What is this, what does it do?

[Miningman]

Is Dave right? Makes perfect sense. In that kind of service it does not matter much what it looks like or match any consist. 

[Overmod]

daveklepper

For when trains were pulled without the steam locomotive attached?

Were trains ever pulled through the tunnel with the locomotive attached, but the fire banked down (to where it might not produce sufficient steam for full train heating?)

And does it have to be 'either/or' with respect to switch heating at those times the car wouldn't be in passenger service?  I can't see the sense in having hostling controls on an open-platform car used for passenger-train heat - someone enlighten me.

I do think the idea of Detroit service is reasonable.  Wasn't the use of R-motors in Detroit service comparatively late, which would make the construction of heater cars for that service, if sequentially numbered in an H-series, have a number as high as 24?

Otherwise this raises the question for NYC specialists, what were cars H-9 through H-23?  No pictures on the Web I can find yet.  There might be some highly interesting comments there.

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

Based on photos in "When the Steam Roads Electrified", trains were pulled through the Detroit River Tunnel without the steam locomotives.

As an aside, R2's looked pretty good with pantographs and in orange paint.

[Miningman]

Something to read until H-24 is solved. Might give some clues.

....something until H-24 mystery is solved  https://books.google.com/books?id=vp8lAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA821

 

 

[SD70Dude]

Hmmm, now where could you have gotten a gem like that from...

[Miningman]

HAL 9000 on board the Discovery deep below in a secret location in Long Island. 

[wjstix]

Canada Southern was it's own division - technically the Canadian Southern division of the Michigan Central, which was part of the New York Central System. So Windsor / Detroit would be a division point, which would normally in steam days mean a crew/locomotive change anyway. CS engine takes train to Windsor, electric motor takes it under the river to Detroit, MC engine takes the train on towards Chicago.

Since the eastern electric lines had plenty of passenger motors (with steam generators), using heater cars to heat the cars between Windsor and Detroit would make sense, since those were basically freight / switcher electrics (i.e. no steam generator IIRC).

[Firelock76]

SD70Dude

Hmmm, now where could you have gotten a gem like that from...

 

Looks like the 'Wheel is still out there, and still turning!  Hee, hee, hee!

God bless 'im!

[Miningman]

You bet Firelock... TGI....W!

As Overmod has stated H-24 is much later in the numbering sequence so it would be perhaps safe to assume it's a younger unit than H1-H8 in terms of the way it was used. 

We will get to the bottom of this. We figured out Bowie Racetrack and that weird device by the Lackawanna stack. ( maybe it was Lehigh Valley)

[Overmod]

Miningman

You bet Firelock... TGI....W!

Well, if Wednesday is Sundae at Carvel, why can't it be Wansday at Kalmbach?

 

Hmmm ... I see a tradition coming on.  A bit like String Lining but for matters Mc.

[Miningman]

Found the perfect companion for the New York Central whatzzit #H-24

Anybody know what this is?

[M636C]

Miningman

Found the perfect companion for the New York Central whatzzit #H-24

Anybody know what this is?

 

It looks like a companion vehicle for a small crane or similar item which has a projecting jib (or conveyor oe whatever).

Peter

[SD70Dude]

My guess would be transfer caboose, most likely homebuilt. 

Here's another one of their oddities:

http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=30567

[Overmod]

SD70Dude

Here's another one of their oddities:

This perhaps a little easier to 'explicate' -- if Essex Terminal, in the late Fifties, offered the same outsourced maintenance-of-way services they do now, this looks an awful lot like a dorm car.  That it is only a couple of numbers away from the half-caboose does get me thinking the latter is more special-duty than a shoving platform.

I have yet another interesting piece of Essex Terminal equipment. 

[MidlandMike]

SD70Dude

My guess would be transfer caboose, most likely homebuilt. 

Here's another one of their oddities:

http://www.railpictures.ca/?attachment_id=30567

 

The link shows old wood caboose #55.  It says that it was replaced by a new #55 which was a steel caboose of PC/PRR origin.  Notice that the cut down steel caboose in MiningMan's photo is #55.  The hand rails on the cut down portion look like that of a transfer caboose.  I would guess they would not have lasted long in boom car service.