# THE WRECK OF #1



## R.W. Marty (Jan 2, 2008)

Hi Guys,
We hiked into South Fork Canyon today and got a couple pictures of the wreck of Old #1 where she lies in the canyon bottom. The floods of 1912 undermined some of the footings and the bridge collapsed when #1 and her train ran out on the structure. Most all of the old bridge and trestle timbering has washed downstream long ago, and I guess the few cars along with the tender were salvaged so there is not much evidence of the wreck other than the locomotive carcass. I carried some wrenches all the way in there but for nothing as all the brass fittings were long gone, all stripped out by scrappers or souvenir hunters. 

Maybe you would like to hike in there with me this summer.
Later
Rick Marty


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## Randy Stone (Jan 2, 2008)

Great pics


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

Beautiful pictures Rick! See you on the 14th for lunch at Dave's place.


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## coyote97 (Apr 5, 2009)

looks good.....digged in deeply. 
Hope the people on the train got through....because it looks as if it was a hard impact. 


Frank


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## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Nice touch!


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## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

thats where many Bachmans end up,, or down.


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## Westcott (Feb 17, 2009)

I'm amazed by just how well the steel and paint has stood up to the elements for 98 years. 
Hardly a trace of rust, and the "1" is very clear. 
Is this the South Fork Canyon in Utah? 
Looks like a good scene on which to base a G scale diorama.


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## Stan Cedarleaf (Jan 2, 2008)

Great images, Rick. Like Frank, I hope the crew was able to jump before going off the edge and not seriously hurt..


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

Nice work, Rick!


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## Joe Bartolini (Jan 2, 2008)

Some fifty years from now a group of railroad fanatics will be clamping at the bit to recover this engine for display at their museum.


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## coyote97 (Apr 5, 2009)

LOL! Yes, Joe!

Here in Germany, while doing some works on a station-area, the workers found some major parts like frame and boiler of a bavarian goods-steamer.
The remains layed under the tracks! After a bombing in WWII, a crater just was filled with all that was nearby and somehow "in the way".

A museum took the scrap and now is going to bring it back to work.

But to be honest: i like it more to have a loco back on tracks that is rare and therefore expensive as to have the 100th Class 52 running in Germany.
But that wreck under the bridge ( a nice one, btw....) looks like a very common Class of loco, so there is no danger of rescuing it with investing the big money.

"What class is it?"
"...just a Bachmann Big-Hauler...."



Frank


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## CapeCodSteam (Jan 2, 2008)

beautiful modeling work there. I had to study it for a few to convince myself it wasn't 1:1


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## dawgnabbit (Jan 2, 2008)

_Dang, Rick! You've done it to me again!_

I took a look at the first photo and exclaimed "Oh, my Gawd...How come I haven't heard of this wreck before now? Then I took a longer look. Good thing wifey wasn't there to see me blush.

Terriffic work, as is usual for you. It must be trying to have to keep up such high modeling standards, time after time...









Dawg


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## blackburn49 (Jan 2, 2008)

Very impressive. Well done, including your lead-in.


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By dawgnabbit on 29 Jan 2010 11:07 AM 
_Dang, Rick! You've done it to me again!_

I took a look at the first photo and exclaimed "Oh, my Gawd...How come I haven't heard of this wreck before now? Then I took a longer look. Good thing wifey wasn't there to see me blush.

Terriffic work, as is usual for you. It must be trying to have to keep up such high modeling standards, time after time...









Dawg 



We am in the same boat! I had the exact same thoughts! I was even considering a reprimand for the words about going there with wrenches for personal salvage! (SHAME!)

The second photo convinced me otherwise due to the leaves in the foreground.

I think it needs some weeds growing out of pockets where dirt would have accumulated, but otherwise... nice model!


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## aceinspp (Jan 2, 2008)

I'm waiting on Marty's turn for the disaster. It should really be cool. Later RJD


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## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

The first clues to me were the bent's pilings were too new in the first photo, and in the second picture the houses in the background didn't jive with the '_hiked into South Fork Canyon today_' storyline. However, that was after moving on to the next topic, and having to go back because something just didn't sit right.


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## Trainwreckfilms (Aug 19, 2009)

Its Beautiful! Any pics of assembly?


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## CapeCodSteam (Jan 2, 2008)

What gave it away for me was the philips screw going into the walkway in photo 2


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## jamarti (Jan 2, 2008)

Very nice. I've never done anything like that. Maybe now that I'm being forced to retire I will have the time.


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## John J (Dec 29, 2007)

I bought two engines like that and some rollingstock in a box at a swapmeet for 20 bucks. I had planed to do something like that with the engines and use the rolling stock as buildings on a abandon mine site of some sorts.

I like your pic's that really looks great.


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## silverstatespecialties (Jan 2, 2008)

Very nice!! 

I've always wanted to do something like this, with something from my ever-growing parts bin....but I need to finish a layout first!


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## R.W. Marty (Jan 2, 2008)

Hi Guys,
Glad you enjoyed the pictures and the fun.


The story line

The wreck we saw is on the Shasta Pacific short line a railroad frozen in 1939., It was built through the Coast Range mountains of Northern California in 1909.

As I noted the high water from the 1912 floods contributed to the loss of the bridge and approach trestles. The salvageable rail cars as well as bridge/trestle timbers were hauled up out of the canyon and used elsewhere by the company. The bridge and trestles were immediately rebuilt and back in service with in 7 months. In fact the old stone and timber piers were replaced by poured concrete at that time.

Most of the timber cribbing for the trestles were replaced again in 1932. The company could ill afford the expenditure as we were in the middle of the first great depression but it had to be done in order to maintain revenue service. The bridge itself is the 1912 structure, thank goodness it was built heavy and solid and still retains it's structural integrity, although there is a 20 mph slow order in place for trains crossing it. The company has plans to replace the bridge next year,1940 or maybe in 1941 if revenue continues to climb.



The model,
I received an old Bachmann Big Hauler, loco only, from a friend and since the motor was gone and the wiring pretty well shot I decided to make a derelict out of it. Then the wreck idea surfaced and I went that way. I was going to cut/beat a hole in the stucco to place the wreck but then a friend suggested I cut the loco in the band saw. I removed the steel axles, eyeballed the cut angle and had at her. The band saw made short work of it. I salvaged off all the removable parts just as would have been done on the real thing, hacksawed the axles apart to use the drivers and rods on the exposed side, then painted it up. 
Later I used a heat gun to distort, bend, and dent some of the parts then had to do some repainting where the gun burnt the paint. Planted it in the canyon and brushed crusher fines up around it to make it look like it had settled in. If I could have phtoshopped out some of the background scenery it would have helped the illusion and story line I'm sure.
Thanks for the interest.
Rick Marty


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