The second video is "and now for something completely different."

I'm guessing it's a scripted film. The engine is a D60 2-8-4 rebuilt in the 1950's from prewar D50 2-8-2's. They were, with the D61 and D62 2-8-4's, at the top of the JNR freight food chain.

If you want to hear an engine down in the corner pulling for all it's worth, ride an RBMN Jim Thorpe Iron Horse Ramble with 2102 from Tamaqua to Haucks, up 1.6% with a long train.

Phil Mulligan

I think both may be scripted films, the first one being part of a documentary, possibly even a railfan effort. Apparently JNR was pretty cooperative with movie people of all sorts back in the day.

The translated description for this film is, "Produced in 1972, this drama is set on the Nayoro Main Line in 1933, and was filmed locally and on dedicated lines using real equipment."

The second is "The Naked Sun," 1958, and is apparently a bit of a soap opera based on the comments about it at the link below.

https://letterboxd.com/film/the-naked-sun/

Darn, how come every other country manages to produce films with rail footage that's more interesting and more authentic than almost anything Hollywood has ever done?

USA!! USA!! USA!!

As far as this subject at least--Pffffftt!!

Another note: JNR is left-hand running and the engineer is in the left side of the locomotive.

The engineer bucking snow in the 2-8-0 periodically leans out and catches a hoop on his arm, and drops a different hoop on the ground. This is JNR's type of Manual Block System for the movement of trains. Consider it the equvalent of a PRR Form K or a NORAC Form D.

Phil Mulligan

I wonder if the 'hoop" is actually a "staff". in which under certain operating rules, posession of the staff is itself the authority to occupy its assigned section (or block). It appears this staff provides for attachment of special instructions or orders.

I raise this question because it appears the staff is carried through its assigned block, as opposed to a hoop, from which attached orders are promptly removed and the hoop is dropped at the location where it was "caught".

The hoop fills the role of a "Staff" in the British MBS. In Japanese/Korean operation, it stays on the train through the block. In the Japanese video, the engineer catches one hoop, then puts the old one in a catcher.

US operations had used a train order carrier similar to a hoop but with a tail, looking like a cursive "9." The Operator would attach the order to the hoop, the engineer and conductor would catch it, remove the order and toss the hoop down for reuse. The triangular train order fork replaced the hoop, much easier on the elbow.

Phil Mulligan

Granted, this isn't the same as a JNR 2-8-4 blasting upgrade with tonnage, but there is a fascinating double DVD set by Revelation Video featuring hand sanding. This is "Gula Rails", a tour of 15 Indonesian sugar railroads made in 2015, showing numerous examples of workers riding the pilots (or even just the couplers) of both steam and diesel locomotives gathering heavily loaded sugar cane cars and hauling them back to the various mills. There are a variety of operations shown, and some of them have different means of accomplishing the same thing, such as having an employee walk next to the engine with a long spade, picking up sand off the frame or off the roadbed before sprinkling it just ahead of the drivers.

Victoria Railways in southern Australia had a similar staff system where the staff locked out the signals so possession of the staff on the train ensured clearance. Originally, the staffs were large rod that were handed up and exchanged as explained to me.



As trains got faster, they were made smaller and put in leather holders with a ring.



These were exchanged on the fly with larger locomotives using a corkscrew device that was swung out from the cab.



Giving new meaning to stand back from the edge of the platform.

Don't pass up on a chance to visit the Newport Railway museum if you happen to be in Melbourne. The museum is accessible via train and a three block walk in Newport.

Bob