Hot metal / bottle cars.

[CoalPorter]

Not growing up in steel making country, I have only seen photos of these and never really knew how they were/are used. Were these just used around steel mills, or did they go on a main line to somewhere else? How long would the steel stay melted? Are they still used anywhere? Why did they need them at all?

[bsoplinger]

Answering in reverse order:
How else would you move a heavy liquid at 2000°F? [should be 3000, missed typo]
Anywhere there is a need to move liquid molten steel, i.e., any operating plant
Not very long, the steel cools below melting point quickly although still extremely hot
Just at the mills to get steel from the furnace to somewhere to be processed like a rolling mill.
You also see many very short flats moving still red hot ingots to rolling mills or other processing.
Where I grew up at Bethlehem PA there was a mixture of standard and narrow gauge track each with specific destinations and uses.
There are a number of good books on the subject. The guy who runs Alkem Scale Models just mentioned a MR book available soon and a companion to the Freytag Steel Mill book. Link follows, if it doesn't work, Peach Creek Shops, steel mill models, books should get you to the page:
http://www.peachcreekshops.com/genprods.php3?UID=2010013101395772.231.155.126&val=Steel+Mill+Books,+Drawings+and+Photo+CDs

[Chris333]

In Youngstown, OH they would go out on the mainline all the time transferring hot metal to Warren, Hubbard, and Sharron. I just read a few weeks ago how one derailed in Youngstown and poured hot metal all over the road, must have been fun to clean up!

I don't know how long it would last in a bottle car, but as a kid I saw a few go by in the middle of the night and the glow lit up everything around.

[inkaneer]

Where I worked [J&L Pittsburgh Works] the bottle cars [we called them torpedo cars] were used to haul molten iron from the blast furnaces on one side of the Mon River over to the other side where the open hearths were located. At the open hearths various other ingredients were added to turn the iron into the type of steel desired.  Following the open hearth the molten steel was poured into a ladle which was used to pour the steel into ingot molds or slabs.  These castings were allowed to cool and harden to allow removal and reuse of the molds.  The castings were then stored until needed by whatever finishing mill where the end product was  produced.  Sometimes they were shipped to a finishing mill off site.  It was expensive to reheat the castings so the continuous casting process was developed whereby the steel would go from a molten state direct from the open hearth furnace [also electric or basic oxygen firnaces] directly to the finishing mill and finished product.

[AlkemScaleModels]

Not growing up in steel making country, I have only seen photos of these and never really knew how they were/are used. Were these just used around steel mills, or did they go on a main line to somewhere else? How long would the steel stay melted? Are they still used anywhere? Why did they need them at all?

I have a section in my Steel Mill book discussing the background, design and use of these and other types of specialized steel mill cars.  There is also a section on how to weather these cars in N and HO. Here is a sample photo.



The book can be preordered from my website and you get a signed copy. Or you can order via Amazon.com and save a few bucks. If you order from Amazon, get it through the railwire link and you help support the Railwire.


http://www.alkemscalemodels.net/ASMMain/TrackPlanBook.html

[CoalPorter]

Okay to lick ? Did someone dare to stick thier tounge to a hot car side ?  ???

[AlkemScaleModels]

Okay to lick ? Did someone dare to stick thier tounge to a hot car side ?   ???

We discussed whether to include this in the book. After consulting with several mill workers, we concluded it was a joke and not something rude or insidious.  I thought it was amusing when I took the prototype photo in 2003 at Rouge Steel in Dearborn, MI.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

A littl CR action: a GP15-1and some torpedos on an intra plant move.
http://thecrhs.org/Images/CR-1607-And-a-Hot-Metal-Bottle-Train-at-Dolton-Jct-1984

[AlkemScaleModels]

A littl CR action: a GP15-1and some torpedos on an intra plant move.
http://thecrhs.org/Images/CR-1607-And-a-Hot-Metal-Bottle-Train-at-Dolton-Jct-1984

Good stuff. Keep the images coming!

[Ed Kapuscinski]

You know we have over 15,000 of them. I keep tabs on this page, which has all the recent uploads, http://thecrhs.org/latestphotos.

[inkaneer]

Here's a short video shot in a Bethlehem steel plant.  Note the use of a spacer [which may be a slug].  Ususally spacer cars were used to spread the weight not mention to keep the engine crew from being toasted.

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Here is a video of slag dumping.  Note the use of the crane with a "thumper" to remove the cooled slag that  sticks to the side and bottom of the cars.  I worked this job in my steel mill days and it is the second closest thing to hell.  The closest is chipping runners at the blast furnace.   The video w=runs twice in the sequence.

http://www.youtube.com/user/steelmanjules

[AlkemScaleModels]

You know we have over 15,000 of them. I keep tabs on this page, which has all the recent uploads, http://thecrhs.org/latestphotos.

I was referring to the steel related images, not your whole collection, which is impressive.

[Mark5]

Dumb question, if the molten medal is at 2000F, what is the "container" made of that is holding it?

Mark

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Oh man, those SteelmanJules videos are excellent. See his layout?
http://steelmanjules.home.comcast.net/~steelmanjules/

[Erik W]

Dumb question, if the molten medal is at 2000F, what is the "container" made of that is holding it?

Mark

I was wondering if the interior of the "container" softens at all while the molten medal is in it.

Erik