Nickel Plate 765 was built by the Lima Locomotive Works in 1944 and was used for freight trains running out of Bellevue OH. After retirement it was donated to the city of Fort Wayne IN for display in Lawton Park. Restoration by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society began in 1974. NKP 765 was used for excursions between 1979 and 1993 when a second restoration and full rebuild began. Pere Marquette 1225 was built by Lima in 1941 using a design similar to NKP 765. 1225 was used in regular service until 1951 (PM merged with the C&O in 1947) when it was acquired by Michigan State University in 1957 and placed on display. MSU donated 1225 to the Michigan State Trust for Railway Preservation and it ran under it's own power after restoration in 1985. 1225 doubleheaded with 765 in 1991 at the NHRS convention in Huntington WV. 1225 was the prototype on which the 2004 Christmas movie “Polar Express” cartoon engine was based, and provided sound for the movie. Is it a coincidence that 1225's number matches the 12/25 Christmas date?. NKP 765 and PM 1225 were both scheduled to appear at the 2009 TrainFestival in Owosso MI. Due to some blown boiler tubes 1225 was unable to run excursions along with 765, SP 4449 and other engines. In the fall of 2009 after repair of the boiler tubes 1225 and 765 ran together for the first time since 1991. The video starts out showing preparation of both engines for the photo freights with the narrator providing details about the original use and restoration of both 765 and 1225. First up is NKP 765 running alone. The first 30 minutes of the video shows 765 only and is shot under overcast skies. One of the doubleheader scenes is absolutely beautiful, shot early in the morning sun on an obviously cool day which makes for unusually visible smoke and steam. Some scenes show 765 and 1225 running side by side. After some yard switching scenes, 1225 is seen in the lead for more doubleheading. A couple steam era pickup trucks, farm tractors and a gorgeous red 1958 Chevy Impala are used for props in some scenes, but they look sadly out of place with modern 55 foot grain cars (making matters worse is graffiti on one grain car) in the train. This video is in the 16X9 Widescreen format with Dolby 2.0 sound and has a Narration On and Off feature. There is one minute with no sound at 31 minutes into the video. The photography and sound is the usual excellent quality provided by Peter Crook. The narration ends when the first scene of 765 pulling a train starts, so crank the volume up to Tear-Up-The-Lease-And-Blow-Out-The-Walls and enjoy! This video is a Must Have for the doubleheading of 2 nearly identical super-power steam locomotives! This may be the last time 1225 is seen running for some time to come. If I understand correctly, 1225 is now down for the FRA inspection and rebuild which will probably take a few years done by a volunteer work force.

Additional remarks by armchairrailfan:
Narration: Just enough.
Would kids enjoy this? Definitely!
Image quality: Excellent!
DVD Value: Excellent Value!
Recommend to others? A "Must Have"!

Respond to this review