While knuckle are supposed to break before couplers … that isn’t always the case
[(-D] Old-looking car - so an “Old fracture” is the listed cause, I suppose ?
Thanks for sharing this illustration that once again:
“The agreement between theory and practice is, at times, poor.” [swg] [:-^]
(Norman Vautz, WABCO researcher, late 1960’s, as quoted in Trains about the effects of braking and slack action resulting in occasional crumpled boxcars, if I recall correctly).
- Paul North.
Cause scenario -
Train stalls on grade account engine quit loading. Crew worked with appropriate mechanical personnel and got the engine working properly again. Upon trying to start train - train went into emergency before train had moved a car length. Car was a the head car in a loaded bauxite train.
The break is all shiny–nothing old about that fracture. I was going to mention that the car looks like a Center Flow, but that in itself is no longer a guarantee that the car isn’t old–some of those puppies are being sold off and/or retired, too.
I wondered how far back it was, seeing all that sand on the rail and wheel tread. So did it break between the car and the engine, or between the first and second car? Nothing like a wrong-ender to brighten one’s day, or night as the case may be.
Jeff
Wrote a response this morning, but must have forgotten to click “post”.
Back then, I said…the car looked old and maybe out of service normally…Wheels don’t even look like they’ve been doing much.
And perhaps a shock load {accidently or not}, loaded it and an unusual failrure occured. Sure is evidence of failure in the photos.
Car was built in 1979 and has spent most of it’s career in phosphate service in and around the Bone Valley area of Florida…car is now being used in Bauxite unit train ore service between a import Port and Massena, NY making a round trip every week to 10 days. Car has a 50 year life and is end dated in 2029.
“I think I can, I think I can, I THINK I can…” BANG!!! “Whoops, no I can’t…”
Fatigue, no doubt.
A baux car?
[swg]
A big baux train!
Some folks were on the rampage yesterday on a Canadian RR forum about the incompetence of newspaper reporters. An article referred to tank cars as tankers. They then went on to ask what’s next; flatters and boxers.
That is all.
Bruce
The high level rust on that Cylindrical type Covered Hopper is not just a matter of age, it is a matter of usage and locations stored. There are some old ACF Center Flow covered hoppers from the 1960’s with light rust while there are some Trinity 5161 Cu. Ft. covered hoppers from the 1990’s that are coated in rust.
This is my video of rusty hoppers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PirtBrMRXdo
Andrew
I am starting to hear railroad employees (one with over 30 years) call them tankers, too. On other forums, railfans are starting to call coal trains and grain trains “coalers and grainers.”
Jeff
Had an occasion recently to be in close proximity to a Signal Maintainer of the BNSF persuasion, and while talking to the employee, heard part of a conversation that was referring to a shuttle train movement as a ‘grain worm’.
Moved this post to the Thread " Railroad Names and Monikers"; so this topic of broken couplers and knucles coud continue.
Firelock :
>> “I think I can, I think I can, I THINK I can…” BANG!!! “Whoops, no I can’t…” <<
gee - or :
- Bang !
“See , I told you I can !”
An old saying in engineering still applies :
“Nothing too strong it can’t be broken by all means !”
That broken coupler must have had a casting flaw. The weak spot of the train is supposed to be the knuckle. That way if there is too much strain on the system, one of the knuckles will break. The knuckle can be replaced in the field. There is some hope of moving a train by replacing the knuckle. The break shown above requires replacement of the entire coupler shank.
We have a few broken knuckles at our museum and all of them have evidence of a casting flaw that made that particular knuckle weak.
Maybe a knuckle was too strong.
[quote user=“Juniatha”]
Firelock :
>> “I think I can, I think I can, I THINK I can…” BANG!!! “Whoops, no I can’t…” <<
gee - or :
- Bang !
“See , I told you I can !”
An old saying in engineering still applies :
“Nothing too strong it can’t be broken by all means !”
Hi, Juniatha! Well, as a mechanic friend of mine once said, “It’s metal, it could last for a thousand years or break tomorrow, you just never know.”
[Both quotes snipped a little bit]
[quote user=“Firelock76”]
Hardly reassuring for us engineering types . . . [:-^]
- Paul North.