So, lots of train photography threads, lots of pictures and sightings, but what about post about some real life experiences. Be it from actual railroaders around here, or something you saw while railfanning.
So, I posted, I start.
I think it was last July, were were still running 9 car trains up at the loop. I was conductor that day, and I had been warned that the previous day they were having trouble with one of the Drop bottom gons, the 705. The brake beam was riding up on the wheels and in the morning, we replaced the brake shoes and the guides on the beam. So we figured that was it, just a broken guide. Well, we were wrong.
2nd trip down the hill, I was standing on the the 1157 watching the 705 carefully. I made another round on the train, and on the backstretch I happened to look down at the brake beam on 705 that was giving us trouble, and noticed the entire beam was riding on top of the wheel, and jammed against the car frame. sparks were flying because the guide was rubbing on the wheel. I got on the radio and asked for a nice, easy stop. Hopped off were were just starting our way around High Fill when this happened, the steepest part of the line, and down hill, we only use the little 12 and 1203 goes down the hill first and waits.
Well, I called for 12 to release the brakes, which they did, and we set a few hand brakes further up the train to hold it on the hill. So after that, I started kicking the beam, Gary, the engineer decided to try and push the train up the hill, something normally not even attempted with a little 41 ton engine that can only handle 5 cars on its own, to push a 9 car train up the hill. Well, needless to say, it did nothing but spin the wheels.
So we ended up running the train down the hill a ways, to get more room to work, the the fireman Tim brought some tools from the engine, and, after spending another 10 minutes kicking and hammering away at the beam. All this time, people are watching, taking pictures, telling their kids were fixing the train.
So, then we finally started got on the ground, and began taking the brake beam apart from the rigging to free it from the frame of the car, then we beat it till it fell loose. So then we got to put the brake rigging back together on the side of high fill, took us about 15 more minutes to do all this work. Then we cut out the brakes from that car, drained the air till they released, and continued out the day. Spent about 45 minutes on the side of High fill fixing that thing.
At the end of the day, we parked it in the shop for repair.....guess who was on shop duty! We ended up stealing parts from the 1089 which is out of service permantly on the morning star siding and used the longer hangers from that car, so that the brake beam was lower on the wheel. Turns out the old hangers were too short, so the brake beam was sitting above the center of the wheel, so when the brakes applied, it ended up riding up into the frame. The new hangers hold it where it should be, below the center of the wheel, so it cups the wheel and pulls it upward, but the beam itself cannot ride up any higher and pulls the wheel up instead.
Needless to say, 705 has never been a problem since, we seem to have solved the problem.
So thats my story, anyone else?
So, I posted, I start.
I think it was last July, were were still running 9 car trains up at the loop. I was conductor that day, and I had been warned that the previous day they were having trouble with one of the Drop bottom gons, the 705. The brake beam was riding up on the wheels and in the morning, we replaced the brake shoes and the guides on the beam. So we figured that was it, just a broken guide. Well, we were wrong.
2nd trip down the hill, I was standing on the the 1157 watching the 705 carefully. I made another round on the train, and on the backstretch I happened to look down at the brake beam on 705 that was giving us trouble, and noticed the entire beam was riding on top of the wheel, and jammed against the car frame. sparks were flying because the guide was rubbing on the wheel. I got on the radio and asked for a nice, easy stop. Hopped off were were just starting our way around High Fill when this happened, the steepest part of the line, and down hill, we only use the little 12 and 1203 goes down the hill first and waits.
Well, I called for 12 to release the brakes, which they did, and we set a few hand brakes further up the train to hold it on the hill. So after that, I started kicking the beam, Gary, the engineer decided to try and push the train up the hill, something normally not even attempted with a little 41 ton engine that can only handle 5 cars on its own, to push a 9 car train up the hill. Well, needless to say, it did nothing but spin the wheels.
So we ended up running the train down the hill a ways, to get more room to work, the the fireman Tim brought some tools from the engine, and, after spending another 10 minutes kicking and hammering away at the beam. All this time, people are watching, taking pictures, telling their kids were fixing the train.
So, then we finally started got on the ground, and began taking the brake beam apart from the rigging to free it from the frame of the car, then we beat it till it fell loose. So then we got to put the brake rigging back together on the side of high fill, took us about 15 more minutes to do all this work. Then we cut out the brakes from that car, drained the air till they released, and continued out the day. Spent about 45 minutes on the side of High fill fixing that thing.
At the end of the day, we parked it in the shop for repair.....guess who was on shop duty! We ended up stealing parts from the 1089 which is out of service permantly on the morning star siding and used the longer hangers from that car, so that the brake beam was lower on the wheel. Turns out the old hangers were too short, so the brake beam was sitting above the center of the wheel, so when the brakes applied, it ended up riding up into the frame. The new hangers hold it where it should be, below the center of the wheel, so it cups the wheel and pulls it upward, but the beam itself cannot ride up any higher and pulls the wheel up instead.
Needless to say, 705 has never been a problem since, we seem to have solved the problem.
So thats my story, anyone else?
