QUOTE: Originally posted by mudchicken You want steel shavings (steel dandruff) everywhere? You tend to see flange lubricators clustered around the middle of a bunch of curves (usually 6 degrees [Radius 955.37 Ft or sharper] or greater), on grades and places where truck hunting becomes an issue. You place the paddles and the plunger on the unit where the grease can be carried both ways on the high side of the curve(s). The grease can is sitting under a square or round box and lid about 10 feet to the side and some of the new ones are solar powered to help thin (by heat) and electrically pump the grease. Santa Fe's GP-60's had on board lubricators (as an example).... The grease can be oil based or organic (the two do NOT mix, the organic stuff is dark red in color as opposed to black)
Originally posted by UPTRAIN Here are some around here: Bingo, that's the one!! Reply Edit Anonymous Member sinceApril 2003 305,205 posts Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 10:29 PM QUOTE: Originally posted by mudchicken It's called a flange lubricator and they have been around for 50 years. Cuts down friction on the gage corner of the ball of curve rail (prevents wear, longer rail life).....Rail grease is now also applied by certain hi-rail trucks and a few specially equipped locomotives. (can't print here the other nickname railroaders have for them) The mat helps minimize excess grease from getting into the ballast and fouling it. From the sounds of it, somebody does not know how to maintain the flange lubricator and it is set to pump out too much grease. The grease is to be placed on the side of the ball of the rail (not on top) and the flange of the railcar wheels helps spread and carry the grease along the curve for quite a distance. Portec or RailsCo? I didn't know enough to look for a brand name, the only visible parts were like some 1 1/2" rubber hose , a 1" threaded pipe Tee, and some hose fittings. .. Other than that, all that was visible was the gobs of grease, the aluminum shed the hoses ran into, and the (I'm guessing) pneumatic control lines. All the main componentry was either in the shed or under the grease gobbs. SO, I guess it is the weight of the train that triggers the greaser? You say it is done to extend the life of rail on curves,.. would this be more likely to be depoloyed if adjacent turns are especially tight radius? I'm just trying to rationalize why I've not seen these things near ALL curves, suspecting there must be something unique about the nearest curve 1/8 mile away. Reply Edit lonewoof Member sinceApril 2004 From: SC 318 posts Posted by lonewoof on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 9:49 PM There's one of these near Columbia, on the CSX main line. It's in the middle of a L O N G straight stretch of track; nearest curve is maybe 3/4 mile in one direction, something more than that going the other way. Seems like a funny location for it. Remember: In South Carolina, North is southeast of Due West... HIOAg /Bill Reply ChuckCobleigh Member sinceDecember 2001 From: Sunny (mostly) San Diego 1,914 posts Posted by ChuckCobleigh on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 8:51 PM QUOTE: Originally posted by jeaton I've heard they are a matter of revenge. Track gangs do all the work and engineers get all the glory. "OK, Big Shot! Let's see you handle this wheel slip! Not quite like Lee Marvin and Keith Carradine in Emperor of the North Pole, I'd guess. Reply jeaton Member sinceSeptember 2002 From: Rockton, IL 4,821 posts Posted by jeaton on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 8:09 PM I've heard they are a matter of revenge. Track gangs do all the work and engineers get all the glory. "OK, Big Shot! Let's see you handle this wheel slip! "We have met the enemy and he is us." Pogo Possum "We have met the anemone... and he is Russ." Bucky Katt "Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future." Niels Bohr, Nobel laureate in physics Reply UPTRAIN Member sinceJune 2002 From: Independence, MO 1,570 posts Posted by UPTRAIN on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 6:30 PM Here are some around here: http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/srchThumbs.aspx?srch=flange+greaser The ones at Poplar Bluff and Dexter, MO are mine. http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/srchThumbs.aspx?srch=flange+lubricator The one at Dexter is the same one taken by Mike Oakes, my newly railfanized friend. Pump Reply mudchicken Member sinceDecember 2001 From: Denver / La Junta 10,794 posts Posted by mudchicken on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 6:19 PM It's called a flange lubricator and they have been around for 50 years. Cuts down friction on the gage corner of the ball of curve rail (prevents wear, longer rail life).....Rail grease is now also applied by certain hi-rail trucks and a few specially equipped locomotives. (can't print here the other nickname railroaders have for them) The mat helps minimize excess grease from getting into the ballast and fouling it. From the sounds of it, somebody does not know how to maintain the flange lubricator and it is set to pump out too much grease. The grease is to be placed on the side of the ball of the rail (not on top) and the flange of the railcar wheels helps spread and carry the grease along the curve for quite a distance. Portec or RailsCo? Mudchicken Nothing is worth taking the risk of losing a life over. Come home tonight in the same condition that you left home this morning in. Safety begins with ME.... cinscocom-west Reply Anonymous Member sinceApril 2003 305,205 posts Wheel greaser? (WTHIT?) Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, June 8, 2005 5:44 PM OK, while out walking today I saw something I've never seen before. Located on one of Norfolk southern's two Chicago district mains thro9ugh town, and I'm a little surprised because it APPEARED to serve no particular purpose in terms of the surrounding infastructure. What I saw was a stretch of track maybe 40' long that had a fabric woven of heavy guage filament covering the ties between the 2 rails only, and located at approx midpoint within that stretch were two big globs of grease, on the inboard (flange ) side of the rails. The piles of residual grease were so large that full size pieces of ballast were suspended in the goo, just like marshmallows in jello. It was easy to see 2 heavy rubber hoses getting tee'd together with the single combined line running under one side rail to a doghouse sized metal utility cabinet trackside, that had two much smaller hoses comeing out one side and running under the same roadbed perhaps 10 feet away from the grease gobs Just guessing, but I'd guess the smaller lines were pneumatic "trigger" lines to activate the grease gobber? Typically what uses inspire a railroad to install one of these set ups? (In other words: what the heck was it? and why was it there?)[|)] Reply Edit Join our Community! Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account. Login » Register » Search the Community Newsletter Sign-Up By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our privacy policy More great sites from Kalmbach Media Terms Of Use | Privacy Policy | Copyright Policy
QUOTE: Originally posted by mudchicken It's called a flange lubricator and they have been around for 50 years. Cuts down friction on the gage corner of the ball of curve rail (prevents wear, longer rail life).....Rail grease is now also applied by certain hi-rail trucks and a few specially equipped locomotives. (can't print here the other nickname railroaders have for them) The mat helps minimize excess grease from getting into the ballast and fouling it. From the sounds of it, somebody does not know how to maintain the flange lubricator and it is set to pump out too much grease. The grease is to be placed on the side of the ball of the rail (not on top) and the flange of the railcar wheels helps spread and carry the grease along the curve for quite a distance. Portec or RailsCo?
Remember: In South Carolina, North is southeast of Due West... HIOAg /Bill
QUOTE: Originally posted by jeaton I've heard they are a matter of revenge. Track gangs do all the work and engineers get all the glory. "OK, Big Shot! Let's see you handle this wheel slip!
"We have met the enemy and he is us." Pogo Possum "We have met the anemone... and he is Russ." Bucky Katt "Prediction is very difficult, especially if it's about the future." Niels Bohr, Nobel laureate in physics
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