You know those funny dimpled things on vintage rolling stock? Poling a car on the NYC
poling a car - YouTube
Probably only slightly less exhillerating than jumping from car to car on the roofwalks tieing down brakes in a snowstorm on Donner Pass.
Same me, different spelling!
pennytrainsProbably only slightly less exhillerating than jumping from car to car on the roofwalks tieing down brakes in a snowstorm on Donner Pass.
While moving 20 MPH and trying to dodge snow sheds, tunnels and bridges.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Ah, the good old days! Wooden poles and iron men!
Yep. Back when the skill of a railroad man was judged by how many fingers he had left.
pennytrains Yep. Back when the skill of a railroad man was judged by how many fingers he had left.
Reminds me of 'The Switchtender'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6k0ZyIFkhQ
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
That is a mighty-fine-looking 10-wheeler.
https://www.railarchive.net/nyccollection/nyc1235_wk.htm
https://www.railarchive.net/nyccollection/nyc1200s_wdv.htm
Thank You.
SD70Dude pennytrains Yep. Back when the skill of a railroad man was judged by how many fingers he had left. Reminds me of 'The Switchtender'. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6k0ZyIFkhQ
I think it was in an American Experience episode on the Transcontinental Railroad that there was an interview with a man who was an engineer in the very early 20th century who talked about men he knew who had fingers and toes "dubbed off". Among other gruesome things.
pennytrainsYep. Back when the skill of a railroad man was judged by how many fingers he had left.
Much more damage than fingers would ensue from the genuinely awful hazards...
SD70Dude Reminds me of 'The Switchtender'. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6k0ZyIFkhQ
Cut straight to the chase at 1:54 if you don't want corny Frank Zappa references.
Overmod ....Bishop Coupling Knife.
....Bishop Coupling Knife.
I wonder how many of those are still around today? And do any of the railroads that still use older coupling systems use them?
They are really, really easy to make.
I don't know of any railroad that still uses the 'link-in-a-box' system that American railroads did. These had receivers at the two drawheads, with the link pinned into one with a draw pin. The other end of the link had to be lifted slightly to get it into the receiver on the other one, with the two draw heads in buff before the 'second pin' was dropped in.
The parts of fingers got lost if you were lifting the link to engage it when something caused the drawheads to bang together with the link aligned by hand.
Most of the existing systems use buffers for the buff, and some kind of chain with screw tightening that is accessed between the cars -- tedious, but easily taken slow and without risk of sudden pinching if slack runs out. These would be difficult to work with a Bishop's knife because you'd have to lift and align a floppy chain via a notch in a vertical piece of metal... not an easy or pleasant prospect, and only workable if you're right up against the side of one of the buffers or reaching over it. With the American system, the notch in the blade self-centered under the side of the link as you lifted, and the knife could be banged between drawheads and then levered down after the pin was dropped to make the joint. This is an easy two-handed operation with link and pin as opposed to choosing the right link, draping it over a hook, and winding up on a screw...
There was a video of a European auto train switcher that had an automatic coupler on a switcher to move cars about. The switcher had a mechanism colored yellow that coupled and uncoupled. Car knockers would still need to couple / uncouple 2 regular cars.
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