Category Archives: Railroad DVD Product Reviews

Discussions about our railroad DVD products, current and past releases.

Fellow Railfans, Modelers, Enthusiasts, and All, the start of 2021 brings us a New Railroad Video, UP & BNSF AT ROCHELLE, IL DOUBLE DIAMONDS, 2004 (1-West Productions™) ™, from our Featured Series. Here we get into UP and BNSF early 2000s action, at the famous Rochelle, IL hotspot, near the BNSF and UP diamonds. Filmed by Keith Lehman, during June of 2004, he captures plenty of colors during this time in railroad His. Through this area runs UP’s Chicago Area-Geneva Subdivision, Geneva to Clinton, IL line (ex-C&NW Galena Div.-Clinton Subdiv. , & BNSF’s Chicago Division- Aurora Subdivision, Chicago, IL to Seattle, WA/LaCrosse, WI line (ex-CB&Q Chicago & Aurora Div.-Aurora & Savanna Subdiv./BN Lakes Div.-2nd Subdiv.).

A scene from our UP & BNSF AT ROCHELLE, IL DOUBLE
DIAMONDS 2004™ Railroad Video. UP GE Pushes an EB
UP Coal at Rochelle, IL, 6/2004.
©Copyright 2004, 2021 1-West Productions™/PJ.

See plenty of older and newer EMD and GE units, including UP, BNSF, ATSF, WC, CSX, BN, FURX, MLR, NRCX, locals, coal, mix, stack, and TOFC, COFC. This is what we saw during the early 2000s, now starting to be considered vintage, as power of these days are much different compared to what we see on this video. This video is a remastered version of our original Keith’s Trains Series™ Title #85, now edited, with captions, and menus. For more information and to purchase, click here or go to:https://www.1westproductions.com/product/up-bnsf-at-rochelle-il-double-diamonds-2004-1-west-productions/

A scene from our UP & BNSF AT ROCHELLE, IL DOUBLE DIAMONDS 2004™ Railroad Video. BNSF/ATSF EMDs take a BNSF Local NW/WB at Rochelle, IL, 6/2004. ©Copyright 2004, 2021 1-West Productions™/PJ.

Plenty of ex-ATSF and BN paint schemes to see on this video.

More new Railroad Videos from 1-West Productions™ coming soon, all year long! Stay Tuned!

1-West Productions™ Staff

1-West Productions™ Series Railroad DVDs- Modern, Featured Products

New Release Of Norfolk Southern Modern Material

August 18, 2015 1wp

We have a new release of Norfolk Southern modern material released- a new Railroad Video in SD DVD 16×9 Anamorphoc format. Which means it will play like it should on widescreen TVs, and also on the standards 4×3 screens. We have been in the process of filming modern NS material for those who like the modern stuff.

The new DVD is NORFOLK SOUTHERN’S CHICAGO LINE/EX-WATER LEVEL ROUTE IN OHIO™, produced by 1-West Productions™. Filmed in 2014 & 2015, we captured NS action on this famous line that is still a major route.

Built in the 1800s, that section of the line that we filmed eventually was owned by the New York Central when they took over the original owner, the Lake Shore Michigan Southern RR. The NYC obtained ownership of the whole line from Albany, NY to Chicago, IL by merging the LSMS & several other railroads that owned the line across the states. This line was an efficient way of hauling freight, & also a competing line with the PRR, since it was mostly built on flat land, with very little grades. The PRR had to go through the mountains in order to get into the more western part of the country.

By 1968, the Penn Central was formed with themerger of the PRR, NYC, & NH, and depended on that line. By 1976, Conrail was formed and then owned the line until 1999, when NS & CSX split CR. NS ended up with the line from cleveland on west to Chicago, & CSX from Cleveland on east to NY. Amtrak uses this line today for some of their trains as well. NS then called the Water Level their Chicago Line, Dearborn Division.

NS has always had congestion problems on the Chicago Line, especially with the increase in oil train traffic. In 2014, they worked out an agreement with CSX to lease their ex-PRR/PC/CR Pittsburgh Division line that runs through Bucyrus, OH, Fort Wayne, IN, & to Chicago, IL. NS would replace ties & rail where it was needed, and was able to transfer some of their oil trains on that line to help ease the congestion on the Chicago Line.

NS has since made updates to the Chicago Line, such as replacement of the ex-NYC/PC/CR signals, added detectors, and even changed detector voices from saying “Conrail” to “Norfolk Southern”. Some of the detectors heard in the area where it was filmed are at Graytown, LaCarne, Gypsum, Sandusky, Vermillion, & more. Locations filmed were at Sandusky, near Gypsum, Vermillion, & Toledo, OH, etc. NS also put in a connetion at Oak Harbor, to connect the chicago Line with their Toledo to Bellevue Line, & a connection outside of Vermillion to connect the same line east of Bellevue.

Many fallen flag freight cars, & locomotives such as UP, BNSF, CN, CP, etc. can also be seen on this video. Order yours today, & see our coupons for even more savings.

© Copyright 2015, 1-West Productions™.  Duplication Prohibited.

CSX-Chessie-SBD-CRR-L&N-SCL-ACL, CSX-Chessie-SBD-CRR-L&N-SCL-ACL, Keith's Trains Series™ Railroad DVDs

Vintage CSX- Chessie, SBD/ACL/SCL, L&N, CRR

March 27, 2015 1wp 2 Comments

Vintage CSX- remember the early days of CSX? One would see many colors of locomotives and freight names on freight cars that made up the new CSX at the time. Although the merger was approved in the early 1980s (which sparked the NS merger as an answer), it wasn’t until 1986 that CSX came into actual existence.

It still took years before CSX painted locomotives and freight cars. During the early merger, they had L&N (Louisville & Nashville), SBD (Seaboard System), SCL (Seaboard Coast Line), ACL (Atlantic Coast Line), CRR (Clinchfield Railroad), Chessie, B&O (Baltimore & Ohio), WM (Western Maryland), and C&O (Chesapeake & Ohio) equipment all over the system for years. To this day one can still see what’s left over of some of those roads.

What’s interesting is that railfans don’t go wild to take many photos and recording of the roads until a merger is announced, or has taken place. But some of us record what we can regardless. What we see today will not be there forever- things always change.
A lot of these predecessor CSX roads can be seen in action on Railroad DVDs, Keith’s Trains Series™– CSX, Chessie, C&O, L&N, SCL, ACL, SBD– that we own and have available for purchase. See all of these roads in the late 80s and early 90s+, before CSX retired or painted over these paint schemes.

Remember, what may be “boring” today, may not be here tomorrow, or won’t still be here in the future, as changes are always being made in the railroad industry.

Happy railfanning!

© Copyright 2015 1-West Productions™/PJ

1-West Productions™ Series Railroad DVDs- Vintage, Featured Products

NORFOLK SOUTHERN 1980s Ohio Lines Series from 1-West Productions™

February 13, 2015 1wp

NORFOLK SOUTHERN 1980s Ohio Lines Series from 1-West Productions is produced and available for purchase on this website, exclusively from 1-West Productions™. We have Vintage titles, such as in our NOROFLK SOUTHERN 1980s Ohio Lines™ Series avilable for purchase. Converted from original color VHS tape, filmed in the 1980s, this Series captures what NS looked like during its early years of the merger. Most scenes are shown around the Bellevue, OH area, one of NS’s main Terminals of the time.

Bellevue originally was home of the PRR (Sandusky Branch Main that later was purchased by the N&W in the 60s), Nickel Plate (Buffalo and Chicago Mains), Wheeling & Lake Erie (Toledo and Brewster Mains), and the New York Central (Toledo Branch that went to Elyria). In the 1960s and 70s, Bellevue was the home of just the Penn Central, and N&W, and then just NS in the 1980s to today.

NS was formed in 1982, by the merging of the N&W and Southern Railways, to keep up with the soon-to-be merging of Chessie and Seaboard System, to form CSX in 1986.

This Series shows many fallen flags on freight equipment on NS trains, older facilities, crossovers, track layouts, and switches that have since changed, older signals, some cabooses, older EMD and GE locomotives, caboose and locomotive deadlines, older yard shots, and more. Not all trains are the same, and the transition of the merger shows as time goes on. This Series is a must-have for collectors and railfans alike.

All DVDs in this Series have part narration, subtitles, disc menus, original sound, and color, original content, approx. 60 mins each, and video to Standard Digital and 4:3 format.

Buy yours today for your collection or library Here.

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All content on this Blog, DVD, DVD Cover, Photos © Copyright 1986, 2015 1-West Productions™/PJ.  All Rights Reserved

1-West Productions™ Series Railroad DVDs- Vintage, Railroad DVD Product Reviews

Railroad DVD Preview: NORFOLK SOUTHERN 1980s, PART 4 & 5, Ohio Lines™ (1-WEST PRODUCTIONS™)

February 13, 2015 1wp

We have now available: NORFOLK SOUTHERN 1980s, PART 4 & 5, Ohio Lines™ (1-WEST PRODUCTIONS™), originally filmed in 1986, in the Ohio area. This DVD is found in our Featured 1-West Productions™ DVDs Section, under Railroad DVD Categories. We filmed mostly near Bellevue, one of NS’s main terminals at the time, which today is even more important. A lot of railroad history comes out of Bellevue. Originally a Nickel Plate, PRR, New York Central, and Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad town, in 1986, it was now down to just one: N&W, or NS actually. Even though the N&W wasn’t absorbed into the NS merger on paper until the 1990s, NS was starting to show their presence in the area.

You could still see a lot of N&W and SOU equipment on their trains, but the NS scheme was slowly taking over- at least on locomotives. Freight cars wouldn’t carry the NS logo until the 90s. One could also see older EMD and GE locomotives still working hard on freights arriving and leaving Bellevue. Let’s not forget all of the now fallen flag railroads seen on freight cars as well. This was a time of roads like BN, N&W, SOU, ATSF, SP, CR, Chessie-B&O/C&O/WM, WC, D&H, Guilford, ACL, FEC, B&M, and more. But even older fallen flags were noticed on freight cars during this time: PC, NYC, PRR, NH, VGN, NKP, WAB, NP, GN, CB&Q, RDG, LV, EL, L&N, SCL, MKT, ROCK, MLW, etc.

CSX was formed by ’87, but their new paint wasn’t seen on the rails until much later. They were formed in 1986, with the combining of Chessie, Seaboard System, with L&N, ACL, and SCL. This was also before the 1990s formed Regional RR- the newer Wheeling & Lake Erie.

Add this DVD to your collection today, sit back, and take a trip back in time, the way things use to look in the 80s on American Railroads. In all-original color and sound, captions on each scene, a short preview with some narration at the beginning, disc menus, original video transferred to digital DVD, approx. 60 minutes, and 4:3 format. Produced by P.Jordan and 1-West Productions.

This is just 1 Part in this Series. Collect all Parts! This DVD is found in our Featured 1-West Productions™ DVDs Section, under Railroad DVD Categories.

Find Part 3 & 4 Directly Here

& Check Out The Rest Of The DVDs In This Same Series Here