Need Suggestions here on a depressed center flat car load.

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

[:-^]

Hi gang,

I would like your input on a slight problem I have encountered.

I am attempting to mount a open pit mine truck onto a Exact Rail depressed center flat car.

I have I-beam braces made and in place for and aft of the wheels in the depressed center of the car and I have been trying to figure out how best to attach the A-Line chain to the flat car that will secure the truck in place.

Do I drill holes or do I just super glue them or what ???

I hestitate to just glue them as I don’t think I could get away without that glob look of the glue on the chain.

Your suggestions , Please.

Johnboy out…[^o)]

2

johnboy,

Oversize loads on depressed-center and other such cars are often secured with welded tie-downs. On some you can see placarding restricting where welding is permitted. Perhaps there is such detail on this ER car, but will be tiny so get out the magnifying glass if you want to look.

Chains typically aren’t welded IIRC because that affects the strength of the chain. Maybe someone else knows more. Chain tensioners, which look similar to a farmer’s “come-along” or fence-strtecher, are typical, usually to tiedowns along the sides of the deck and embedded in it. Metal stock is what I think is often used for weld-down connections.

Don’t forget wood blocking, as it is likewise often used in conjunction with metal bracing, etc.

3

[:-^]

Thanks for the reply Mike,

I did know all of that as in another life I did a lot of flat bed work. However my question still remains. Even with come alongs you have to have something to route the chain through on the bed of the unit, be it a truck or railcar. How do I simulate that without just bonding it??

Johnboy out…

4

Do your chains have hooks like these?

http://www.pdc.ca/rr/catalog/1017/

Drill holes in the edge of your I-beams for the hooks. You could also use diesel lift rings to hook to.

5

Johnboy,

OK, here’s an example that shows both weld-downs and loops for chain tiedowns.

http://www.railcarphotos.com/PhotoDetails.php?PhotoID=46760

Those are more like swivel D-loops than the eyebolts Carl suggested. I know eyebolts are commonly available, not sure about D-loops.

Another DODX car. Looks like weld-down only. Keep in mind that a plate with a hole pierced in it can be welded to the deck to allows the use of chain tie downs.

http://www.railcarphotos.com/PhotoDetails.php?PhotoID=45851

This KRL car shows how that’s done, with cabled tied downs.

http://www.railcarphotos.com/PhotoDetails.php?PhotoID=81060

This DODX car is set up to primarily haul tracked and wheeled rolling stock and has tie-down track built into the deck. Unlikely on a DC flat, but another example of something not visible unless you’ve got an overhead pic.

http://www.railcarphotos.com/PhotoDetails.php?PhotoID=74619

6

Pretty much an example of anything you might want to laod here: http://www.alaskarailroad.com/Portals/6/pdf/freight/Load%20Manual.pdf

7

For this machinery load, I used two heavy timbers across the upper decks, adding styrene nbw castings in their top faces to simulate them being bolted to the floor. The braces on the machinery are music wire, inserted into the timbers as if they’re bolted on the underside, and the top ends are simply slipped into styrene lifting eyes cemented to the machinery. In reality, the timbers are attached to the deck using double-sided carpet tape, making the load removeable.

In many cases, it may be preferable to simulate a reasonable-looking tie-down arrangement rather than trying to duplicate the prototype exactly. For instance, even 40-links-to-the-inch chain is grossly oversize for most such applications.On the other hand, if you intend to make the load permanently attached to the car, you may wish to make it more prototypically detailed. In that case, buy a second identical car to use as the empty version.

Wayne

8

[:-^]

Thanks Gang for the hints.

I think I’ll take a long hard look at drilling some holes in the I-beams that I installed on the car and see how the cvhains look or go with some cables like the good Dr. showed.

The I-beams are on the car with two sided tape, so I am in line there with some of your thinking. But really wanted to stay away from drilling or glueing onto that Exact rail car. They are just too expensive to change that way. Couldn’t bring myself to doing that with out further consultation.

Thanks again.

Johnboy out…and back to the work bench

9

Mining equipment is shipped broken down by truck. Three or four truckloads for a production truck, 11 or 12 for a shovel. Truck boxes are fabricated locally.

I live in a major mining area (the Mesaba Range in Minnesota) and the local Cat, Komatsu, and Joy Global dealers don’t even have spurs into their yards.

In the old days (until 1970’s) the were shipped broken down or assembled, depending on size, on flat cars cand gons. The equipment dealers from those days like Cat, Euclid, and Bucyrus Erie had spurs.

Large mines don’t even have spurs now unless they ship product by rail.