Steepest Mainline Rail Grades?
- Thread starter fuzzybear63
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I've ridden that and it is a hell of a lot steeper than 7% isn't it?
I just guesstimated on that.(yes i have my own dictionary):hehe: :hehe:
I thought the Scenic Railway in Katoomba Australia was the steepest incline in the World???
Facts and Figures
Tom
________
Volvo XC60 history
Facts and Figures
- Operates every 10 minutes, every day of the year.
- Maximum gradient: 52 degrees or 1 in 0.82 or 122%.
- Length of incline: 415 metres (1360 ft).
- Vertical descent: 178 metres (587 ft).
- Speed: 4 metres per second.
- Capacity (theoretical): 840 passengers per hour.
- Roof: metal mesh, with transparent cover in wet weather.
- Type: Variously known as an incline railway/railroad, funicular railway, cable railway or cable incline.
Tom
________
Volvo XC60 history
Last edited:
Harry_James_Potter
General Thrash
Not quite...
I think you'll find that with steam engines, the smaller the wheels, the more pulling power you can generate. gears don't really come into it.
The shays, if I remember right, are all-wheel drive. This is a distinct advantage over their mainline bretheren who will only have up to 10 (if it's a bog-standard kettle) or up to 20 (if it's a Super-Kettle) driving wheels. nearly all of the shay's weight is used to provide traction and the shays have quite small wheels into the bargain (poss a couple of feet in diameter).
The most reduction you're likely to have on a Shay is a 2 to 1 reduction ratio between the drive to the wheels and the axles themselves (done on the bevels on the ends of the axles) and even then, that ain't much of a reduction.
regards
Harry
FtDDM&S
The Ft. Dodge, Des Moines & Southern Railway had a 2.44% grade on the west side of the Des Moines River valley west of Boone that was a little over a mile long with 4°, 5°, 6° and 8° alternating curves.
They had a fleet of 10 GE 40 tonners which the would MU together to pull a train the 86 miles from Des Moines to Ft Dodge. Fact is that one night the engineer fell asleep at the throttle of three 40 tonners MUed together and had wheel slippage on the hill to the extent that by the time he woke up and stopped the slippage, the wheels had worn into the rail almost through the rail head. Jacks had to be brought in the next morning to lift the locos out of the grooves they had worn in the rails.
I am attempting to create the Ft Dodge Line in Trainz6.
Dap
The Ft. Dodge, Des Moines & Southern Railway had a 2.44% grade on the west side of the Des Moines River valley west of Boone that was a little over a mile long with 4°, 5°, 6° and 8° alternating curves.
They had a fleet of 10 GE 40 tonners which the would MU together to pull a train the 86 miles from Des Moines to Ft Dodge. Fact is that one night the engineer fell asleep at the throttle of three 40 tonners MUed together and had wheel slippage on the hill to the extent that by the time he woke up and stopped the slippage, the wheels had worn into the rail almost through the rail head. Jacks had to be brought in the next morning to lift the locos out of the grooves they had worn in the rails.
I am attempting to create the Ft Dodge Line in Trainz6.
Dap
...my (USD)$0.02 worth...
8) The coal train of mention through Saluda, North Carolina, came out of Andover, VA. It delivered at the Allen, or Kenneth power generation station, for Duke Energy.
The train was standard with 97 aluminum gondolas, for a rotary dumper. The cars lite wt, was 41,000lb. The gross weight of each car, was 263,000lb. Capy was 222,000.
Standard motive power was 3 SD40's on the head end, and two in the middle, behind the radio receiver car, because SD40(-2)'s, will train-line the air together, where all the air compressors would supply air to the train. SD45's were also used re-rated 3200hp by the Southern Railway System.
A special key was used, kind of like the key used for a cold drink machine, to lock the dynamic brakes away from the emergency air brake, so that the train's dynamics would not cut out in an emergency application.
The number-boards on the lead engine, were white, with black numbers, always signifing the presence of Loco-Troll, the radio control unit. No other units needed to be so equipped.
The Road Foreman of Engines, was always on-board the lead unit, and inspected the head end units for proper performance, and drove the train whilst inside the cab. He road the engines to Melrose, at the safety track switch, to a section shack, where he called the dispatcher and verified that (Carolina & Northwestern Train #270) was safely over the grade. He then went back to Asheville, NC in a company crew bus.
30 of the loaded cars had the air brake retainers placed in the Slow Release position before ascending the grade through Saluda, to aid air brake control whilst descending the grade. (Normal position is Direct Release).
8) The coal train of mention through Saluda, North Carolina, came out of Andover, VA. It delivered at the Allen, or Kenneth power generation station, for Duke Energy.
The train was standard with 97 aluminum gondolas, for a rotary dumper. The cars lite wt, was 41,000lb. The gross weight of each car, was 263,000lb. Capy was 222,000.
Standard motive power was 3 SD40's on the head end, and two in the middle, behind the radio receiver car, because SD40(-2)'s, will train-line the air together, where all the air compressors would supply air to the train. SD45's were also used re-rated 3200hp by the Southern Railway System.
A special key was used, kind of like the key used for a cold drink machine, to lock the dynamic brakes away from the emergency air brake, so that the train's dynamics would not cut out in an emergency application.
The number-boards on the lead engine, were white, with black numbers, always signifing the presence of Loco-Troll, the radio control unit. No other units needed to be so equipped.
The Road Foreman of Engines, was always on-board the lead unit, and inspected the head end units for proper performance, and drove the train whilst inside the cab. He road the engines to Melrose, at the safety track switch, to a section shack, where he called the dispatcher and verified that (Carolina & Northwestern Train #270) was safely over the grade. He then went back to Asheville, NC in a company crew bus.
30 of the loaded cars had the air brake retainers placed in the Slow Release position before ascending the grade through Saluda, to aid air brake control whilst descending the grade. (Normal position is Direct Release).
Yes, Saluda is the steepest grade in the united states.
At one point, if you were riding in the Southern's 1960s era cresent limited, and you stood in the back vestibule, you, even your shoes were higher than the 3chime airhorn on the lead F7a. Today, supposedly, Saluda is dormant, it signals dark, track weedy, But, in the future, if NS decides to alter the train arraingement, Saluda would come alive again.
That grade, is said that it would bring a GE AC6000CW, and/or a EMD SD70ACe with all the fancy shcmanci high adhesion trucks, and the powerful primemover, to its knees. Saluda, is that tough.
But, if your looking for the most deadly?
Look no further to the DRGW's Rollins Pass, which was the 30yr cutoff, and only way through the mountains at that time for the DRGW. It was commonly referred as 'The Hell Hill' It took at norm, 1 2-8-0 roadhog steamer, and five 2-6-6-0 mallets to shove 50 loads of coal and oil up that grade. yes, they had rotaries, but in subfreezing temps, and high winds, it drove the snow cover, into a solid form of snow/ice. They had to bring boxcars loaded with Nitroglyicernie to remove the solid snow drifts. That hill, was the WORST pass ever. No-body missed the hill-hell when the Moffat road opened in 1937.
my 2c
Cheers,
Sean
At one point, if you were riding in the Southern's 1960s era cresent limited, and you stood in the back vestibule, you, even your shoes were higher than the 3chime airhorn on the lead F7a. Today, supposedly, Saluda is dormant, it signals dark, track weedy, But, in the future, if NS decides to alter the train arraingement, Saluda would come alive again.
That grade, is said that it would bring a GE AC6000CW, and/or a EMD SD70ACe with all the fancy shcmanci high adhesion trucks, and the powerful primemover, to its knees. Saluda, is that tough.
But, if your looking for the most deadly?
Look no further to the DRGW's Rollins Pass, which was the 30yr cutoff, and only way through the mountains at that time for the DRGW. It was commonly referred as 'The Hell Hill' It took at norm, 1 2-8-0 roadhog steamer, and five 2-6-6-0 mallets to shove 50 loads of coal and oil up that grade. yes, they had rotaries, but in subfreezing temps, and high winds, it drove the snow cover, into a solid form of snow/ice. They had to bring boxcars loaded with Nitroglyicernie to remove the solid snow drifts. That hill, was the WORST pass ever. No-body missed the hill-hell when the Moffat road opened in 1937.
my 2c
Cheers,
Sean
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