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BOOK REVIEW: Sacramento Northern by Harre W. Demoro;MSRP: $70, plus shipping.Signature Press, 11508 Green Road, Wilton, CA 95693800) 305-7942 • www.signaturepress.comReviewed by Roger C. ParkerFor several years now, I’ve been waiting for SignaturePress to release their Sacramento Northern book, originallywritten by Harre W. Demoro. There’s quite a story behindthe book, but, in short, the wait has been worthwhile. It’s aspectacularly good book.Harre W. Demoro, the “dean” of Bay Area electric railwayauthors, completed the original manuscript for the SacramentoNorthern book in 1991, but he died before the bookappeared. What Signature Press’s co-owners Bob Churchand Tony Thompson did was to not only publish Demoro’soriginal manuscript, but publish an even better book thatgoes far beyond what Demoro had envisioned.Signature Press added new text, including Chapter Six,“A Ride on the Sacramento Northern,” commissioned maps,and researched never-before-seen photographs to create anew standard in quality. The result is a truly significant book,one that traction fans and modelers should own.The Sacramento Northern is a finely-printed, large-formatbook, with 350-pages of beautiful photographs, maps, anddetailed information about the rise, peak operations, anddecline of one of America’s most interesting interurban lines.There are several reasons for the widespread popularityof the Sacramento Northern Railway. One is the variety ofenvironments through which it operated. The line extendedfrom the San Francisco Bay Area to Chico, Calif., operatingthe longest interurban passenger route in the United States.In the Bay Area, the Sacramento Northern was a high-densityurban line that originally terminated at the Key System’sOakland Mole ferry terminal, then moved to downtown SanFrancisco reached by trackage rights over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Outside the Bay Area, it operatedthrough the streets of several cities before serving a predominatelyagricultural rural area.An amalgam of several lines, the Sacramento NorthernRailway operated a wide variety of passenger and freightequipment, at both 600 volts and 1200 volts. Power wasdelivered through, at different points on the line, trolleypoles, pantographs, and outside third rail.The line’s signature characteristics included its long,multi-car passenger cars, complete with the line’s distinctiveopen-ended observation cars. Passenger trains regularly containedsix cars, although some were cut off at Sacramento.One of the line’s most interesting features was its unique carferry, the Ramon, which bridged Suisan Bay. Because of theline’s extensive agricultural freight business, the line owneda variety of steeplecab and boxcab freight engines, plus severalstyles of cabooses.The line included numerous wooden trestles, one ofwhich is a 4,000 foot trestle that collapsed under the weightof a steeplecab propelled freight train. Many of the photosof the collapsed trestle and train have been frequentlyreprinted.Many of the Sacramento Northern’s structures wereas distinctive as its rolling stock. There were numerousSpanish-influenced, Alamo-style stations, such as the uniquethrough-style one at Woodland. There was also a busy4-track station in Sacramento, accessed over street trackage.Reasons why every traction modeler will want this bookinclude the breadth of its photo coverage, the high-quality ofthe photographic reproduction, the informative and carefullyedited text, and the 20 maps which trace the line, mile bymile, and detail the most important stations.Although I own many books covering electric railwayoperations in the Bay Area, I had never seen many of thephotographs of the line’s 40th and Shafter private right-ofwayfacilities in Oakland, the exterior of the ivy-coveredWoodland station, and the exterior and street side of theSacramento terminal.I especially appreciated the descriptions of the numerousoperating details, including the procedures to switch from600 to 1200 volt power or from overhead wire to outsidethird rail. There are some great photos of the transitions takingplace, including close-ups of the line’s unique removablethird rail shoes.Signature Press’s Sacramento Northern is a hefty book,one which will provide its owner with renewed appreciationfor the Sacramento Northern and interurban electric railwaysin general. It’s a fitting memorial to both a great tractionauthor as well as the country’s premier interurban. The SacramentoNorthern was worth the wait.46 • O Scale Trains - July/Aug ’09
REVIEW: EMD GP7 Ph2 Gold Series; MSRP: $469.95Atlas O, 378 Florence Ave, Hillside NJ 07205908-687-0880 • www.atlaso.comReviewed by Joe GiannovarioThe PrototypeThe General Motors Electromotive Division's GP7 Dieselwas a four-axle unit (B-B) built from 1949 to 1954 when itwas replaced by the GP9. The unit was powered by an EMD16 cylinder Diesel prime mover producing 1500 horsepower.The "GP" designation stood for General Purpose and theGP7s, like their GP9 successors, were used in every assignmentfrom switching service to passenger duty. Over 2700units were built.The GP7 carbody generally had three sets of ventilationgrilles under the cab and two pair at the end of the longhood. Some late GP7s were built with carbodies that wereidentical to early GP9s. Early GP7s had a solid skirt abovethe fuel tank, while late GP7s had access holes in the skirt.Many railroads removed most of the skirt to improve maintenance.Geeps could be built with the engineer’s control standinstalled for either the long hood, or the short hood designatedas the front. The GP7 was also available with or withoutdynamic brakes. Early (Phase 1) GP7s had 36" radiatorfans including the one in the dynamic brake blister. A laterPhase 2 GP7 with dynamic brakes will have a 48" fan in theblister. A steam generator could also be installed in the shorthood as an option. If so equipped, the 1,600 US gallons fueltank was divided, with half for diesel fuel, and half for boilerwater. Another option available for Geeps without dynamicbrakes was to remove the two air reservoirs from under theframe, and replace them with four tanks on the roof. Unitsthus equipped became known as "torpedo tube" Geeps.There are myriad other minor differences and if you area Diesel aficionado you will delight in finding them amongthe prototypes. (For further information about the various differencesbetween prototype production models, see pages32-41 of the March 1984 issue of Mainline Modeler.-Editor)The ModelThe Atlas O GP7 Phase 2 is made with a highly detailedinjection molded plastic carbody mounted on a die-castchassis, with die-cast fuel tank and pilots. The model weighsin at 4 pounds 4 ounces. The test sample was painted inReading livery. The paint finish was excellent and the letteringcrisp. The model tested has a dynamic brake blisteralthough other versions come without the blister. Checkwith Atlas for availability.The Gold Series designation means that the engine isequipped with a QSI dual-mode DCC sound decoder. Dualmodemeans the engine will run on straight DC as well as incommand control mode.The engine is powered by two medium sized can motorswith flywheels, one mounted in each truck in the so-called“China drive” arrangement.FidelityThe model was compared to published plans and foundto be a near-perfect reproduction of an EMD GP7. No significantdeviations were found in any major dimension. Theremay be some detail inaccuracies but one would have to beexpert in the particular railroad modeled to spot them and Iam no expert on Diesels for any railroadCompatibilityThe wheelsets all checked out with the NMRA Standardsgage. The model is equipped with Atlas' own O Scalecoupler which does mate with Kadees and other O Scalecouplers. However, the operational reliability of Atlas Ocouplers is somewhat spottyPerformanceThe locomotive was operated in both DC and DCCmodes. In DC mode the starting voltage was 8.8 volts drawing400mA. Pulling a train of 8 standard O Scale freight carsthe engine drew 800mA. On stall the engine drew about2.1 Amps. The slowest smooth speed was 1.2 smph. In DCCmode the slowest smooth speed was also 1.2 smph. This isthe first time I have ever observed the same slow speed performancein both DC and DCC modes.ConclusionsThe Atlas O GP7 is an excellent model that crosses thesteam-Diesel timeline and thus may fit nearly any operatingscheme. The model is dimensionally accurate and performsadmirably. It will be a nice addition to the OST roster ofmotive power.ReferencesEMD GP7 drawing, Model Railroader, February 1954July/Aug ’09 - O Scale Trains • 47
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