I understand that steam wreckers were kept steamed up at all times. Yet I have never seen a photo of one in the yard, or on the job with any sign of a coal supply. Were there tenders for wreckers?
Yes there were tenders assigned to both the wreakers and rotory plows A lot of times these tenders were from older scrapped engines., I am not to sure that they were kept hot all the time though. I have seen photos and videos of the Southern Pacific in their mountain districts keeping the rotory plows hot and steaming when the threat of heavy snow was around I could be wrong just a thought Larry
My vague memories include seeing former locomotive tenders, coal hoppers, and gons used for coaling. I know I have a slide someplace of an EL (Erie) steam wrecker in Campville, NY back in the 70's...a last hurrah for the beast. I don't have a way of posting the pic though...
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My understanding was that steam wrerckers were kept hot by being connected to the roundhouse steam supply. The fire was not lit till the call came in, or may be till they reached the site.
Phil
Timber Head Eastern Railroad "THE Railroad Through the Sierras"
THE.RR My understanding was that steam wrerckers were kept hot by being connected to the roundhouse steam supply. The fire was not lit till the call came in, or may be till they reached the site. Phil
I am sure there are as many scenerios as there were railroads, steam wreck cranes, terminals, and master mechanics. That's what makes modeling fun: whatever you do it was (is) probably true someplace sometime.
In one of Lloyd Arkinstall's articles about life on the PRR in New Jersey, he describes the wrecker at Waverly Yard. A banked fire was maintained on the wrecker which required only periodic tending but allowed it to raise steam quickly when needed.
Cnwfan51
The snow rotory snow throwers had to be kept hot and turning. If not kept rotating the melted snow would freeze and freeze the rotor. It then had to be taken into a heated building and take a long time to thaw.
spikejones52002 Cnwfan51 The snow rotory snow throwers had to be kept hot and turning. If not kept rotating the melted snow would freeze and freeze the rotor. It then had to be taken into a heated building and take a long time to thaw.
SP, after converting their fleet to diesel, equipped the blade housing and wings with steam jets to reduce these effects, the power slug units ( converted F7 B-units) retained their orginal steam generators for this very reason and to operate the steam whistle!
Dave
Well how about that I didnt know that I knew the rotorys were kept hot but didnt know about having to keep them turning Larry
West Coast S. I was thinking about diesel powered rotaries. I really wounder about the use of steam jets you mentioned. I attempted to use a steam generator (clean everything as advertised on TV) to clean ice & snow out of my gutters, not effective at all. I bet they used the steam to keep snow and ice build up in places but not just to melt it.
My main concern is that steam condenses just like the melted show. The rotor would still freeze up.
Using steam to keep it warm while sitting idle. Would be very costly compaired to turning it slowly all the time.
Just like large ship and submarines. The props are kept turning all the time (very slowly). If not the drive shaft would sag and behave to be replaced.
I never gave it a thought about the rotarys still using whistles instead of horns. Whistles can be heard through all noise and 360deg. horns are very directional.
WE had a in depth discussion about firing up steam operated equipment. The changes in temperature had very adverse effects. So keeping a piece of equipment hooked up to house steam would be a very good idea.
II am sure that as soon as the call came in. They lite the fire and had it hot before disconnecting from house steam.
To the contrary, SP was quite sucessfull at preventing the blades from freezing in conjunction with frequent inspection stops and the precise location of the jets, possibly SP improved the steam generator equiptment in the converted F7B, but personal were also required to frequently employ the use of brooms, shovels and breaker bars to remove packed snow and ice buildup from the wheel, housing and extension wings. The SP rotories retained their as built peanut whistle, actually a rather pleasing tone. An aside: I suspect one aquired a multi-chime whistle when rebuilt based on recordings made in the seventies, this rotory had a more haunting tone with more range then others i've heard.
West Coast S.
You have more fact than I do. I read and listen an learn. I am very sure that the railroads did a lot of improvements over years of use.
It is also feasable that the plows had multi whistles and/or horns, one for signaling and one for warning.
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