THe IRT subway-type third rail was actually pioneered by the Willksbarre & Hazelton (PA.) interurban, but it is not clear to me just what per-cent of the their third rail had the cover-board.
Also, the BMT entered the subway business after the IRT did, slightly over ten years later. They adopted the IRT-type with only minor dimensional changes, essentially duplicating that of the Long Island Railroad and initial PRR Penn Station Electrfication, and then adopted by the B&O’s Staten Island Rapid Transit (eventually supposed to be linked to the BMT’s 4th Avenue Subway by an under-Bay tunnel (will that ever happen?), the Hudson & Manhattan (today’s PATH), and the City-owned Independent Subway System, “IND.” Today, the BMT and IND are the Transit Authority’s “B Division” asccepting ten-feet-wide cars, the IRT the “A Division,” requiring narrower equipment. Nolt sure about the “7” Flushing Line. With a number, not a letter and narrow cars, A Division. But its only track connection is with the B Dividion’s “N” Line.
Thanks for putting together those educational posts. They’re worth studying (I assume – if they don’t have the ring of truth, they’ve got a good imitation.)
You are welcome. As far as my comments and facts having a, any ring of truth – you can bet on it for those I wrote in reply to your questions on this thread. As Dave K also well knows. Its no imitation. I rode and lived thru, and extensively photographed, that period of rolling stock and those lines - and so did Dave !! Many decades looooong ago when we were both very much younger, heh !
YES — the drop sled shoe dropped directly down to the head of the 3rd rail – see photo from my collection enclosed at BOTTOM of this message. Note: Chicago CTA EL trains use a similar drop sled shoe in present day operation!
This photo shows one of the IRT EL Car 3rd rail shoes back in its new electrification period of 1902 on the Manhattan EL’s. NOTE in the photo, that there are TWO wooden protection side boards, as installed during initial electrification, seen on each side of the EL style 3rd rail. By 1910-15 the wooden protect board facing the TRUCK side of the 3rd rail, was removed from all Manhattan El 3rd rails.
And as I previously stated, on lines where IRT wood “EL” trains and Steel Subway trains operated on the same tracks on EL extensions in outer boroughs, the single wooden backboard on the EL style rail was removed to clear subway car paddle shoes.
These “drop Sled” EL type 3rd rail shoes lasted until the end of IRT EL car operation on the IRT (and likewise on BMT) Elevated lines – mainly with removal of most all of the 1870 to 1890 built structure El lines.
Their last used was on the BMT Q type wooden EL cars of the Myrtle Avenue EL in Brooklyn, which had Drop Sled shoes on their motor truck sideframes.
Those trucks under the Q types were placed under the Q’s coming off from soon to be scrapped 1903 era IRT ex subway Composite Cars - with removal of the faster and heavier original BMT EL Car Motor trucks, to make the Q type EL Cars light enought to operate witrh passengers on the express tracks of the 1870’s built Manhattan 3rd Ave El structure. So as to operate as rush-hour express trains on the IRT 3rd Ave El from 1950 thru, when removed, 12-16-1956.
Relocated to Brooklyn and the BMT Myrtle EL, having BMT TOTALLY unprotected EL type 3rd rail, the Q-Type class EL trains operated there until the Drop Sled shoe
Thanks, Joe, and Nate Gerstein adds these comments concerning the car assignments for the Polo Grounds Shuttle:
The third Ave El from Chatham Square was abandoned May 12th 1955.
The Polo Grounds Shuttle closed August 31st 1958.
The shuttle was opened in 1940 the day the 9th Ave El closed. The first cars to run where Composites . They were used because the el cars were unable to fit in the IRT subway tunnel As the roofs were too high. The third rail shoe beams were of the Manhattan type compatible with the new shuttle third rail. The Coposites were run downtown and around the South Ferry horn and up the 9th Ave El to the 155th St. station the night the 9th closed. They were run as 3 car trains from St. to,Burnside Ave, Jerome line. The were inspected in Jerome Yard. When heavier work was required the cars were taken to 239th yard WPR line Composites were being serviced due to the closing of 99th St. and 129th St. yards. The cars were towed fro 167th St Jerom to the Lexington line and turned to Jackson Ave WPR Line and were cut there and went to 239th St. under their own power as there was Manhattan 3rd rail there. Many El cars and composites were put in storage. They were unable to scrap the cars as the defense department put a hold on them as they were held WW2. The el cars were left at 159th St yard and when the yard was full the were stored on the middle track on Jerome from Mount Eden Ave to just south of Burnside Ave Station. All MUDC el cars were transferred to the East side lines. Composites and el cars were taken to 239th St. yard and many were stored on the upper level and the switches were removed for the war effort. Gate cars were on the lower le
Chicago has had some cars with paddle-type shoes since the late 1950s, but the “sled” type remains standard. Some of the 6000 series PCCs and the 2200 series Budd cars had paddle-type shoes, at least as built.
I can’t figure out how the drop shoe mount shown is supposed to work. If it were a pantograph linkage I’d understand, but the two links pictured have only whatever lost motion there is at the pin joints to accommodate, and you’d constantly be taking up wear by adjusting the mounting bolts (which seems in the picture to be what they were doing). The actual contact (whatever it was made of) has its long curled lead attached, but I see no indication that it floated on vertical pins or whatever below the part mounted to the end of the links.
Interesting that the heavy wire brushes were necessary to keep the railhead clean and dressed…
The shoe is held up by two slotted links, with a cable attached to the shoe itself for current pickup. Contact is maintained by the weight of the shoe, which varies some depending on model but is around 20-25 lbs. Boston had some cars that used a forged shoe that was held in its slots by small springs, but relied mostly on gravity for electrical contact.
Chicago cars also had sleet scrapers on the shoe beam that were wired to the electrical pichup that dropped by gravity when manually released. North Shore Line also used gravity shoes and sleet scrapers on the L, as did the CA&E on its third rail. Some CA&E steel cars had pneumatically operated sleet scrapers.
Now that I know what to look for, I can see both ends of the slot in the near-side link. I thought the far-side one was H-section with a pin at each end…
Note that there is much more potential ‘upward’ play in the links than further ‘down’. Does that indicate wear on the contact plate of the shoe?
From looking at gravity shoes on preserved cars there isn’t a lot of wear on the face of the shoe. Most of the damage done to the shoes is on the ends is from arcs when cars are coasting across gaps. Not too much of that in normal operation as most systems had or have power jumpers between cars to allow crossing long gaps such as grade crossings.
Ride around te 110th Street reverse curves, the Putnam Bridge, the Sedgewick Avenue - Anderson Avenue 162nd Street Tunnel, the ramp to join the Jerome Avenue Line, and…
I understand the original Putnam rail line crossed over to Manhattan to the Polo Grounds(?) and later cut back to Sedgewick, and the bridge taken over by transit. Was the bridge the train crossed at about 1 minute, what you are referring to as the Putnam Bridge?
Nate Gerstein reports on the final days of the Polo Grounds Shuttle, the last remnant of the 9th-Avenue Elevated:
I looked out my bedroom window and saw the shuttle train go by. Something was wrong. The train was going South on the Northbound track. I rubbed my eyes. What is going on. Then a Northbound express passed a made its stop At 167th St. after a while another Northbound shuttle train went by. Then lo and behold it reversed and I saw in going South. I went out on the fire escape and watched descend on the North ramp, make the turn and head West across the structure into the Jerome Anderson Ave station and disappear. What the heck was going on. It was then I found out the TA converted the shuttle to as single track line. I road the train with my friends that afternoon and was disappointed. How could they do this to my shuttle. The Southbound express track switch to the ramp was spiked and that was that. Then I found out that the Jehova WItnesses rented the Polo Grounds and Yankee Stadium for a world convention. It turned out to be the largest event event ever for the two ball parks. To handle the crowds extra trains were running on the Jerome and Concourse lines and busses. Again in late August I was astonished to see a two car train sitting on the center track South of the McClellan St. tower. I the saw another two car train(the Northbound shuttle) pass by. I then observe the train going South, but this time it was on the middle track. I grabbed my mothers Kodak and took a picture. They made an add and the four car train was switched onto the Northbound track and wrong railed South down the ramp to 155th St. and put into service. The extra cars supplemented the service for the people going to the two stadiums. T
Vern and I walked around that area. Jerome yard was very hard to see. You could see the rooftops of the cars from the top floor of Dewitt Clinton High School. The two tracks behind the west wall were cars servicing the Polo Grounds Shuttle. 3662 was there and it was all painted up for a parade along with a new R-21. It was hidden away in plain site so it would not get destroyed, as it was used as a work motor. It was part of the last train to run on the shuttle the day after it closed. The train was made up with 3662-3728 alcohol car- 3667- and M64 Flat for coal. It was loaded with parts and items that were saved for use. Gates, railings, turnstiles and signals. The roll work car stock was sent over to the Dyre Ave shuttle after the 3rd rail shoes were replaced with subway types. As were the Steinway cars that went to Pelham yard
DLK addition: The day after that began thecremoval oif the remaining Jerome Avenue Line Elevated-type third rail.
Previous post corrected. There was still elrvated-type third-rail still in use on the portion of the Thuird Avenue Elevated still in use and on parts of what is now the 2 and 5 lines into 1973.