Old and Vintage Equipment in MOW Service

[Anonymous]

Railroads' MOW euipment is always interesting and there's always something unique about every work train. Many times the railroads have rolling stock in MOW use that would otherwise be retired. I suppose this would have to do with age limits for interchange service and that for doing their own work, they wouldn't have the same requirements that they do for hauling freight for a customer.

Anyway, I thought I'd start this topic to see what others have seen for vintage equipment that is still lingering on after many years in MOW use.

As for me, I have a few examples. Just this Saturday, I saw a continuous welded rail train in Regina. At the end of it were two old boxcars. One still carried a large, clearly-visible Milwaukee Road logo on the side. It wasn't in the best of shape, though, as a door was completely missing on one side. The other boxcar was also a rarity. It was a CP car that still had "Canadian Pacific" written in script lettering on the side.

About 10 years ago, CP was doing some work in town and there were a number of boxcars left on the sidings. There were a couple that were still brown with CP script letting as well as CP's "Spans The World" sheild.

Also on CP work trains, I have seen old RPO cars from the series of streamlined passenger cars built by CP's Angus shops in the late 1940's.

While not exactly in the same age category as these other cars, Pandrol-Jackson trains use ex-Toronto GO fluted stainless-steel commuter cars that were retired in favour of the bi-level cars they currently use. These cars obviously have been converted with quarters for crews.

So, what other examples can others add to the list?

[dknelson]

It is not all that many years ago -- well OK close to 20 now that i think of it -- that the Soo Line still used wooden passenger cars in MOW service. There was some museum interest but without funds the Soo ended up burning them for scrap. When I saw them in Waukesha WI the wood passenger cars were coupled to an old steam locomotive tender.
When I was a lad, and now we are talking 1960s, the C&NW used wood cabooses for MOW service. The Soo Line was using wood cabooses for mainline service into the 1980s.
Even today the UP uses some very old flat cars in MOW -- but since flat cars look like flat cars you basically have to see the build date to realize how old they are
Dave Nelson

[mustanggt]

The MBTA in Boston uses ancient snow plows on it's commuter lines.They also own a bunch of old GP9's for MOW train use. And they even have some old Budd RDCs which are either abandoned, or turned into MOW crew cars, but I doubt it.

[espeefoamer]

In 1980,in Vancouver WA.I saw two wood passenger cars in MOW service[8D].

[Dough]

MoW is one of the things that I really like to photograph because of all the old cars. On NS I have seen old Southern and NW. On CSX I've seen Chessie, B&O, C&O, Seaboard, and several FGE. The FGE interest me because I have seen at least three FGE tool cars around the Atlanta area. Someone mentioned that they may have better weather seals, but other than that I don't know why they are som popular.

[tatans]

Saw an old coal tender used as a water tank behind a rail grinding train recently, actually looked pretty good. Remember seeing, a few years back, 3 or 4 tenders on work trains (B&B) leaving Moose Jaw, used as water carriers ----loved their accomodation : (old maroon passenger cars or sleepers)

[Anonymous]

[8D] IC used 2 cabooses & a bunch of old GM&O
boxcars & a few WLO waterloo miss boxcars flatcars & some other stuff like cranes & jordan spreaders when they did some work in new orleans back in 1994 KCS still has a jordan spreader in leesburg tx on a wye jct their goin to make a road for MOW trucks for bad order cars the track go to a old sulfur plant that shut down back in the 80's there is a big trestle they are building the road past it to keep from building a new bridge the wye comes into 1 track on the south side of the bridge there building the road on the north side they set out a lot of there 2 car BI-TRI level autoracks there
and some time gravel trains spend the night to keep the main open ive even seen BNSF double stacks pull or back in on the 7.5 mile long wye to let others pass the track is probaly longer than 7.5 but thats all we can see from the exsisting road thats about 2 blocks from the track[8D]

[Randy Stahl]

We have some old troop sleepers , some tool cars with commonwealth trucks , and a bunch of 40' box cars.