From a Facebook group called "Open Autorack Memories". What is the strangest thing you've ever seen in one of these cars?
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
Very nice... should have put it on Classic!
Coming up!
Strangest one(s) I saw:
I worked at Atlanta Yard for a while (GA and A&WP). Cuts from connecting railroads came through what's know as "Underground Atlanta." Trains go under a whole bunch of viaducts. Someone messed up and failed to note clearances; these cars were not supposed to be routed this way.
When they reached us, the tops were shaved off of all the automobiles on the top deck. Tendrils of metal were hanging everywhere. The auto racks (I think there were four) were well back in the cut. I don't think the crew in the engine (SOU or L&N, I can't remember) even realized what had happened until they got over to our yard and one of our yard crews saw the mess and alerted the transfer crew.
My recollection is that they had to close off some Atlanta streets while viaduct supports were inspected.
Heck of a sight, that was. I was in the yard office doing clerk work, and the yardmaster said, "Look at this!" As I was walking to the window, he said, "Someone's getting fired today."
Lithonia OperatorStrangest one(s) I saw: I worked at Atlanta Yard for a while (GA and A&WP). Cuts from connecting railroads came through what's know as "Underground Atlanta." Trains go under a whole bunch of viaducts. Someone messed up and failed to note clearances; these cars were not supposed to be routed this way. When they reached us, the tops were shaved off of all the automobiles on the top deck. Tendrils of metal were hanging everywhere. The auto racks (I think there were four) were well back in the cut. I don't think the crew in the engine (SOU or L&N, I can't remember) even realized what had happened until they got over to our yard and one of our yard crews saw the mess and alerted the transfer crew. My recollection is that they had to close off some Atlanta streets while viaduct supports were inspected. Heck of a sight, that was. I was in the yard office doing clerk work, and the yardmaster said, "Look at this!" As I was walking to the window, he said, "Someone's getting fired today."
While the story isn't about auto racks - it is about auto frames.
AO Smith in Milwaukee manufactured car frames for various GM assembly plants, among them Baltimore, Wilmington and Doraville, GA (Atlanta). The frames from AO Smith would arrive in Willard to be switched into the appropriate blocks for their destinations. The cars to Baltimore & Wilmington were restricted to a height of 17 feet 3 inches. The cars going to Doraville could be higher.
As can be anticipated - on occasion - a Doraville load of frames would be mis-switched into the Baltimore/Wilmington train - with the expected results when the car passed through the point of restriction - Ostend Street, Overhead bridge just prior to the Howard Street Tunnel in Baltimore. In one case I investigated, the shpper transposed similar car numbers on their Bills of Lading thus sending a Doraville car to Baltimore and a Baltimore car to Doraville - needless to say, the car that actually got to Doraville was in perfect condition, the one that got 'decapitated' in Baltimore - not so much.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
BaltACDAs can be anticipated - on occasion - a Doraville load of frames would be mis-switched into the Baltimore/Wilmington train - with the expected results when the car passed through the point of restriction - Ostend Street, Overhead bridge just prior to the Howard Street Tunnel in Baltimore.
This story gets sweeter when you know the frames were shipped 'standing up on end' at an angle, not stacked vertically in 'piles'. So every one of them would be lunched in one of these incidents.
We had some happy truck driver from North Carolina come onto Manhattan with a long trailer load of special Sheetrock panels much taller than conventional panels. Whoever it was routed him (assuming it wasn't some failure of direction) down the East River Drive, which has a tunnel below 96th St. going under Carl Schurz Park with a low clearance marking that doesn't reflect the visible size of the inlet portal (the road rises to clear the other side lanes being Siamesed under at the south end). The driver, we think wanting to get a wheel on the delivery before rush hour (or being detected operating a truck where it shouldn't have been) began to encounter the lowering roof at some fairly extreme speed. By the time the audible crunching occurred, momentum transfer was well under way ... breaking every single sheet of plasterboard on the trailer, and bending it back to form a highly effective pawl against recovery by towing back the way he had come.
When my father and I passed this (at about 9:30 having left New Jersey, nine miles away, around 5:45), we were treated to the sight of one group of people cutting away the trailer structure, and another breaking up all the panels with hammers. Only when most of them were reduced below 'clearance' height would the truck have been moved.
Did they try letting some air out of the tires before doing all that hard work?
SD70DudeDid they try letting some air out of the tires before doing all that hard work?
On the trailer bogie the ones on the side I could see were all flattened, and I believe the rims were visibly bent, when I got there. Leaving several angled feet of 'pawl' at the top keeping the thing locked.
Ouch, he really hit it hard then! Must have been one heckuva jolt in the cab!
SD70DudeMust have been one heckuva jolt in the cab!
My guess is that the actual deceleration might not have been 'so bad', certainly comparable to a full brake application in a good car. The force would have been applied progressively as the roof and pavement converged, and not suddenly; breakage of the panels prevented a prompt lock of the load against the roof.
I do not remember whether the tractor rear had suffered damage; it stands to reason that the trailer nose saw 'downforce' first, which I'd think would tend to hold the nose against the fifth wheel and compress the tractor suspension and tires. I confess I was much more struck by the damage to the load!
Overmod BaltACD As can be anticipated - on occasion - a Doraville load of frames would be mis-switched into the Baltimore/Wilmington train - with the expected results when the car passed through the point of restriction - Ostend Street, Overhead bridge just prior to the Howard Street Tunnel in Baltimore. This story gets sweeter when you know the frames were shipped 'standing up on end' at an angle, not stacked vertically in 'piles'. So every one of them would be lunched in one of these incidents.
BaltACD As can be anticipated - on occasion - a Doraville load of frames would be mis-switched into the Baltimore/Wilmington train - with the expected results when the car passed through the point of restriction - Ostend Street, Overhead bridge just prior to the Howard Street Tunnel in Baltimore.
The frames were stacked - not shipped vertical. They were normally shipped on a specially equipped TTX flat car and would have 3 or 4 stacks per car depending upon the length of the frames that could be accomidated on the standard 89 foot TTX flat. The floor level of a TTX flat car is much higher than a 'Low-Boy' trailer or highway flatbed trailer. My understanding is that 'normal' clearance on the highways is 13 foot 6 inches as that will clear the 'normal' 13 foot 6 inch high box trailer.
Well aware that on the highways, there are many 'oversize' loads that require special authorization to move, and many 'fly by night' operations that attempt to move oversize loads without proper authorization.
In Chambersburg, Pa, Queen Street had low clearance under the ex PRR triple track stone viaduct that runs from Hagerstown, Md to Harrisburg, PA. There were big signs up telling drivers of the low clearance, but manu either shaved the top off of the trailers or got stuck when the hit the viaduct. Chambersburg finally lowered Queen Street so there is adaquete clearance for the trucks.
There was a situation some years back where an entrepreneur bought an IC caboose to serve as a clubhouse at his miniature golf establishment. He attempted to move the caboose over public roads without obtaining the necessary permits. At any rate, the move was spotted by local police and the fines were rather steep, to put it mildly.
How about irrigation tile?
http://canadianfreightcargallery.ca/cgi-bin/image.pl?i=cp550050&o=cprail
Chris van der Heide
My Algoma Central Railway Modeling Blog
deleted
On an open bilevel autorack, would it not be possible to haul pretty much double the lightweight load as you could on a normal flatcar?
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I would imagine large plastic pipe/tubing, and styrofoam sheets would be possible loads.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
SeeYou190On an open bilevel autorack, would it not be possible to haul pretty much double the lightweight load as you could on a normal flatcar?
That's an interesting thought. You have a couple of issues, though:
On a flatcar, it's easy to load and unload from the side (e.g. with a fork) especially if you have a platform. With the auto rack access to anything long, large, or 'at the wrong place' would need to go out the ends.
You still face the issues of 'cube out before tare out' on the two decks; you now have a range, but it may not be 'enough' to justify the change. These cars would probably be moving only as 'returns', as I can't think of a light commodity that would have a higher tariff than moving automobiles.
There is also the issue of sufficient securement and load binding to keep some types of lightweight load in place, although I don't see much if any actual difficulty there.
Something I would NOT want in the '70s is to find the upper deck still loaded with most of the stuff taken off the bottom. Harmonic rock would be No Fun At All.
SeeYou190On an open bilevel autorack, would it not be possible to haul pretty much double the lightweight load as you could on a normal flatcar? I would imagine large plastic pipe/tubing, and styrofoam sheets would be possible loads. -Kevin
YEOW! Styrofoam sheets would be ripped to pieces being shipped on an open or even semi-open car. It is way too flexible. Any wind on it would shred it. I have seen people (Wasn't me!) try to take large sheets home in a trailer and all they did was leave "packing peanuts" on the streets from the home center parking lot to about 1/2 the way home.
Semper Vaporo
Pkgs.
Semper Vaporo SeeYou190 On an open bilevel autorack, would it not be possible to haul pretty much double the lightweight load as you could on a normal flatcar? I would imagine large plastic pipe/tubing, and styrofoam sheets would be possible loads. -Kevin YEOW! Styrofoam sheets would be ripped to pieces being shipped on an open or even semi-open car. It is way too flexible. Any wind on it would shred it. I have seen people (Wasn't me!) try to take large sheets home in a trailer and all they did was leave "packing peanuts" on the streets from the home center parking lot to about 1/2 the way home.
SeeYou190 On an open bilevel autorack, would it not be possible to haul pretty much double the lightweight load as you could on a normal flatcar? I would imagine large plastic pipe/tubing, and styrofoam sheets would be possible loads. -Kevin
Large sheets are routinely shipped - of course they have heavy tarps enclosing the styrofoam bundles.
BaltACD Large sheets are routinely shipped - of course they have heavy tarps enclosing the styrofoam bundles.
Yeah, a wrapped bundle is significantly more solid than a single sheet just tied down across the middle with a bungee cord.
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