Norfolk Southern and a Predecessor

Here's a few shots I caught last week.

First, one of my all time favorite locomotive models, an SD70ACe, this one being Norfolk Southern 1109.

A couple EMD rebuilds, RP-E4C "slugs" NS 705 & 706.

For those who don't know what slugs are, basically they are locomotives with their engines and other mechanical components removed, weight/ballast added, and are paired with another operable locomotive from which they draw power to operate their traction motors and other electronics. They are capable of being the lead unit as well, retaining all their cab components necessary for operation.

This setup is mostly used for switching/yard work and locals.

And a locomotive I was elated to capture - NS 5642, a specially painted EMD GP38-2 for the support of training first responders.

And appropriately finishing off this round, Southern X335.

The number is marked through, but I don't see any other reporting marks, so SOU X335 will do.

If you'll notice, next to the right hand window what appears to be a barcode like sticker - this is an obsolete train car recording method (name escapes me right now) that essentially worked on the same principal as barcodes; each car and locomotive had one of these stickers and when passing a scanner it would read the code and record the info. This lasted only a short time, with the obvious issue of the sticker being damaged or obscured for some reason (snow, heavy rain, grime, graffiti, etc).

Thanks for looking!