FOUL HORN - Track Geometry Train Comes to Town 

"That thing sounds like a dying animal" 😂 That sent me, great video.

Great video as always. The horn on the Geo train is indeed an RS3L. The RS3L is a three chime horn that uses chimes (bells) 25, 31, and 44. In the video, it sounds like the 25 bell (the lowest note) is sounding okay, the 31 bell is completely silent, and the 44 bell is over sounding which is causing that horrible squeal. Having a low note and a very high note sounding together is never a pretty sound. Leslies are known for making all kinds of strange sounds when they get fouled up.

That same locomotive and two geometry cars was running roundtrip from New Bern NC to Morehead City NC a couple of weeks ago with the same sick horn, crazy they haven't repaired it.

Update @ 2:40AM Eastern on Feb 11th, 2023: The track geometry train just passed the tracks near my house(with 3 crossings within a mile of me), and I can confirm that it still has that dying dog of a horn. I didn’t even need to see it to identify it. You can usually feel the rumble of the prime movers, and hear the freight cars creaking and flanges squealing from my house, and there was none of that, which means this train was only a few cars long. That, alongside the horn, makes it uncanny. 😉

Duluth !! I really enjoy Kid Kangol (now Q-Canon) who videos tons of trains that come through Duluth. Definitely something about that horn... Sounds like a clown car

That’s awesome, sounds like Conrail in the 90’s.

I miss my Leslie RS3L. It’s sounded so good.

I used to live & work near Buford, and miss spending time along the tracks rail fanning in my free time. I do appreciate the videos from the Atlanta area. I miss all the train action around there.

Great video! The Geo was in Johnstown Pa last month for about a week....

Ouch! That track geometry horn. Sound like it needs a case of Riccola® poured into it.

Sweet video my friend

I like to fall asleep listening to train horns but that weird one would keep me awake lol. Great video!

I caught this when it was in NC on the ECBU line. I also like how someone told me I shouldn't be chasing the train if I didn't like the horn, which to me sounded like straight crap.

The high pitched horn Sounds like the V/locity or “squeaker” horns here in Australia

0:50 so this is how Norfolk Southern railroad gets the thoroughbred logo from!

Thank you for this beautyful Video

Don’t forget Tannery Row has a restaurant inside, with good food. Great video, always love seeing familiar places. Certainly interesting to hear the history of Buford.

Sick RS3L

We had a one of our BNSF pumpkins with same horn as the second train and it sounded just like that! When out of tune have a horrible sound like that! The diaphragms do tend to wear out as well from the constant vibration! That SD40-2 was definitely a Leslie three chime completely out of tune!

That horn omg

Charlie, Great video. It is a skilled editing mix of drone and ground shot footage. Thanks!

Call that train “The Banshee”

That place looks like a great place to railfan

"Not much has changed" except Trainmaster models has moved a good 20 minutes further out of the way. I used to work in Buford and visit there on lunch.

Nice train those seem rare to see and I also saw a video of a UP and BNSF FRA inspection train north at 14th avenue railroad crossing in Sacramento California

An interior tour of a geometry train would be so cool to see.

Some buddies and I just saw the geometry unit about an hour and a half ago! As always, great video. Very professional. Can't wait for the next one!

Whoa, overblowing Leslie RS3L?--geometry train

Very cool video with nice catches and commentary. Have a great rest of your evening.

I saw 27A recently at Shenandoah Junction, WV

Yes it does

I saw the geometry train in Orrick Mo, just about a week ago!

Sounds like the middle bell of the RS3L is out - So when you're in front of the train, you hear the lowest bell blowing because it's facing forward. Once it passes you hear the highest bell because it faces backwards. The middle bell is also facing forward but it's not functioning. The overhead drone shot kinda catches both together. And clearly, I'm a humongous nerd who needs to get a life.

Sounded like a chime horn. Makes more than 3 notes at the same time.

Southern, Green Light for Innovation. I remember as a kid watching these trains plow through town and seeing the LOGO on many of the cars it was pulling.

6:04 I saw this train blasting down the track not far from where you filmed it. Where I saw it was not far away, so he must have had to slam the brakes to stop for that signal!

You’re Right Charlie, it’s definitely a Very Sick Horn. Seems like the Engineer Enjoyed using it more than any other Engineer at Norfolk Southern. 🤪👎

I assume the audio was properly synced with the video. If so, why don't we hear the "two longs, a short and a long" horn signal completed by the time of reaching the crossing rather than finishing after going through the crossing? By the way, another in a series of interesting videos.

My favorite type of footage now is drons following locos from above or even train cars, but how cool would it be if you would fly close to the side of the locos trucks not near the cab were it could be a distration, but just following it closly from behind, if thats not illegal? thank you for the footage, :)

Interesting stuff! I have seen one of those Loram rail grinders but I don't think I've seen one of these before!

I’d have to look up the history of the NS geometry cars (the hood units, not the coaches) to find out the former road numbers, but if I remember right they were converted from EMD SDs. One of the coaches is ex-DL&W (Lackawanna) if I remember right.

I Got Him in Cary NC on 93G with that SD40-2 LHF

The GP-38 probably used horn sequencer if it even had one

I will love to Railfan there

7648 is an RL K5HL, or nicknamed, the 3rd gen K5HL The geo leader a fouled RS3L, what sounds like debris is trapped in one of the bells

Nice video!

I think I saw UPs track geometry car many years ago while driving along I-55 in IL. I had no idea what I was at the time.

Nice.

The brick was in Langdale yard in Valdosta, Ga last Friday

Saw the purple ns tooooooooooo!!!!!

That horn will get your attention

6:02 that CSX Geometry train looks like the KUJR LAA which is also a geometry train in indonesia

Great vid

I actually just got that train in Lindale

And it had horn covers!

Awesome!

yessssss geometry train finally here and in action once more! and cool vid!

Well,I heard it as an Leslie RS3P,indeed a dying animal,and that an intermodal or a ballast train is a K5LLA

That thing sounds like a middle school trumpet section.

Is the audio off on the last clip? Doesn't seem like 3278's LLSL lines up with the first and last crossing?

Nice

That's laryngitis for sure.

The horn kinda sounds like a Victorian Railways Horn

that horn sounds great to me and i think it sounds bad bc one of the chimes is brocken

only one railroad that had rs3l that ns csx split was conrail.

that Leslie RS3 is fouled. So, one of the horns are not working or not getting enough air pressure.

*Fouled RS3L one of the bells are not working or its broken*

Soon the silence was broken by a large horde of walkers and Rick and Daryl and da boys absolutely yeeting them into the great beyond get the reference? 😏

Sounds like what 4117 used to sound like.

I saw that train in irondale Alabama it is meeting another train

One of the worst train horn recordings I have ever heard is from a very old vinyl record I got when I was a kid called “Diesel Super Power 1960-74” produced by a company called Arkay Records of San Jose CA. The offending recording was from a then new and ill fated Amtrak SDP40F. I need to get this record digitized and uploaded to RU-vid someday.

To me this one looks like an old high hood

That geo train sounds like Indian locomotive

Fouled RS3L

I had someone ask me why trains run through the middle of town. It was a silly question. I explained how the towns came because of the railroads. The government gave them large land grants to expand the rails from coast to coast. They sold the land they didn't need to settlers that made the towns along the routs. No one seems to study history anymore. Sad. How do you know where you are going if you do not know where you started?

That fucking horn sounds like a screaming goat thats dying its almost identical to the sunrail cabcar number 2008

Rs3l I think is the horn

Interesting train but a bit less comprehensive than the French IRIS 320 or the UK NMT

Did someone step on that horn or something?

Buford Georgia is where I film

Definitely a Leslie. Probably ex Conrail unit. Either way I’m sure it’s a bad diaphragm or worn out backing plate.

Sounds like a conrail ore than a dying animal

very very fouled rs3l

Seems like it is fouled and has some kind of shilling squeak to it. So one 1 chime isn't working, 1 is and 1 chime isn't playing the correct not seemingly.

That horn has bad diaphragms

What your phone clip in your car by chance?

Is it bad I kind of like it?

That sounds like a dying train

If you're doubting your use of "horn show" let me note that "show" implies something more visual. How about "horn recital" or "horn concert"? Lol. This is of course notwithstanding that a show, like a musical, is also auditory. I really liked seeing the "brick". I am so bored with the NS all black paint scheme. They run in upstate NY heading towards (into?) Canada. They took over the CP route. Every now and then, we are fortunate enough to see some foreign power, and a splash of color, most notably the BNSF.

Oh Thank God. All Of My Friends Think I’m Weird Up In North Carolina Because I Didn’t Like The Horn. It Was Downright Disgusting, But Hey At Least Someone Agrees With Me!

I think it just has a sore throat .

Now I've heard a few bad horns working on a few engines in some yards but that....yeah I'll agree with your statement sounds like a dying animal

I live in Chicago. Unfortunately they would’ve tore down the statue with the kids and horse because it’s not politically correct.

That horn needs to be put out of its misery! Great video, Charlie. I, too, have spent most of my life within listening distance of the tracks. For a while, in my teen years, SCL had one which replicated a steam whistle.

Sounds like a Mack truck horn with the bugles taken off. Maybe someone packed it full of corn cobs. Thanks! Blessings!

I recommend the RU-vid channel "The Horn King". He's always showing off different train horns.

Sorta kinda like a GG-1 Horn...just not the right note...

The second engine looks like a dead animal lol

Eh I like it

It would be awesome if you would get out of the Midwest area and come up in my area in the North you wouldn't believe the trains up this way. You are going to see a lot of older EMD locomotives up this way especially on Pan am railways and that was just recently bought by CSX corporation I think it was about two years ago. CSX sold 30 locomotives out of the 102 locomotives that Pan am railways had. In out of every locomotive that Pan am railways has they have not a single Dash 9. The newest engines they have are from CSX from probably about 8 years ago when they purchase them from CSX. A lot of c 40 8 W C40 SD 40 GP38 GP40s GP9 they have a lot of EMDs I think they have the most that I've ever seen New England. VTR has a lot of EMDs too Vermont railroad I've never seen any videos you've done that are from the north it would be an experience that actually see you up this way doing videos on Pan am railways old lines now owned by CSX but all of Pan am railways locomotives are still painted in the paint a lot of them were repainted brand new paint jobs and Pam in so CSX doesn't want to repaint them just yet. They're going to add a CSX logo underneath the locomotive in the future.