BOYERTOWN, Pa. — A former Southern Railway and Norfolk Southern diesel has found a new home — and a new look — on Pennsylvania’s Colebrookdale Railroad.
High-nose GP38-2 No. 5128, built by EMD in 1974, has been acquired by the Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust thanks to a gift from Scott and Susan Bentley, and now wears the railroad’s Victorian blue and gold paint. It was purchased at a 2017 auction. The locomotive will allow push-pull operations along with Colebrookdale GP10 No. 73236, eliminating run-around moves and increasing capacity for both passenger and freight moves.
“When Susan and I provided the funds for the Colebrookdale Railroad to purchase No. 5128, I had no idea how much I would enjoy accompanying [Colebrookdale founder] Nathaniel Guest to the auction,” Scott Bentley said in a press release. “It has been a matter of great pride to help the railroad acquire a second locomotive to provide reliable passenger and freight service — and I’m thrilled with how good it looks now in its new paint job.”
Another supporter, Robert Hart Sr., helped fund the repainting of the unit into the paint scheme featuring gold pinstripes reflecting the livery of the railroad’s first-class coaches.
“When Nathaniel showed me a rendering of 5128 in Colebrookdale colors, I knew I wanted to help make that vision real,” Hart says. “Funding the paint work was my way of letting this locomotive shine again, and I’m delighted with how she turned out.”
Engineer Andrew Sellers, who was part of the team that did the paint work, says the locomotive “is the backbone of our railroad services. … I think that the engine looks fabulous.”
The unit is now in regular service on the heritage railway, which also operates freight service as the Eastern Berks Gateway Railroad. For more information, visit the Colebrookdale Railroad website.
Look at their website to see pictures of the side of the locomotive
Well done… It’s not easy to make that kind of freight loco look elegant.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
I don’t know if it should look elegant. A freight loco should look as if it has work to do. Looking good is a bonus. I think NS as done a perfect job of painting their heritage locomotives as they were when they ran, and that should be the “type” for all railroads. This GP38 looks good, and sharp, That is what matters. Congratulations to Colebrookdale Railroad for gaining an important addition to their motive stable.
Another great career achievement, fueled by good fortune, for the beloved GP38-2 No. 5128!
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Looking at their website, the GP10 should be 7236.
It certainly is… The photo at “www.colebrookdalerailroad.com/train-cars/” confirms this.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
The GP10 #73236 has one too many numbers. I have never seen a locomotive in The States with 5 numbers.
I agree… The loco in question is the GP10 #7236 for sure.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
That is why Union Pacific had to add the UPY reporting mark to their yard and dedicated local locomotives after all their mergers in the 90’s as the integration of the newly “acquired” locomotives would have forced them to go to five digit numbers which they did couldn’t do. In many cases, SP for instance, many of their loco’s retained their numbers whenever possible if it met the UP Model numbering convention. Where it didn’t, they were “[atched” with a new number. The US system of locomotive tracking based on reporting marks is a 4 digit system currently and I don’t see that changing anytime soon, id ever…
Great news!
Would be nice to include a picture of the whole unit, not just the nose.
Outstanding 👍👍👍