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  • Pushers on the LV in WNY

  • Discussion related to the Lehigh Valley Railroad and predecessors for the period 1846-1976. Originally incorporated as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad Company.
Discussion related to the Lehigh Valley Railroad and predecessors for the period 1846-1976. Originally incorporated as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad Company.

Moderator: scottychaos

 #773360  by TB Diamond
 
Lehigh Valley Railroad Company ETT No. 9 dated 27 October 1969, Special Instructions 1158-E, page 71 entitled Pusher Engines Commonwealth of Pennsylvania deals only with the crew vacating the cab when helper power exceeds 3500 hp and also with not cutting off on the fly if helper hp exceeds 3500 hp.

ETT No. 10 dated 10 August 1975, Special Instructions 1158-F page126 gives the same information as 1158-E above. In addition, SI 1158-H, page 127 entitled Use of Helper Locomotives limits helper consists to twelve axles and also not to exceed the number of axles in the leading power consist. The SI further restricts two 6-axle and three 4-axle helper consists to 6 throttle except when shoving coal trains.

The above are the only reference to helpers that I can find in LVRR ETTs dating back to 1952.
 #773414  by nydepot
 
Thanks TB!
TB Diamond wrote:Lehigh Valley Railroad Company ETT No. 9 dated 27 October 1969, Special Instructions 1158-E, page 71 entitled Pusher Engines Commonwealth of Pennsylvania deals only with the crew vacating the cab when helper power exceeds 3500 hp and also with not cutting off on the fly if helper hp exceeds 3500 hp.

ETT No. 10 dated 10 August 1975, Special Instructions 1158-F page126 gives the same information as 1158-E above. In addition, SI 1158-H, page 127 entitled Use of Helper Locomotives limits helper consists to twelve axles and also not to exceed the number of axles in the leading power consist. The SI further restricts two 6-axle and three 4-axle helper consists to 6 throttle except when shoving coal trains.

The above are the only reference to helpers that I can find in LVRR ETTs dating back to 1952.
 #773896  by TB Diamond
 
Found some LVRR track charts in my files.

From MP 392.0 (Caledonia) to MP 409.2 w/b it was ascending grade, maximum 0.40. Then from MP 409.2 to MP 418.2 it was "roller coaster" territory (0.42 down for a mile and then 0.40 up for .5 mile, etc). From MP 418.2 all the way to MP 440.2 (where the track chart terminates) it was all downgrade, the maximum being 0.40.

Additionally, found a LVRR form from the office of the chief mechanical officer entitled Tonnage Rating Per Unit - Continuous Operation Diesel-Electric Locomotives Main Line:

Here are the ratings Manchester-Buffalo (ruling grade 0.50) and Buffalo-Manchester (ruling grade 0.50):

Units 300-305, 400-403, 7640-7644 and 7648 were rated at 3200 tons.

Units 405-415 were rated at 3600 tons.

Units 510-529 and 560-574 were rated at 2700 tons.

Units 625-641 were rated at 4500 tons.

The chart was last revised on 02 April 1968 so it does not include any information on the GP38AC/GP38-2 or U23B locomotives.

Should the tonnage of any given train have exceeded the rating of the power consist, then no doubt the dispatcher would have been responsible to call helpers for the train.

I use the term helpers in lieu of pushers as we always referred to same as helpers on the line I worked for. Old habits are difficult to overcome.

The LVRR published small SI bookets for different operations across the system. Perhaps one was released for helper operations in different areas but I have never seen one.
 #783968  by psoyring
 
During the steam era pushers East out of Buffalo were relatively common, and I have some photographs showing passenger pacifics pushing freights, I guess you used whatever power you had on hand. Heck, I even have a shot of the LV passenger train being pushed Northbound out of Ithaca, although they were required to place a baggage car as a buffer in between the end of the passenger train and the helper when they did it. One of my rarest pusher shots is a helper pair of an Alco PA and a 4-8-4 taken in Tunkhannock PA, this was only done briefly and supposedly it wreaked havoc on the diesel.

Phil