Excellent video! Over my time I worked for the J about 99-2000. And worked for a scaffolding contractor at Gary works for about 5 years. I've seen just about everything out there literally inside and out. Amazing place to see, not so much to work. For anyone who is unfamiliar, the light power is running up the hi-line to shake out the coke racks that were spotted previously (typically a crew will shake the previous shifts train, pull the empties down to "B" yard at the bottom of the hill, sort them out, build a new train per mill request and respot to hi-line. There's massive hopper bins under the hi-line that feed the blast furnaces). The 3 hog set with the orange J-bird and the repaint was the hump set. Pulling a train, probably from the South yard (kirk yard) to shove over the hump. Very cool stuff in this whole area with Kirk yard and the Gary works complex side by side and intertwined, RAILS EVERYWHERE! Further ahead of the hump engines would be Dixie 1 and Dixie 2 leading out to the River yard (these tracks running more or less parallel to "B" yard). River yard used to receive coal trains to be shoved through a car dumper and roll down into a bowl yard to be collected and returned to NS or CSX. This has since been discontinued since the closing of the Gary works coke plant.
Thank you and thanks for sharing your story! It sucks that the coke plant is closed down now. Just imagine how much more busy Gary Works would be today.
@@The52car the racks(cars) come down from the hi-line and are bled of air then switched (kicked) into the proper tracks according to the switch list from the yard master.
@@MatthewGoss562 coke plant has been closed for a couple years, not exactly sure when that officially happened. I would guess that the bulk of the coke is imported from China. Import coke was already happening in the late 90s. The problem with coke production is it requires a state ( maybe federal) permit for environmental reasons. It's a pretty filthy and pollution heavy process. Keeping the plant up to spec is very expensive, so like most things EPA mandated, they come from China.
I work on a tugboat that brings river barges to Gary Works. They usually have a matching pair of yellow SW1200s working up on that track you were shooting. They will usually have a beat up old (Chessie I think) caboose at the end of the train too.
Nice video Sam! Those three cranes on the siding that the two switch engines passed looked interesting. That mobile crane that initially came into view at 2:11 is a marvelous piece of machinery. Canadian National engine #658 is the first SD38-2 that I have seen with the Canadian National paint scheme and sub lettered for the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern.
@@SamLovesTrains early last year there was a former EJ&E SD38-2 still in EJ&E paint working in the Canadian National's Waterloo, Iowa rail yard and switching cars at customer locations. The UA-cam channel Red's Iowa Train Videos has at least one video, that I remember seeing, that shows the former EJ&E SD38-2 working or switching near the Waterloo, Iowa rail yard.
Thanks! The yellow unit is former EJ&E and the blue unit is ex-Delray Connecting. The cranes are really cool. I’ll have to get some up close shots of those on my next visit.
The three cranes are still in use. They sit on the stone track on the blast furnace hi-line. One is probably USS, one should be EJ&E (Gary& Western) and the other belongs to a mill contractor. I think that contractor crane changes hands whenever USS changes contractors (Songer, Steven's etc. usually Pittsburgh based company).
I see your up here a couple towns over from me. You should also catch the CSS and the Indiana Harbor Belt yards over in Burnhan Illinois. They are right next to each other. Then just down the road on Gostlin is the NS yard just past Burnham ave.It's not that far of a drive from those mills. Maybe the mills up on Cline Ave.(Rt.913) also. Thanks for the great video.
Thanks! I’ve been to Burnham a few times and have seen CSS freight action around their yard. There’s usually always some GP38s or SD38s sitting at the east end of the yard.
any idea where gary works is getting their coke from? checked google earth and the ovens there look out of service. I think I saw working ovens at burns and indiana harbor mills
Sam...Arthur M. Anderson is at Gary/Cleveland Cliffs and Joseph L. Block is at Inland Steel/Indiana Harbor....now....5/7-8/24. Google ...Great Lake Freighters Tracker.
Excellent video! Over my time I worked for the J about 99-2000. And worked for a scaffolding contractor at Gary works for about 5 years. I've seen just about everything out there literally inside and out. Amazing place to see, not so much to work.
For anyone who is unfamiliar, the light power is running up the hi-line to shake out the coke racks that were spotted previously (typically a crew will shake the previous shifts train, pull the empties down to "B" yard at the bottom of the hill, sort them out, build a new train per mill request and respot to hi-line. There's massive hopper bins under the hi-line that feed the blast furnaces). The 3 hog set with the orange J-bird and the repaint was the hump set. Pulling a train, probably from the South yard (kirk yard) to shove over the hump. Very cool stuff in this whole area with Kirk yard and the Gary works complex side by side and intertwined, RAILS EVERYWHERE! Further ahead of the hump engines would be Dixie 1 and Dixie 2 leading out to the River yard (these tracks running more or less parallel to "B" yard). River yard used to receive coal trains to be shoved through a car dumper and roll down into a bowl yard to be collected and returned to NS or CSX. This has since been discontinued since the closing of the Gary works coke plant.
Thank you and thanks for sharing your story! It sucks that the coke plant is closed down now. Just imagine how much more busy Gary Works would be today.
Matt, what/how does the crew "shake" out the coke racks?
@@The52car the racks(cars) come down from the hi-line and are bled of air then switched (kicked) into the proper tracks according to the switch list from the yard master.
Thank you for the information. When did the Gary Works close their coke plant? Where do they get coke from now?
@@MatthewGoss562 coke plant has been closed for a couple years, not exactly sure when that officially happened. I would guess that the bulk of the coke is imported from China. Import coke was already happening in the late 90s. The problem with coke production is it requires a state ( maybe federal) permit for environmental reasons. It's a pretty filthy and pollution heavy process. Keeping the plant up to spec is very expensive, so like most things EPA mandated, they come from China.
Great video hope to see more of the mills
I work on a tugboat that brings river barges to Gary Works. They usually have a matching pair of yellow SW1200s working up on that track you were shooting. They will usually have a beat up old (Chessie I think) caboose at the end of the train too.
Nice video Sam! Those three cranes on the siding that the two switch engines passed looked interesting. That mobile crane that initially came into view at 2:11 is a marvelous piece of machinery. Canadian National engine #658 is the first SD38-2 that I have seen with the Canadian National paint scheme and sub lettered for the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern.
Thank you! I know that 664, 668, 670, and 676 (former 666) are also painted into CN colors. I think a majority of them are in yard service.
@@SamLovesTrains early last year there was a former EJ&E SD38-2 still in EJ&E paint working in the Canadian National's Waterloo, Iowa rail yard and switching cars at customer locations. The UA-cam channel Red's Iowa Train Videos has at least one video, that I remember seeing, that shows the former EJ&E SD38-2 working or switching near the Waterloo, Iowa rail yard.
All EMD power bonus points
Awesome Video
Thanks!
Very nice. Looks like an ex USS mill unit gone to GRY? Nice catch on the crane too. I could look at Gary all day.
Thanks! The yellow unit is former EJ&E and the blue unit is ex-Delray Connecting. The cranes are really cool. I’ll have to get some up close shots of those on my next visit.
awesome vid🙂
Thanks Tyler
I love these videos!
Another awesome video Sam.
Whew! Lots of action. I particularly like seeing the three rail cranes. I wonder if they are still in use. Cheers from Wisconsin!
The three cranes are still in use. They sit on the stone track on the blast furnace hi-line. One is probably USS, one should be EJ&E (Gary& Western) and the other belongs to a mill contractor. I think that contractor crane changes hands whenever USS changes contractors (Songer, Steven's etc. usually Pittsburgh based company).
I see your up here a couple towns over from me. You should also catch the CSS and the Indiana Harbor Belt yards over in Burnhan Illinois. They are right next to each other. Then just down the road on Gostlin is the NS yard just past Burnham ave.It's not that far of a drive from those mills. Maybe the mills up on Cline Ave.(Rt.913) also.
Thanks for the great video.
Thanks! I’ve been to Burnham a few times and have seen CSS freight action around their yard. There’s usually always some GP38s or SD38s sitting at the east end of the yard.
Do you know if that old BC rail alco is still there?
That was at Burns Harbor, but it was scrapped a while ago.
Great video Sam! Keep them coming please.
any idea where gary works is getting their coke from? checked google earth and the ovens there look out of service. I think I saw working ovens at burns and indiana harbor mills
They get their coke from Clairton Works in Pennsylvania.
@@SamLovesTrains yep, about 100 coke cars per day from Clairton to Gary
Sam...Arthur M. Anderson is at Gary/Cleveland Cliffs and Joseph L. Block is at Inland Steel/Indiana Harbor....now....5/7-8/24.
Google ...Great Lake Freighters Tracker.