Cold Starting an Alco 12-251

A few weeks ago, a unique opportunity presented itself when Trillium Railway made their last trip to St. Catharines to switch two remaining customers on the Grantham spur. The locomotive for this trip, TR RS-18u #1859, developed an oil leak the previous day and this resulted in the train tying down on the spur pending repairs to the unit. The following day was clear but cold and this allowed for a combination railfanning + 'cold start' scene when the mechanic arrived to start the prime move, a 12-cylinder Alco 251B. Normally the railway starts work really early in the morning so this was an unusual chance to watch the crew start up the locomotive up close.
It took several attempts spread over about half an hour, but eventually the engine fired up. Note that after running a while, the engine sounds smoother, more like that distinctive Alco 'burble'. With the air pressure built up, the train then departed southward to the CN Grimsby sub for the last time with droves of railfans waiting for it at Merritton.
I will have a full video on this move in the future, but in short, Trillium (GIO) no longer operates north of mile 8 on the Canal spur, just past ASW Valbruna Steel in Welland. Declining carloads and a relatively long trip to switch about 3-6 cars per day, twice a week, eventually brought about this end of service to Thorold and St. Catharines. I was lucky enough to shoot this line several times in the last year, focusing on the coil car runs to Trenergy, and will upload those videos as well, in time.
As always, thank you for watching!

[@HavelockYard]

Nice work. We used to get these 1800s up in Havelock all the time back in the day

[@barrybickle7992]

Havelock as in Lincoln Nebr

[@joshjones3408]

Need one really big can of Cosby sauce 👍👍👌👌

[@bonose12]

Throw some ether at it!

[@Thomas1980]

SUPER good Video👍Thumbs Up 👍Best Greetings😀

[@johnmunns5964]

Looks like a DPF Toyota!

[@anthonyklein2944]

Got out the 'ol liquid glow plugs! :-)

[@strobx1]

They don't have glow plugs. Direct injection

[@KC2DZB]

​@@strobx1 liquid = starting fluid

[@bartholomausallen883]

@@strobx1 Direct injection Diesel engines can have glowplugs. My car is DI and it has glowplugs. But I understand why railroads don't use them (one more complication to go wrong).

[@strobx1]

@@bartholomausallen883 Your engine has a prechamber that heats the air to the point where the fuel will ignite. All big diesel engines that I am away of do not have glow plugs.

[@joestrainworldvideos3977]

Love diesel. Great shot of this start. Joe I give u sub.

[@carstengunther4316]

Was sind das für Haufen?

[@777CYQG]

Maybe GIO will be receiving the LDSX2001 (GP38)

[@karstendoerr5378]

White exhaust smoke in diesel engines is always a sign of increased moisture that evaporates. Or it is simply the water vapour produced during the combustion of hydrocarbons and condensed immediately under operating temperature on cold days.

[@disorderlyconduct6011]

Um.. No not really.. Its incomplete combustion of the fuel.. That much moisture in that it would be locked up

[@karstendoerr5378]

@@disorderlyconduct6011 In the event of incomplete combustion in diesel engines, rust is produced. And this usually turns the smoke black. Therefore, white smoke cannot be incomplete combustion.

[@disorderlyconduct6011]

@@karstendoerr5378 only when it runs on unicorn pee

[@karstendoerr5378]

@@disorderlyconduct6011 So in my training as a car mechanic, I learned that black smoke in diesel indicates incomplete combustion. So it's different in America from the rest of the world.

[@flufflepuffle6229]

@@karstendoerr5378 white smoke is unburned vaporized diesel.

[@leslieadkins5774]

Is the white smoke water vapor?

[@erikg.2666]

No, it is unburned Diesel fuel. Also known as "cold smoke".

[@disorderlyconduct6011]

2 cans of happy juice and full fuel she would have fired first shot lol

[@MoonwolfeConsulting]

Or been blown to smithereens?

[@disorderlyconduct6011]

@@MoonwolfeConsulting 🤣 nah .. Not if you know how to do it

[@cpeast]

It has to warm up first, or piston and cylinder damage will occur. Another to get it going more quickly is to turn it over with the fuel pump turned off to preheat the cylinders with the compression.