Rail Cleaning Train (I reckon they have “Bright Boys” driving the train… [:-^] )
On the railroad, whether real or modeled, there’s always a ton of work to do, whether real or simulated. There’s ties that need replacing, track that needs ballasting, the occasional loco that’s run into something or a car that’s jumped the track. Whatever it is, the real railroads have a variety of equipment on hand they employ to do the job. From re-railing the errant boxcar, to repairing a washed-out bridge, Maintenance of Way (MOW) cars get the job done.
So, My Questions For Today Are:
– What kind of Maintenance of Way cars and facilities does your railroad have?
– Do you have a work train and a wreck train?
– What about test cars or scale cars?
– What about Crew Cars or Camp Kitchens?
– Converted boxcars? WW-II Era Troop Cars?
– Crane car?
– Converted Tender?
– What about ballast hoppers or gondolas?
C’mon, show us your Work Trains! Let’s see how your railroad does it!
(Pictures always Welcome!
As always, I’m looking forward to your comments and opinions!
It’s a bit of a posed picture, but this is my old work train:
I think these are old True-Line models. I bought them back in the 1960s. When I pulled my trains out of boxes about 6 years ago, I zeroed in on these. They were the first group of cars to get upgraded from horn-hooks to Kadees, and many of them have new trucks.
Mostly, I run these as a unit train around my layout, just because I like the way they look behind an Alco RSC-3. But, I’d like to ask a bit of a philosophy question of my own:
How do you use your MOW equipment? Is it, like mine, a train to be run around the layout, or is it a static display as part of a permanent (or semi-permanent) accident, maintenance or construction scene? If you’re involved in operations sessions, do you sometimes set up some track maintenance work as part of the session, either closing off a track from service, or issuing “slow orders” for trains passing through?
Beasley, I’ve got some of the same cars. My dad’s had them since he was a kid, but they’re in bad need of some new paint and lettering.
Anyway, I pretty much just put them on the main every now and then with an old switcher. My layout’s not really complex enough to make special scenes for it, but I rather enjoy it. Sort of a change of scenery after running a bunch of coal drags.
For some reason I’ve chosen to model some of my railroad’s MOW equipment. Most of it is hi-rail trucks, but they have a good number of ballast cars and a few flat cars or gondolas. They also have a weed sprayer train. The sprayer and some of the ballast cars are what I’ve modeled, but the ballast cars need lettering and loads before they’re really done.
While most of my MoW equipment is seldom run, I do have some, with more to be built once the entire layout becomes operational.
The Elora Gorge & Eastern has this tool and supply car (a former MDC 36’ reefer, rebuilt with a steel underframe, sliding doors and a few added details):
This ex-RPO (MDC) handles similar duties and also serves as a mobile shop:
An ex-combine, also from MDC, is used for similar duties, and provides some accommodations for workers:
Car 124m, another MDC car, is a crew and kitchen car:
This retired tender carries potable water for the crews, and also serves when cement needs to be mixed on-site, or, as seen here, as a water supply for the lines weed-sprayer:
Here’s the weed sprayer (one of two), scratchbuilt from wood and styrene:
The sprayer arms are fully extendable:
Cars 117 and 121 are 40’ gondolas assigned to general work service:
One of the most boring couple days I ever spent was piloting a spray train over lines in Kansas. this car was shoved at 18 mph. So traveling over jointed rail at 18 mph with the smell of herbicides everywhere in the summer.
Wayne, Grampy-- As usual you guys don’t fail to WOW!
Wayne, I am curious, the drop-bottom gondola in the photo above-- Walthers has some cars that are similar but they appear newer. Do you know which ones I mean? Any idea what era those would be appropriate for (50’s maybe??) If not, do you have any idea where I could obtain some drop-bottom gondolas for maintenance service? I did see that you said yours was from Ulrich, are those still available? Are there other sources that you know of?
I have a lot of those same cars, or at least they seem very similar. Mine are packed away at the moment though. Hopefully I can get started on my “real” layout this weekend. I am down to the last two jobs I have to get done before I start-- finishing up the tape&mudding-- all done except final sanding, and painting-- just rolling on some “builder white”. Then as soon as that’s done, I can get started-- don’t even care if the paint’s dry… I’ve been anxious to get going and it’s been too many months of stuff getting in the way.
My plan for MOW cars & trains on my layout is to both show them as semi-static displays-- move them around here and there, now and then. And to use them in “scenes” / scenarios that affect operations. As you and Grampy mentioned
Some time ago, I shot my N-scale non-revenue work fleet and made a composite photo (shown in the middle of the long caption.)
An Atlas 40’ flatcar (model from about 1970) stripped and repainted in Santa Fe MOW aluminum, ATSF 192272 WT-G, based on photos in Santa Fe High Iron September 1973 and November December 1973, and in ATSF Color Guide to Frt & Psgr Eqpt p.114.
An Rapido UP work flat with hand-operated crane obtained 2 or 3 years ago from a collector in financial straits. I will want to convert to MTL couplers and make it as close to ATSF as possible.
Drop bottom general service gons are appropriate from about 1910 to about 1990. Early ones had wood sides, later ones had steel sides. When I went to Colorado in the 1990’s, the DRGW has GS gons in MofW service all over the place. They were much more common in the western half of the country (being the preferred coal car in the west). The solid bottom mill gon or twin hopper would be the preferred car in the eastern US. By the 1950’s the eastern roads would be awash in surplus 50 ton hoppers as coal loading tanked and the 50 ton cars were being made obsolete by 70 and 90 ton cars.
The Reading had dozens of MofW cars made from their USRA clone boxcars (like the X29), USRA 46 ft gons (with side cut down to make flat cars or low side gons) or composite side gons (the PRR GRA sold by F&C).
The spray outfits I have been associated with had a lead car that was a 40 ft boxcar that held mixing tanks, bagged chemicals and pumps. There were windows cut into the lead end and sides. There were swing out, air cylinder activated spray arms. Behind that car were two tank cars of water plus another boxcar of chemicals.
I’ve gotta say it, it’s “always” a joy to see pictures of your layout and your work, your workmanship and attention to detail really give a person the inspiration to build and create.
I sure wish the powers that be at MR would wake up and run a big feature article on your layout instead of some of the “filler” they seem to keep putting in there every month.
Looking at your pictures here gives me the inspiration to dig out my old MofW train from years ago and give it the full rehab I have been thinking about for better than 20 years now.
My hat is off to you sir and I look forward to seeing more of your excellent layout!!!
Mark, thank you for your very kind words. I have mentioned before, though, that I think my modelling is not quite up to MR’s requirements, and there’s certainly a lot of unfinished (and not-yet-started) layout that doesn’t get a lot of bandwidth.
John, I don’t think the Ulrich cars have been made for years, although they do come up (and get snapped-up) fairly regularly. For those who aren’t familiar with them, they’re an all-metal kit, with separate sides and ends. The four pairs of drop doors in the centre of the car operate (I ca’d mine shut - too many randomly-dropped piles of gravel), although all of the prototype’s 16 doors, even over the trucks, were operable.
The car shown there in the following picture, from Intermountain, is a drop-door car (there are only eight doors, all in the centre of the car, with none over the trucks) although the doors don’t operate. The car is styrene, with a wood floor and sides. Here’s a view, courtesy of Secord Air Services, of that car’s interior:
Walthers (Proto1000) offers a very similar drop-door car in all styrene, again with non-operating doors:
As you can see, the interior is similar to the Intermountain car:
Red Caboose offers this all-steel drop-bottom car, which is probably closest to the Ulrich car:
A look at the interior shows 16 drop-style doors, similar
The railroad I operate on regularly has track scales and a scale test car. I reported to the dispatcher that the scale was apparently broken, as the car only registers as weighing 2 ounces.
