSD5 #2127. 44. SD24 #4578. 45. SSB1200 #1217. Legacy Fleet - Doodlebugs 1. M131. 2. M189. Legacy Fleet – Named Passenger Trains 1. California Limited, 10 cars. 2. Chief, 16 cars. 3. Dulux Special 3 cars 4. Fast Mail, 10 cars. 5. Super Chief, 16 cars. Legacy Fleet – Freight Cars 1. Box Car #31343 2. Box Car #31440 3. Box Car #520977 4. Box Car #146454 5. Box Car #148477 6. Box Car #149149 7. Box Car #15709 8. Box Car #31698 9. Box Car #8742 10. Center Flow #307173 11. Center Flow #307182 12. Coil Car #91906 13. Cov Hopper #310007 14. Gondola #169875 15. Gondola #716262 16. Helium Car #1019 17. Hopper #180810 18. Hopper #180233 19. Hopper #180854 20. Ice Box #36582 21. Ice Box #10412 22. Ice Box #26084 23. Ice Box #35006 24. Ice Box #35793 Legacy Fleet – Passenger Cars 1. Business Car Topeka 2. Dulux Baggage #21. 3. Dulux Combine #12. 4. Dulux Coach #73. 5. Drover Car #D930. Legacy Fleet – MOW 1. Big Hook #199792. 2. Dereck Caboose none 3. Jordan Spreader #199238. 4. Kitchen Car #40376. 5. Material Car #200019. 6. Snowplow #199396. 7. Timekeeper #198756. 8. Wheel Derrick #191552. Legacy Fleet – Cabooses 1. CE1 #999051 2. CE1 #999229 3. Wood Sheathed #999? 4. Wood Sheathed #1301. 5. Wood Sheathed #1382. Legacy Fleet – Test Equipment 1. Dynamometer Car 29