Wrecked freight cars

[Anonymous]

When there is a train derailment of freight cars (Box Cars, Hoppers, Gondola's etc) in an accident, what critera is used to determine what cars are repaired or scrapped? I'm speaking in terms of the cars that look okay and are just laying on their sides vice the ones that you can tell are totally demolished. I would think most of these would be scrapped. The sudden shift in load and the impact of a sudden stop would do something to the frames.

[dehusman]

The dollar amount of the repairs vs. the value of the car.

The structural integrity of the car. Ripping up sheet metal is repairable, breaking and twisting the underframe is probably not.

Dave H.

[kenneo]

The cost of picking up the mess also is included. It often costs more than the car is worth simply to pick it up and not damage it more.

Generally, unless the car is simply on the ties, the pickup crew will simply roll the cars over and bulldoze them out of the way. The salvors then unload the cars that need to be (or can be), and the scrap dealers then cut up the entire mess.

Simply speaking, once damaged, always scraped. With exceptions, of course.

[Anonymous]

I saw this thread, and it has a SMILEY face attached to it...

odd...

[Anonymous]

Kevins,
Slip of the click of the mouse button. After I sent it, I realized it should not have been a smiley but a frown. Didn't think anyone would notice, but I guess folks do look at responses closely.

Larry

[Anonymous]

When I was reading this thread I was reminded of an accident that happened down at Roberts Bank.

They were switching at night, and the conductor had not properly aligned a switch, and an intermodal train that was being backed up ran right into another intermodal train at about 15MPH. It was a real mess with a few cars being totaled and the intermodal containers being ripped open.

What ended up happening to the cars?

Nothing yet! Believe it or not the cars and containers have been sitting on the edge of the tracks for about a year now, when I asked why they haven't been cleaned up yet, the yardmaster explained that they had to wait for insurance adjusters to come and check out the scene and see what all happened, who was at fault and who's gonna be getting compensation.

Funny how long some of these things can take. I can't even picture the yard without the broken up cars and containers anymore.

[Anonymous]

Here's a good example of not bothering to clean up things after a derailment.



The website I got this from (not a railfan site), gives the following explanation: "About two miles to the north of the Goat Canyon trestle lie these box cars. Apparently, according to Mike Redding, they are casualties of a derailment. After salvage crews unloaded the cargo, they pushed them down the mountainside and now lie about 50ft below the track. I'm sure that Southern Pacific isn't real proud of this picture." Of course, as we all know, the Espee is no more, so it isn't exactly bad publicity as the guy says, but nevertheless.

[Anonymous]

You would think they would offer what's left to salvage crews to do what they want with it at their cost. Probably not worth it to them to scrap it.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by taylorl

You would think they would offer what's left to salvage crews to do what they want with it at their cost. Probably not worth it to them to scrap it.

It looks to me (though I could very well be wrong) that, in the above picture, the cars are out in the middle of nowhere.

Chances are it would cost more money to go and get the railcars than what they are worth for scrap.

Just a thought.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by taylorl

Kevins,
Slip of the click of the mouse button. After I sent it, I realized it should not have been a smiley but a frown. Didn't think anyone would notice, but I guess folks do look at responses closely.

Larry

No problem.. I wasn't trying to be rude.. it was jsut an observation.. i'm very observant.. you can ask my Gf that one, I would notice her

nevermind, I decided I wont persue the idea.

[kenneo]

The SP put the Seagull in the ditch next to the freeway between Glendale and Rice Hill. The cats pulled the cars (about 30 of them) out into a farmers field, the SP bought the field, and there the cars sat for about 10 years because it would cost more to scrap the cars out than to do what they did. This was in the middle 1960's.

The recently approved corporate president making his first tour of the system saw these cars and nearly flattened the wheels of his special getting stopped. Well, those responsable certainly didn't get fired, but others did, and the cars "magically" disappeared into a junk yard.

To this day, you can still tell where all of this happened!

The photo above is "standard operating procedure" from the middle '50's through about 1980.

[edblysard]

Keep in mind that the only way to get the cars shown in the photo would be by rail, you couldnt get a flatbed trailer and truck in there, and you would need a pretty good sized crane to pick them up.
So the choice is to shut down your main line while a crane or two on flats pulled these cars back up to the main, lifted them onto heavy duty flat cars, secured them, so forth and so on, the entire time you couldnt run any paying train throught there.

Chop them up in place, same problem, you still have to get the pieces up and out by rail.

Now, which option makes you money, salvaging these cars, or leaving them where they are, writing them off as destroyed, and running your trains?

Sometimes, abondoning in place makes all the sense in the world.
Ed

[Anonymous]

Bah

makes a nice shelter for prarie animals or Hobos or Gypsies.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by kevinstheRRman

Bah

makes a nice shelter for prarie animals or Hobos or Gypsies.

Also a good way for ambitious railfans to get interesting souvenirs.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Sask_Tinplater

QUOTE: Originally posted by kevinstheRRman

Bah

makes a nice shelter for prarie animals or Hobos or Gypsies.

Also a good way for ambitious railfans to get interesting souvenirs.

The intermodal cars down at roberts bank were filled with paper for recycling.....it was all still there.

Doubt it would all be there if that lading was DVD players. [:p]

[Train Guy 3]

Just out of curiosity who actually owns those 2 SP boxcars?..... nature?

[Anonymous]

I would guess that UP technically owns them, as they got SPs junk when they merged.

[Anonymous]

It's all about the real cost, some high density mainlines are just to expensive to keep closed long enough to rerail/salvage cars. They could be brand new and be cut up by a local salvage company.

[Anonymous]

I found this picture of the internet completely by accident of these same two boxcars. It gives a pretty good idea of how complicated and risky it would have been to get them back on the tracks from where they were. Of course it did say on the other site that they were pushed off, so I'm not too sure what kind of a position they were in before they were pushed off.

[Anonymous]

Oh wow, that's quite a coincidence sask.

By seeing them in that position I can now clearly see why they won't bother going after them. You'd have to bring in cranes and whatnot just to salvage a couple of broken up boxcars?

As stated above, when everything is taken into account (price of getting in the cranes, closure of right-of-way, actual repairs to be made) it's just not worth going after them.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Sask_Tinplater

I found this picture of the internet completely by accident of these same two boxcars. It gives a pretty good idea of how complicated and risky it would have been to get them back on the tracks from where they were. Of course it did say on the other site that they were pushed off, so I'm not too sure what kind of a position they were in before they were pushed off.

What is my house doing on this site?

[edblysard]

QUOTE: [i]]

What is my house doing on this site?