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  • General discussion about railroad operations, related facilities, maps, and other resources.
General discussion about railroad operations, related facilities, maps, and other resources.

Moderator: Robert Paniagua

 #518270  by UPRR engineer
 
Mine as well confess my light power story also, (K train ones at the bottom of page 4) same kinda deal, different crew. Racing out of town to go get some soda ash cars. On our way up to 70mph the speedometer dropped to zero at 60. Ramped her back up to the 8th run, wasnt long before we hit an advanced approach, caught up to someone. Before that tho the motor (Big GE AC type) started buzzing at me, i didnt go any faster at that point. When the brakemen came up on the headend he was smiling and said "Boy we were really getting after it there." He said his motor started buzzing at him at 86mph so i guess that how fast i was going.

Doubt i'll ever do those two things again, as far as the broken speedometer, just aint worth it.

Thats why i was asking you those questions there slchub. See if your faster then me.

 #518307  by slchub
 
UPRR engineer wrote:Mine as well confess my light power story also, (K train ones at the bottom of page 4) same kinda deal, different crew. Racing out of town to go get some soda ash cars. On our way up to 70mph the speedometer dropped to zero at 60. Ramped her back up to the 8th run, wasnt long before we hit an advanced approach, caught up to someone. Before that tho the motor (Big GE AC type) started buzzing at me, i didnt go any faster at that point. When the brakemen came up on the headend he was smiling and said "Boy we were really getting after it there." He said his motor started buzzing at him at 86mph so i guess that how fast i was going.

Doubt i'll ever do those two things again, as far as the broken speedometer, just aint worth it.

Thats why i was asking you those questions there slchub. See if your faster then me.
Nope, 82 mph and the thing starts "shouting" at you to slow her down or she'll do it for you. I have been on the Concord though when I was in the airline industry! Does that count?

 #519177  by UPRR engineer
 
I would say yes there bud. :-D

 #521148  by Peace_Maker
 
I've never been on a train but I have stood on the ballast line as Amtrak came by at 79mph and that was close and fast enough for me. As far as I am concerned 15 feet away is too close.

I once went 50mph in a hi-rail is that a speed story? I once got a sixpack up to 90 on the on-ramp to a free-way. Dang, I don't have a fun job like you guys.

 #521308  by UPRR engineer
 
I think hi-railing at 50 would be a speed story there buddy, id be more scared doing that then what i did.

 #521336  by Jtgshu
 
Although in passenger work, its not quite as exciting as you freight guys have it, but there can real fun some times too!!!

Two weeks ago, I had a great running F40 - the dynamics on it and the brakes on it and the train were absolutely awesome - the first trip of the day was uneventful and we were on time the whole trip, so I didn't get to play :(

Conveniently enough, we were about 10 minutes late on the going home train - now, they don't like the trains to be late, and a F40 with 6 cars only accelorates so fast, so the time is made up coming into stations, by being very hard on the brakes.

Track speed is 80mph ish in that area coming into Bound Brook, NJ, going west on the Raritan Valley Line. I pass my normal braking point, I then pass my 70mph spot, and im getting close to my 60mph spot when I jam on the brakes going 80mph. Hit the platform at close to 60mph - we are using the last 3 cars of the train, and its a 6 car platform so I got about 9 cars, a little under 800 feet, (85 feet X 9) to get this thing stopped.

Dynamics (actually blended brakes - so no seperate dynamic brake handle, its tied into the automatic brake) on full and screaming, almost full service reduction, and sand just for good measure. There were a few buffs standing on the inbound platform waiting for a freight to come by in the distance (on the parallel Lehigh Line) and they quickly turned around to see what all the racket was coming from the "boring" NJT train. The look on their faces was priceless!!!

Got the train stopped (smoothly thank you very much) actually a little shorter than i expected, and when I finally got her stopped, I open the door of the cab of the F40 to look back and admire the brake dust and sand cloud that was following the train!!! :)

It was great - we weren't exactly on time, i couldn't make up all of it, but it was much closer than it was earlier in the trip, and I had a blast!

 #521832  by shortlinerailroader
 
60 MPH with a lite CF7 feels like you are in one of those low-riders with the hydraulic suspension.

 #524072  by UPRR engineer
 
Jtgshu wrote:Although in passenger work, its not quite as exciting as you freight guys have it, but there can real fun some times too!!!
We get in trouble now if ya run it like ya stole it. Theres been a few times where i had to explain my actions, a dispatchers request, really short on time, or a promise if they let us come out and work it would be real quick. Other then that theres not alot of hotrodding going on anymore. Use to be no big deal if you were flying along and the conductor changed his mind where he wanted to get off and you threw everything to it in a controlled manner to bring it to a stop, now ya have to make a mental note, "Verne wanted off right here insted of up there..". If someone looks at the speed tape, looks like i wasnt doing my job, or Grand Standing.

 #524252  by Gadfly
 
UPRR,

I'm curious. Railroads use a lot of terms unique to the industry, some of them universal, some found mostly on one road. This has nothing to do with speed. Have you ever heard the term "Railroad Error"? On my RR it originated with "Demurrage" and "Rates"---Freight house stuff. Had to do with when a customer disputed Car demurrage and storage charges, or the rates figured by the clerk in the Freight Office. When there was a mistake, it often got charged as "Railroad Error" in the computer to account for the discrepancy. If it was a good customer, things would get charged as "railroad error" simply to make him happy and keep him from switching to trucks. Often it was the ADM plant they did it for. Wheat mids, etc.

When it was very busy in the Freight house----the printers were buzzing, a low, constant mumble on the phones as clerks talked with customers, the pecking of computer keys-----it would get quiet (except for those noises). Over the dividers and cubicles, someone would blurt out loud "RAILROAD ERROR!!!!!!!!!!!!" :-) I guess it served to break the ice, and while not really "funny" in and of itself. it gave the clerks a break in their concentration. Eventually, it came to mean ANY mistake, and I even found myself saying it at home. To our group of clerks, it came to be amusing because it got to be used in out-of-context situations; a mis-figured calculation, a mis-printed train order (which you had to go back and re-do and call the dispatcher to read it back again and they didn't LIKE that). I even had a supervisor to chew me out for using that term.
"STOP saying that, we don't make errors!" (Of COURSE, we made errors!)
But the boss sure didn't like for us to say that! :-D

I know it is goofy, but I was wondering if you had ever heard that term-Railroad Error on UP.

Gadfly

 #524265  by LCJ
 
UPRR engineer wrote:We get in trouble now if ya run it like ya stole it.
Things have changed for sure. I can remember many specific instances in my career running trains that I just know wouldn't pass muster anymore. Not even close.

I recall one summer when I was on the xtra board on the River Line out of Selkirk. During that period, the standard practice was to swap trains with the first train you passed that had a crew from the other end on it. Some days you would just clear the yard when that train would meet you. Three hours on duty and pay for three days was the result of that serendipitous occurrence.

Other times, though, I would be making the swap at the other end -- with the full 130 miles to go back home -- often with not too many hours left to make it. If the DS knew you, he would (in code) ask you if you would make it home without sticking it to him. If you confirmed that you would, he would give you green lights. After that, he would just come on the radio and say "better git a goin'" once in a while.

As one would expect, the maximum authorized speed was often "expanded" a bit, as was the hours of service law...

 #524266  by Jtgshu
 
UPRR engineer wrote:
Jtgshu wrote:Although in passenger work, its not quite as exciting as you freight guys have it, but there can real fun some times too!!!
We get in trouble now if ya run it like ya stole it. Theres been a few times where i had to explain my actions, a dispatchers request, really short on time, or a promise if they let us come out and work it would be real quick. Other then that theres not alot of hotrodding going on anymore. Use to be no big deal if you were flying along and the conductor changed his mind where he wanted to get off and you threw everything to it in a controlled manner to bring it to a stop, now ya have to make a mental note, "Verne wanted off right here insted of up there..". If someone looks at the speed tape, looks like i wasnt doing my job, or Grand Standing.
I guess that is some of the difference inbetween passenger and freight - now, don't misunderstand me, I wasn't speeding or braking any rule in any way shape or form, its just a matter of trying to make up a little bit of time anyway you can.

On commuter lines, the schedules are pretty tight most times, and you gotta run at MAS for the most part. I had an instructor engineer put it to me perfectly - "you don't make up time running down the railroad at track speed, and its not worth it to speed - the places where you make up time on a late train is at the "take off" and "landing"

There are a handful of tricks in leaving and accelorating out of stations, but you can only get so much power out of a V16 645 with 102mph gearing......

BUT coming into stations is when you can really make up time, especially if you got a responsive train with a good loco. 15-20 seconds made up at each stop means a few minutes on a line with 10 plus stops. That can be the difference inbetween being late or on time!!!!!

When things are going okay, and everything is on time, the schedules usually give you a litlte extra time at each stop, so its not necessary to pound the train coming into stations........but when things get a few minutes late, THATS when you get to "run it like you stole it" and it can be pretty darn fun!!!

Just don't screw up and pull long (past) a station - Then all the time you saved, and more so, gets eaten up with that screw up, and depending on how far you past the station, means if the bosses are gonna be down your back. A door off isn't a real big deal, folks have to walk back a car - a car off is a little worse, but still not THAT BAD - a few cars off, thats not good - a train off thats REALLY bad, a few trainlengths off, WOW, you REALLY screwed up!!!!

:)

 #524441  by UPRR engineer
 
Gadfly wrote:UPRR,
Have you ever heard the term "Railroad Error"?
Nope never heard that here.

 #528030  by UPRR engineer
 
Burner wrote:Old heads tell me back in the day there was a century club on the CNW.

Basically a manager on board could dictate how fast you could go. A hogger out of boone was told to take it up to 100 and beyond on an officers special. He managed 104 before slowing for a 70mph curve.

They gave him a special award that is in a display case in the commons area in the boone terminal.
The 100mph stories i hear around here arent from running passenger trains, soda ash, grain, fruit trains... they didnt slow down for anything less then some of the 45mph curves. "Worlds Best Equipment" is what they use to say when someone would get scared. Track use to be alot better before they got rid of the (real) section guys is what they say.

Also the manager part, they said as fast as they ran, and as quick as everthing was moving, theres no way they didnt know.

Ever hear any of those old stories there Slchub? Get her up to 90 or 100 coming down Bryan.
 #688271  by Tadman
 
JT, here in Chicago on some of the Metra lines you gotta call in for permission to back up after a 1970's accident where a IC train overcooked a stop, started backing up, and a following train didn't stop in time resulting in a rear end. Had something to do with the tri-mode (air, hydraulic, dynamic) brakes on the IC electric MU's. We finally got new cars a few years back, and I asked a motorman what he thought of the new cars: "****'ing great, the brakes work!"

Re:

 #688278  by Jtgshu
 
UPRR engineer wrote:Mine as well confess my light power story also, (K train ones at the bottom of page 4) same kinda deal, different crew. Racing out of town to go get some soda ash cars. On our way up to 70mph the speedometer dropped to zero at 60. Ramped her back up to the 8th run, wasnt long before we hit an advanced approach, caught up to someone. Before that tho the motor (Big GE AC type) started buzzing at me, i didnt go any faster at that point. When the brakemen came up on the headend he was smiling and said "Boy we were really getting after it there." He said his motor started buzzing at him at 86mph so i guess that how fast i was going.

Doubt i'll ever do those two things again, as far as the broken speedometer, just aint worth it.

Thats why i was asking you those questions there slchub. See if your faster then me.

Hahaha I had a multiple lite power "experience" a few months back.....I look at my watch, and the yardie tells me "go through the motions"

the yardie at our destination: "Im so glad to see you guys! I didn't think you guys were coming????" - yea well, we are here, and we are DONE.......

"you guys didn't bring any cars with you?" - no, no we didn't......

On a seperate note, being in a Geep at 100mph - THAT is an experience.......some ride really nice, others..........well, keep that side window closed or you might fall out! Its fun when the front handrail is shaking so much that its almost invisible!