4 DVDs -- Film Collectors Set #1... 13 Complete Programs! (4.2 HOURS of SRHA 16mm Film Original Programs)
Disk 1 Southern Railway "Timbering & Surfacing and Assembly Line Track Maintenance", 20 mins, 19 secs
Produced by the Southern in 1981 or 1982, this video shows all of the tasks done by a mechanized T&S gang. Each step, from ballast cleaning to alignment is included. Close-ups of every machine performing its specialty are shown throughout the video.
Segments showing Tie Unloading Machines (TUMS), spike pullers, cross tie inserters, spike drivers, tamping and lining machines, ballast regulators that are normally very difficult to see are covered in detail in the video and the narration.
Southern Railway "Green Light to Transportation", 24 mins, 52 secs
This professionally produced introduction to the Southern Railway meant to explain to the general public. Most of the images are moving still photos but a number of run-bys show the equipment and services the railroad was promoting in the early 1970s.
Although it begins talking about the Southern's passenger trains and brief segment on the steam excursion program, it quickly moves on the tell the viewer the Southern is a profitable freight railroad providing reliable transportation.
Different technologies such as diesel locomotives, shops and maintenance facilities, microwave communication, data processing and run-through trains are all given cameo appearances in what amounts to a video Annual Report.
Southern Railway "No Rough Stuff" (12 mins, 15 secs)
Shows the "dos and don'ts" of handling LCL freight. While that business is long gone from the railroads, this video provides an "inside" look at how LCL terminals looked and were operated. The box cars are all only 40' long and the labor is almost all manual, but this railroad produced program offers a glimpse of what FedEx and UPS terminals looked like before there was FedEx and UPS.
Disk 2 U.S. Navy "Diesel Engine Fuel Systems" produced in 1942, 19 mins, 37 secs
Used by the Southern to train shop personnel in the basics of diesel engine fuel systems. The video is a typical B&W military training film including film clips of the diesel engine types used by the Navy with drawings and animations showing how the different components work.
U.S. Navy "Diesel Engine Governors" produced in 1942 at the Navy Submarine Training Center,New London, CT, 12 mins, 54 secs
"Diesel Engine Governors" is a companion film to the two other USN training films on this DVD. Film, including some high speed photography and animations describe the function of the governor on a diesel engine. On all three of the Navy videos, the style is pure military training film but they cover their subjects as well as any civilian production could do.
U.S. Navy "Diesel Lubricating and Cooling Systems" produced in 1942 at the Navy Submarine Training Center,New London, CT, 9 mins, 18 secs
This short Navy training film is mostly animations showing how diesel's lubricating and cooling systems work. The diesel engines shown on all three films are essentially the same models used in railroads' diesel locomotives in the early 1940s.
''New Directions" produced by the Association of American Railroads, 28 mins, 7 secs.
A color production by AAR, narrated by Chet Huntley. It begins with the Golden Spike and includes film clips from the GN, UP, SP, PRR, C&EI and the Southern.
Passenger trains, particularly on the Great Northern are shown along with cab views from the B&O and GN. Run bys of a ribbon rail train of regular flat cars with side stakes and a train of empty open auto racks are among the scenes in this well produced AAR publicity film.
Disk 3 "Maintenance of Way Safety" 14 mins, 10 secs
This color film was produced by the Southern for internal use by Maintenance of Way personnel. Although safety standards and MOW equipment have changed significantly, the video provides a "time machine" look along the Southern in the 1950s. Scenes showing men handling rails and ties by hand and using the tools of the era are a highlight of the video.
"Mechanized Bridge and Building Gangs" 25 mins, 56 secs
Another film produced by the Southern, "Mechanized Bridge and Building Gangs" includes a variety of bridge and building maintenance machinery. Most of the processes included in the video, spraying grease on bridges and gravel on bridge ties for fire prevention were replaced years ago by materials and methods that are considerably better for the environment and worker safety today.
There are too many interesting items in this film to list, the "sky master" truck used to paint buildings, an ancient hi-rail truck carrying bridge timbers on the Lake Pontchatrain trestle and a Southern 50' gondola in fresh freight car brown paint sporting older Roman style lettering are only a few examples.
“Science Rides the High Iron”, 24 minutes, 21 secs.
Produced by the AAR and narrated by Chet Huntley “Science Rides the High Iron” begins with the passing of a Union Pacific gas turbine powered train followed with a an A-B-B-A locomotive consist pulling the Zephyr in the Colorado Rockies.
A discussion about nuclear locomotives and air levitation passenger systems, a passenger train passing a welded rail crew at speed, hot box detectors and microwave back to the Atlanta control center are film clips from the Southern.
Seaboard piggyback at speed behind FT A and B units, NYC Flexi-Vans being loaded on flat cars, and loaded SeaTrain container flats being loaded on a ship
Disk 4 “Ribbon Rail” 31 mins, 43 secs
Southern produced “Ribbon Rail Mechanized Reclamation, Welding and Rail Laying” (made in 1981 or '82) begins with aerial views of a piggyback train on the CNO&TP crossing the Cumberland River bridge at Burnside, KY and describes the importance of rail and track structure.
Starting with steel mill producing rail for the Southern's rail welding plant in Atlanta, the video shows all of the steps in producing, delivering, welding, laying, reconditioning and installing welding rail.
“Southern's Training System”, 22 mins, 25 secs.
This black and while film, produced in-house, describes the Southern's various technical, sales and management and co-op training programs. (Many of today's Norfolk Southern executives began their careers in the railroad's co-op program.) The video consists mostly of moving still images and film clips from the Southern's training center in McDonough, GA. (Several of the DVDs in this Green Frog series were donated to the Southern Railway Historical Association from the training center's film library.)
“Public Relations Clips”, 11 min., 6 secs.
A series of short-subject films describing their topics for general public viewers. The series, all believed to be from the 1970s, include: Sheffield Yard, Welded Rail, Research Car R-1, Defect Detectors, SR Police, Coal Unit Trains (including a train of Rapid Discharge hopper cars unloading at Plant R.W. Scherer in GA), The “Sparkplug” train from Cincinnati to the auto assembly plants in Atlanta, and grade crossing safety with Operation Lifesaver.
...16mm Frame by Frame Film transfers to 1080i High Definition
...Original SRHA Film Soundtracks
Total Time Approx. 4.2 Hours--Dolby digital 2.0 Stereo
Note: This DVD set has been down-converted from our High Definition Video Masters, and formatted for both Wide-screen and 4x3 TVs -- This set will properly play on Wide-screen televisions as 16x9 and on 4x3 televisions as pan & scan 4x3
(SRHA Film COLLECTOR’S Set #1) 4 Disc Set--13 Programs Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Chapter Search Motion Menus
