Prototypes of this sanding tower.

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

Can anyone tell me what railroad use(d) the prototypes of the OMI 3365 sand service tower (link below), where any of those prototypes can/could be found and approximately when they began to operate.

http://www.modeltrains.com/PICTURES/PICTURES%20-%20Brass/Overland/bulletin-omi/om-p1489.jpg

Thanks, PGI

2

As to the specifics of the model of sanding facilities you posted: I cannot respond specifics, but what I might offer is a similar question was asked in another Thread here, and that might offer some information about the subject. The question was posrwd and received no responses which may help explain that more than likely, Sand Facilities may be purpose built by the owning railroad for their needs and locations.

Posted:Anonymous wrote the following post on Wednesday, May 07, 2008

"…Do the railroads usually design, install and maintain the sand towers present in their yard facilities? I realize there’s probably hundreds and hundreds of individual variations on the same basic design. I’m wondering if the engineering departments are the people who design and install them, or are they typically purchased from some outside vendor and the railroads then maintain them?

The reason I ask is I’ve seen dozens of different tower designs in the yards I’ve seen, and there certainly does seem to be a lot of variety. The DME in Huron actually has what looks to be a 2-bay hopper car supported in heavy beams as the reservoir…"

Sometime back There was a Thread referencing a now abandoned(?) Souther Pacific y

3

There are several vendors who specialize in sanding facilities - see, for example:

Monroe Engineering’s “Railroad Sand Storage Structures” at: http://www.monroeeng.com/

http://www.cyclonaire.com/products/railroad_sanding/sanding_towers

http://www.macton.com/rail_equipment/locomotive-sanding.htm

Professional paper from Oct. 2001 (27 pages, 6 figures, approx. 639 KB in size):

http://www.mcilvainecompany.com/Decision_Tree/subscriber/Tree/DescriptionTextLinks/Filtered%20exhaust.pdf

Some research in the archives of the trade magazines - perhaps Trains, and Railway Age, in particular - may lead to ads, articles, and/ or photos of these as “new” installations.

  • Paul North.
4

As a further response: The model 3365 sand service tower is a 25-ton capacity unit, of fairly modern design. I would guess that they first appeared post-World War II as part of upgrades, rehabilitations, dieselization, and modernization then - the first financial and business opportunity after the Great Depreession and WWII to do so - and almost any railroad could have used one like that in almost any modern service facility, as shown by the links I provided above.

  • Paul North.
5

Hi Sam,

Thanks for your response, I will look for some of the other threads.

Regards, PGI

6

Hi Paul,

Thanks for both your responses. I will certainly check each of the links to manufacturers you have kindly included and I will search the suggested archival information. Thankyou also for your observations and thoughts on the likely period of operation, etc…

Regards, PGI.