Start Foaming..Lets See the STEAM!!!

[RWCJr]

The flying switch was called a "drop" on the Slaton Division of the Santa Fe. Although the moved wasn't approved, there were many trips made east out of Lubbock with a car for the Coor's facing point spur about halfway between Lubbock and Slaton. The crew had a choice, they could run around the car at the Burris sidetrack, and shove it several miles (with a brakeman hanging on the side of the car to watch the track and crossings) or make a drop.
Yes, it was stub spur, and at least once during my time with John Santa Fe, one of the crews did lose a car of the end of the spur and right through the middle of a parked Coors semi-trailer. And NO it wasn't my crew. 

[superturbine]

DOA!

[UP4-8-8-4]

     Darn Jason, after reading Bobs reply, I can't believe you forgot a caboose on the back of that helper Challenger ------------------------------------------ 
Good eye Bob !

     Heres a Key brass AC-12, pulls a "LOT" of cars like a team of mules with no stalls or wheel slippage, even up all my 2% grades  !

BUT, Intermountains AC-12's makes it look "CHEAP" in paint & detail.
Keep it up Intermountain.

     Heres a Hallmark brass AT&SF 4-8-4, this one runs as smooth as silk with great pulling power.
I have heard of some that dosn't run very good.





Ernie

[superturbine]

Union Pacific Notice to all Engineers, Conductors and Firemen.
It has come to the management’s attention that multiple crews have taken up the practice while in helper service of “pushing the caboose” in order to avoid the task of dropping (or kicking) the caboose.  You are hereby notified that any crews pushing a train with caboose in front will be terminated.   In addition, any crews caught in the task of cleaning the snow off of the locomotives will be disciplined.

Jason Smith
Train Master Cheyenne Division


P.S. Thanks to those who have come forward to address the observed problems!

[Cajonpassfan]

Jason, that's just too funny

But it wouldn't be if you had to endure a caboose ride with big articulated pushing and shoving all she's got on your tail. Or then again, maybe it would be a thrill

On Cajon in steam days, Santa Fe allowed a single pusher behing steel cabooses, but most freights had two pushers and the "way car" rode behind. (Of course, they had no "maleys" in the late steam era). At Summit, the pushers would shove the caboose backwards up into a trailing point spur and its brakes would be set, the pushers would get out of the way, and the caboose would then roll back on the main under gravity. If it didn't roll far enough to couple, the pushers were now in position to shove it forward onto its train. Still trying to figure out how to replicate that cool maneuver; perhaps using a small RPM-controlled cooling fan with air streams directed from under the layout to help the caboose roll into position?  Experimentation required
(for those following the "slinky" discussion, another reason I don't like to put "brakes" on my cabooses...)
Keep the pics coming, great fun!
Otto K.

[superchief]

Otto, I like the idea of trying to add this operation to your layout, Andy (MR Mag) was going to use a tortise s/m to come up between the rail and "hold" the axle of the caboose as a "brake" then release after the helpers are out of the way. Just need some free rolling trucks on the caboose and may have to increase the grade a bit on the tail track. I like to add more prototype operations to the railroad. Gordon

[mark dance]

Otto, I like the idea of trying to add this operation to your layout, Andy (MR Mag) was going to use a tortise s/m to come up between the rail and "hold" the axle of the caboose as a "brake" then release after the helpers are out of the way. Just need some free rolling trucks on the caboose and may have to increase the grade a bit on the tail track. I like to add more prototype operations to the railroad. Gordon

That is the way I handle the "caboose drop" operation for the BN Nelson turn on my layout

I needed a steep slope (>5%?) as well as an accurately weighted caboose to make it roll - and stop in the right location - repeatably.  But after the tweaking it worked well.  Luckily the prototype grade is >4% in that area.

I am not sure how well it would work on my layout if I had to tweak things for a lot of different cabooses however.  Luckily I just needed to tune it for 1 or 2.  The rolling characteristics made a huge difference even with similarly weighted cabeese.  I have noticed these change a bit with time as well.

Just my $0.02
md

[robert3985]

I've also contemplated simulating gravity taking the caboose to the end of its waiting train after the helper has cut off.  Since my layout is portable and my bubble levels are only so accurate, achieving a consistent grade to let the caboose drift down to the end of the train would be virtually impossible...especially if I didn't want it to zip down at supersonic speed and slam into the back of the train, or sit there and do nothing.

I came up with the idea of powering the caboose, DCCizing it and consisting it with the helper, which would be consisted with the lead engines, or controlled individually by a "helper crew".  That way, it'd travel along nicely with the train behind my 3700 Class Challenger,  stopping with the rest of the train on the east-bound main at Wahsatch. 

If the helper was controlled by a "helper crew", the helper and consisted caboose would simply back off the end of the train, park and uncouple the caboose west of the center-siding switch.  The "helper crew" would then de-consist the caboose, and throw the switches for the center siding and head towards the wye (the caboose would stay west of the center siding swich) then dead-head back to Riverdale/Ogden.

The "train crew", waiting on the east-bound mainline, would "steal" the caboose, align the center siding switch for the east-bound main,   and power it slowly towards the end of the waiting train, and let it couple up...simulating the slow acceleration and stopping the prototype would do.  Then the "train" crew would consist the caboose with the train motive power and head out towards points east, which on my future, planned layout would simply be to run the train into the "Cheyenne" staging yard immediately east of Wahsatch.

It's going to be several years before I actually have Wahsatch modeled (along with Curvo and the associated grades and tunnels to get the trains back to right-hand running) or a couple more places west of Devil's slide and Riverdale/Ogden, so I've got time to fiddle with powering a caboose, and getting it to run smoothly with a train.

If I can't get it to run smoothly with the trains (all the way from Riverdale/Ogden to Wahsatch...essentially the entire length of my planned layout) then I'll just 0-5-0 the caboose at Wahsatch...which is probably the simple solution, eh?

Cheers!
Bob Gilmore

[arbomambo]

On Cajon in steam days, Santa Fe allowed a single pusher behing steel cabooses, but most freights had two pushers and the "way car" rode behind. (Of course, they had no "maleys" in the late steam era). At Summit, the pushers would shove the caboose backwards up into a trailing point spur and its brakes would be set, the pushers would get out of the way, and the caboose would then roll back on the main under gravity. If it didn't roll far enough to couple, the pushers were now in position to shove it forward onto its train.

Otto,
one of the few reference pics/videos I've owned for a number of years is Pentrex's "Railfanning Southern California in the 50's"...a segment with Chard Walker details this operation at Summit very well...very neat! With a free rolling waycar, I imagine it would feasible to construct a retractable bumber/stop/'brake' ,that, with the turning of a knob or push of a button, protrudes up, between the ties, at the location your crew 'sets the brakes' on the waycar to hold it on the incline after being shoved or 'kicked'....after the helpers clear the switch, the 'bumber/stop/'brake' can be retracted to let the waycar free roll down the incline onto the end of the train...again, like the Chard Walker also states, the helpers were in a position to assist the waycar onto the end of the train if it didn't have enough energy to roll all the way...
 I'd figure a way to mount the 'brake' in a way that it would hold the 'rear' axle of the waycar, (timing would be important), so the waycar would hide the 'brake' in it's deployed position...
Respectfully,
Bruce

[superturbine]

Cold days like these.... Not good days to be a brakeman!

[superchief]

man superturbine you must have the A/C cranked way down, I am sweating bullets here on the other side of town, in the deserts of Arizona!!...LOL Gordon Santa Fe-all the way

[superchief]

here is a shot at the roundhouse with a 4000 class takin on water



used superglue to make some of the areas on the platform and between the rails look wet!

and the roundhouse foreman better get a hostler to hit that engine with some steam!!

Gordon/ Santa Fe - all the way

[superturbine]

Figured out how to compensate for the yellowing in the snow pics due to lighting.....  Thanks Robert RWCjr. 

Gordon -The oil look adds to the scene, add a lot more!



Wow brain that is one heck of a fist post.....glad to have you.

[Brian M]

New member to RailWire, long time stalker.    I joined partly so I could get in on this thread, it's great seeing all this N scale steam.  So here's my first contribution, a Key L-4b crossing Annsiville Creek on my layout.  One of these days I'll actually weather it and install a decoder...

-Brian.

[Lemosteam]

Figured out how to compensate for the yellowing in the snow pics due to lighting.....  Thanks Robert RWCjr. 

Gordon -The oil look adds to the scene, add a lot more!



Wow brain that is one heck of a fist post.....glad to have you.

+1.  Brian, not to dertact from the locomotive, but those pilings, supports and the water look fantastic.  Love to discuss on a separate thread!