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[quote user="gmpullman"] There is some good resource material on NYC pans here: <a href="https://nycshs.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/trackplans2.pdf">https://nycshs.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/trackplans2.pdf</a> I live not far from Pan #13 (chart on pg. 24) in Painesville, Ohio. Of course, the pans were long removed when I went to the site but the evidence of their existance lasted well into the late 1980s in that there were still some ties that had been chamfered for the pan still being used! The concrete foundations for the boiler room and pump house were still there, too. Steam was needed to keep the pans from freezing and to operate the pumps. I looked at the photo in Sweetland's book. That crossing must have been a cause of some consternation for the particular installation of that pan! NYC used a lunar white signal at the beginning of the pan and the engineer would use a hand signal to the fireman to indicate "Down Scoop" toward the end of the pan was a blue signal indicating the point to raise the scoop. When double heading, the second engine would scoop first and the first engine second <img style="display:inline;" alt="Huh?" /> sometimes not completing the fill but getting just enough of a drink to get to the next scheduled stop where water could be loaded. It took some real coordination between the crews to get that job done. The scoops would sometimes malfunction and if I recall correctly, a defective, dragging scoop caused at least one derailment. They were normally spring return and air actuated but sometimes ice or sticking air cylinders would cause a delay in raising the scoop, hence the ramps at the beginning and ends of the pans, including the protection rails across the grade crossing in the photo at Marshall, Mich. There was only 2" clearance on either side of the scoop to the pan and only 1-1/2" at the bottom. At 80 mile-an-hour, that's a pretty close tolerance. Top of pan was exactly 1" below top of rail.  Additional reading on water scoops is worth the effort as well: <a href="https://nycshs.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/waterscoops.pdf">https://nycshs.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/waterscoops.pdf</a>  About the only way I can think of to replicate pans in 3-rail O would be to use 2 narrow strips of clear Lexan, or acrylic, and paint the bottom silver or dark gray and the outer edge a rail-rust color and abut them to the center rail leaving them just below the head of the rail. Maybe they could be tacked in place with clear silicone caulk? Good Luck, Ed. <div style="clear:both;"> </div> [/quote] Great articles, thank you Ed.   The 3rail track pan thing has been baffling me for 10+ years, but its honestly been on the back burner for most of those years.  Transparent aluminum would be nice. The rulebook I found online has Lunar White and Blue for the track pan signals. <a href="http://www.railroadsignals.us/rulebooks/nyc37/nycsignals10.jpg">http://www.railroadsignals.us/rulebooks/nyc37/nycsignals10.jpg</a>
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