Slack Action

[rrboomer]

For a short period of time the Rock Island had a “Sludge” train which operated from a Chicago sewage treatment plant on the old Pullman Railroad (along Dan Ryan aroumd 125th St) to Seneca, IL.

Whenever you stopped you had to leave the air set. Then you’d spent the next two or three minutes going back and forth about 40’ due the the liquid sloshing in the tank cars.

[nbrodar]

Funny thing…although fans, and most new hire remember cabooses fondly, most of the old timers told me that the majority of injuries train crew experienced were from the action of the caboose, or items that came loose in there…that and getting hurt boarding and detraining.

Not many of them miss having to be back there…they are kinda getting spoiled with the A/C and reduced slack up front.

That’s the truth. I’ve been thrown off or nearly thrown off more then one hind end because of violent slack action.

Yes, I love to model cabooses. But no, I don’t want to ride one full time. Like I said, I’d much rather ride the locomotive.

Nick

[wabash1]

Back in the GOOD OLD DAYS of railroading, in rolling country a good Engineer would control slack by Brakeing against the throttle.

What exactly does that mean?

Applying the train brakes a little bit, and then opening the throttle to make the train move anyway. The brakes cause the train to stretch out, thus the cars don’t vary their distance between each other (slack action) as the train moves.

This is expensive in that brakes shoes (and wheels) wearout faster and more fuel is used. Like riding the brake on your car.

you keep doing that and make the conducter mad by replacing knuckles all the time, throttle braking to me is dropping notches to let the terain control speed just before you get to the bottom of a hill work the throttle toward num 8, keeps streched and no run in. get to top of hill slowly get out of it. speed drops train streched, smooth running, if you dont believe it ask my fully rested conductors when we arrive.