HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: parmelee@cs.cornell.edu (Larry Parmelee)
Subject: Re: Torpedos  (was: Incident on Boston (MBTA) Commuter Rail)
Organization: Cornell Univ. CS Dept, Ithaca NY 14853
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 13:46:51 GMT

In article <tgttgv.725013815@tb3.chem.tue.nl> 
<tgttgv@chem.tue.nl> quotes emery@dr_no.mitre.org (David Emery)
who writes:
> >Could the loud "pop" be a torpedo?
> >				dave

If it were a torpedo, most likely there would have been two of them,
and I'm not sure one would hear them at all unless one were within
a few cars of the front end (assuming modern, fully enclosed passenger
equipment, no windows open, etc).  All the railroad rules I'm familiar
with require torpedos to be placed in pairs.  If the sound was more of a
"POP-HISSSSSssssss......" my guess would be that it was an emergency
brake application, because you would hear this on every car as that
car's brake equipment reacted to the drop in brake pipe pressure.

In article <tgttgv.725013815@tb3.chem.tue.nl> 
<tgttgv@chem.tue.nl> writes:
> 
> Could someone please expain to me what a 'torpedo' is ?
> 

It's a little package of explosive, about 3cm  (1.25 inches) square,
flat on one side with a little mound on the other, with two metal
straps sticking out of opposite sides and sandpaper on the bottom
(flat) of the package.  The length of the thing including the metal
straps is about 15cm (6 inches), maybe a little more.

			      +---------+
	Top view              |         |
     +------------------------+         +------------------------+
     |                        |         |                        |
     +------------------------+         +------------------------+
			      |         |
			      +---------+

                                   _
	Side view              _--" "--_
     -------------------------[_________]-------------------------


It is applied to the rail by placing the sandpaper side down on the
center of the rail head (the sand is there to help hold the torpedo in
place when a wheel hits it), and bending the metal straps over the rail
head to hold it in place.  When a wheel hits it, it explodes with a
loud bang.

Torpedos are typically used in situations where a train has to make
an unscheduled stop.  In the most common senario, where you have to
"protect" against a following train, a crew member would walk back
a prescribed distance from the rear of the train and place two torpedos
on the rail about 25 feet apart (simplifying somewhat).

When an engine crew hears a (one or more) torpedos explode, they're
supposed to stop the train as quickly as possible, then (generally)
proceed at restricted speed (able to stop within 1/2 the sight distance)
for a prescribed distance before resuming track speed.

-Larry
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: jbvb@vax.ftp.com  (James B. VanBokkelen)
Subject: Re: Diesel Multiple Units
Nntp-Software: PC/TCP NNTP
Keywords: RDCs
Reply-To: jbvb@ftp.com
Organization: FTP Software, Inc., Wakefield, MA
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 11:05:38

In article <57711@dime.cs.umass.edu> pop@cs.umass.edu ( Robin Popplestone ) writes:

    Every time I sit in a MBTA commuter train  of an evening,  two thirds  of
    which is not in off-peak use, I wonder why, in this most under-electrified
    of rail systems, the self-propelled diesel train is apparently extinct.

Several reasons: all of which are at least partly driven by the
ass-backwards way the Federal Gov't. funds mass transportation in
this country, where policy prefers funding capital improvements over
funding operations.

The operating costs of maintaining two small diesels, two air brakes
and two sets of cab signals per car came from non-Federal funds.  The
cost of maintaining track to standards suitable for high-speed
operation of 125-ton locos (F-40s) can be arranged such that most of
it shows up as capital improvements (rebuilding, which could get
Federal funds) rather than operations (maintenance).  The cost of
all-new equipment was Federally-funded, but overhauls or new engines
for the existing RDCs weren't (a complete rebuild might have been).
The cost of labor to assemble and separate the RDCs at each rush
hour also came from non-Federal funds.

What actually happened was that the MBTA and the B&M jointly removed
all the enclosures from around the underfloor diesel engines on the
B&M and NH RDC fleets in the summer of 1977.  Conveniently, the B&M
had just gotten 18 new GP-40s, which left them with a lot of idle
GP-7s.  The Winter of 77-78 had lots of snow, which ruined the
exposed engines, and the B&M supplied GP-7s to the MBTA to create
push-pull trains of RDCs.  They started out with a GP-7 at either
end, and later the MU systems were kludged together so only one loco
was needed.  The MBTA ordered lots of F40s and coaches, while having
some of the RDC fleet re-built as HEP coaches, and that was that.
The last self-propelled RDC trains ran as the Back Bay shuttle while
the Orange line was under construction, in 1984 or 1985.

Even though there's been less federal funding in recent years, the
tradeoff apparently continues to favor loco-hauled trains.  There
haven't been any new diesel or electric MUs in this country in quite
a few years, except for LIRR and Metro-North.

James B. VanBokkelen		2 High St., North Andover, MA  01845
FTP Software Inc.		voice: (508) 685-4000  fax: (508) 794-4488
From: jmd@bear.com (Josh Diamond)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Report on exhibition of prototype NYC Subway trains
Date: 24 Dec 92 22:23:45 GMT
Organization: Bear, Stearns & Co. - FAST
In-reply-to: jim@specialix.com's message of 24 Dec 92 21:22:33 GMT


In article <Bzs8pM.5x9@specialix.com> jim@specialix.com (Jim Maurer) writes:

   jmd@bear.com (Josh Diamond) writes:
   >About the R-110a:

   >  Status:			Now in use in Kansas City?

   I don't think they have a rail transit system in Kansas City.

I think that it's brand new, possibly under construction...

   >About the R-110b:

   >  Coupling:			BABCO

   I think this should be WABCO.

Er, oops.  Typo...


Spidey!!!
--
You don't hunt ducks with a turnip! 

 /\ \  / /\  Josh Diamond                                          jmd@bear.com
//\\ .. //\\ AKA Spidey!!!                        ...!ctr.columbia.edu!ursa!jmd
//\((  ))/\\
/  < `' >  \                                              Do whatever it takes.
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: downs@helios.nevada.edu (Lamont Downs)
Subject: Re: Deaths on Railroad Property
Organization: UNLV
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 1992 01:39:13 GMT

Seems like natural selection in operation to me...

downs@helios.nevada.edu
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: hudson@pnet51.orb.mn.org (Hudson Leighton)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Dakota Midland and Eastern
Date: 21 Dec 92 23:25:01 GMT
Organization: People-Net [pnet51], Minneapolis, MN.

That railroad is Dakota Minnesota & Eastern.


Benn you are now notice one more infraction and your Miinesota Foaming 
railfan permit will be pulled. ;-)


UUCP: {crash tcnet}!orbit!pnet51!hudson
INET: hudson@pnet51.orb.mn.org
ICBM: Lat. 44.59 x lon. 93.13
HAM:  N0NMX  444.100 repeater
Advertisement: Try the Railway Post Office BBS (612) 377-2197 a Railfan BBS
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: cal@ee.ryerson.ca (Calvin Henry-Cotnam)
Subject: Re: High Speed Rail Questions
Organization: Ryerson Polytechnical Institute, Toronto
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1992 04:03:39 GMT

jim@specialix.com (Jim Maurer) writes:
>
>Nowadays they weld it at rail welding plants into long
>strings that are transported on special cars.  It looks real strange
>to see a welded rail train going around a curve.  Just shows how
>flexible rail really is.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I understood that rail is "rolled" from
the steel mills in 1/4 mile length right onto the special cars to
transport them as you describe.


Calvin Henry-Cotnam, CATE          | "...My brain IBM"
Ryerson Polytechnical Institute    | "So if you see me, acting strangely..."
Toronto, Ontario, Canada           |                  STYX, Mr. Roboto
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: rh@loral.uucp (Randy Houk )
Subject: News GIFS posted to alt.binaries.pictures.misc
Organization: Loral Instrumentation
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 92 16:47:59 GMT

	I have posted the following to alt.binaries.pictures.misc.

	sf_347.gif    Santa Fe F7 Warbonnet at Railfair '91

	up_9328.gif   Union Pacific C40-8 leading a COFC train up
		      the eastern side of Cajon Pass towards LA.

	amtk_252.gif  Amtrak F40PH leading a "Surfliner" under the
		      coast highway at Torrey Pines preparing for
		      the long journey along the beach towards LA.

	Randy Houk
	rh@loral.cts.com

Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: khartman@fnala.fnal.gov
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Grade crossings, etc. (was Re: Deaths on Railroad Prop...)
Date: 28 Dec 92 21:52:28 -0600
Organization: Fermi National Accelerator Lab
NNTP-Posting-Host: fnala.fnal.gov

In article <BzzA51.35C@specialix.com>, jim@specialix.com (Jim Maurer) writes:
> tssmith@netcom.com (Tim Smith) writes:
> 
>>There is an interesting situation on the CalTrain commuter line on
>>the SF Peninsula.  Just a hundred yards or so north of the San Mateo
>>station there is a grade crossing guarded by gates.  When a
>>northbound train stops at the station, the gates go back up to let
>>traffic through.  When the train gives its two-toot highball, a sound
>>sensor near the gates lowers them again.  All this even though there
>>is little traffic on the cross street, and a station stop rarely
>>takes more than 45 seconds.  Maybe it's a remnant of an old SP
>>experiment.
> 
> Actually, there are quite a few places on CalTrain with crossing gates
> activated the same way.  I think Milbrae is one.



	I have been interested in the methods used to "lift the gates" while
a train is close to a crossing, but not moving.  Setups that use the Diesel
horn to activate the gates, or a slow moving train/timer.

	Can anyone give us a more technical view of how these different 
systems operate?  Thanks for the information!


Ken
From: delbert.big@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Delbert Big) 
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Report on exhibition
Date: 27 Dec 92 09:42:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: HAL 9000, W-NET HQ, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Reply-To: delbert.big@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Delbert Big) 


In a recent post from: jim@specialix.com (Jim Maurer), he wrote;

JM>>  Status:                   Now in use in Kansas City?
JM>
JM>I don't think they have a rail transit system in Kansas City.

If they did have one in KC, they put the transit system in in less
than 2 years.  I lived there, and the only transit plan I knew of
was still in early planning stages.

Maybe St Louis?  They were well along in building a transit system
last summer.
---
 . QNet3. . [WNet] 2/3 Board  Decatur, IL  217-877-1138  USR DS V32/V42b
                                                                                                                     
----
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| HAL 9000 BBS +1 313 663 4173 or 663 3959 | Four 14.4k v.32bis dial-ins |
| Public Access QWK-to-Usenet gateway running PCBoard 14.5a/E10/MULTITASK|
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
From: pierson@empror.enet.dec.com (dave pierson)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Torpedos  (was: Incident on Boston (MBTA) Commuter Rail)
Date: 22 Dec 92 16:32:09 GMT
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation

In article <tgttgv.725013815@tb3.chem.tue.nl>, tgttgv@tb3.chem.tue.nl (Jan
Vaessen) writes, in part:

>emery@dr_no.mitre.org (David Emery) writes:
> 
>>Could the loud "pop" be a torpedo?

>Could someone please expain to me what a 'torpedo' is ?
	In US (and other) RR parlance, a "torpedo" is an explosive noisemaker,
	used to sginal an engineer to stop.  It supplements hand flagging by
	crew members, and can be used to protect worksites, etc.  Especially
	useful in fog, or limited visibility.  A small sheet metal case, with
	metal "ears" to be bent over the head of the rail, contains an
	impact sensitive explosive.  (yes, i have the "formula", and no, i won't
	enter it.  Its nasty to work with.)

 	In the UK and possibly elsewhere, sometimes called a "fog signal", and
	some signals were fitted to place and remove the "fog signals" when the
	fog was sufficiently bad.

>I understand it is something to stop a train in an emergency or other
>dangerous case, but is it a device that is actually put on the rails,
	Yes.

>or is it a permanent installation that will stop a train after passing a
>red signal ?
	No.  It is merely an audible signal to the driver to stop, or proceed
	with caution.  (I have seen both rules: one means stop, two means
	proceed with caution, and vice versa.  "one_means_stop" seems to derive
	from "failsafe": in case one of the two gets knocked off, or fails.)

	I note in a recent Railway Gazette International that a fresh formula,
	said to be safer, is under test in Australia.

	There are "permanent" installations to enforce train stop, but THATS
	a whole other subject.  8)>>

thanks
dave pierson			|the facts, as accurately as i can manage,
Digital Equipment Corporation	|the opinions, my own.
40 Old Bolton Rd		|I am the NRA.
Stow, Mass, USA	
01775				pierson@msd27.enet.dec.com
"He has read everything, and, to his credit, written nothing."  A J Raffles
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: roma@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Jon Roma)
Subject: Re: Employee TTs (was Re: Talking Detectors)
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 23:44:40 GMT

pierson@cimcad.enet.dec.com (Dave Pierson) writes:

>	The include (varying from line to line): portions of operating rules,
>	portions of signal rules, local special conditions, location and
>	length of sidings, rr frequencies, etc...  The other key piece is the
>	book of operating rules.  Most USA RRs are either "Uniform Code of
>	Operating Rules" (western) or North American Code of Operating Rules(?)
>	NORAC (Eastern.).

The term ``most USA RRs'' needs a slight amount of qualification.  The 
vast majority of railroad miles in the United States is operated by seven
companies, often referred to as the ``Big Seven''.  These roads are:

	Burlington Northern
	Union Pacific
	Southern Pacific
	Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe
	Conrail
	CSX
	Norfolk Southern

All four of the western roads (BN, UP, SP/D&RGW, and AT&SF) now use the 
``General Code of Operating Rules''.  Neither the ``Uniform Code of Operating
Rules'' nor the ``Consolidated Code of Operating Rules'' are in use by any
major railroad.  Beginning in 1985, the ``General Code of Operating Rules''
has been adopted by most western carriers.

Of the three eastern carriers making up the ``Big Seven'', only Conrail
uses the NORAC rule book.  Both CSX and NS issue their own operating rule
books.

The NORAC rules is pretty universal among northeastern roads (Amtrak, Conrail,
Guilford, New York, Susquehanna & Western, Metro-North, NJ Transit, SEPTA,
etc.) but is seldom used outside this area.  This shouldn't be too surprising
since NORAC stands for ``Northeastern Operating Rules Advisory Committee''.
Outside the Northeast, Amtrak uses NORAC rules on its main line trackage in
Michigan and on its terminal trackage in New Orleans and Chicago.  I'll be
curious to learn which set of rules Amtrak adopts for the lines it operates
in the Los Angeles and San Francisco area.

Of the other medium- to large U. S. railroads, Illinois Central and Kansas
City Southern issue their own operating rule books.  Chicago & North Western,
Soo, and Wisconsin Central use the ``General Code''.  Many short lines'
operating rules are of limited enough size that they're included as part of
the employee timetable.
-- 
Jon Roma
Computing and Communications Services Office,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Internet:  roma@uiuc.edu      	UUCP:      uunet!uiucuxc!uiuc.edu!roma
From: cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Unusual tunnels?
Date: 23 Dec 1992 15:28:20 GMT
Organization: your service
NNTP-Posting-Host: hpctdke.col.hp.com

> Although this may not be news, the tunnels and loops we are 
> talking about here are helixes not spirals...
> A spiral lies in the same plane and does not gain elevation...

----------

No, it isn't news.  Because it's wrong.

A few of the definitions of "spiral" in The American
Heritage Dictionary:

   "The three-dimensional locus of a point moving parallel 
   to and about a central axis at a constant or continuously 
   varying distance; helix."

   "Coiling in a constantly changing plane; helical."

And the photo is of a spiral staircase.  Guess we've been
naming THAT wrong all this time, too?

This ain't trains.  Let's talk trains.
From: jbrandt@hplred.HPL.HP.COM (Jobst Brandt)
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 23:29:37 GMT
Subject: Re: Unusual tunnels?
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Laboratories, Palo Alto, CA
Newsgroups: rec.railroad

Not to be a spoilsport but because the English language is full of
misplaced words let me say this about that.  Although this may not
be news, the tunnels and loops we are talking about here are helixes
not spirals, but because the word helix is awkward we call them
spirals.  A spiral lies in the same plane and does not gain
elevation.  It merely gets larger with each revolution.  A cork
screw is not a spiral.

jobst_brandt@hplabs.hp.com
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: Baird_David@Tandem.com (David G. Baird)
Subject: Re: Unusual tunnels?
Followup-To: rec.railroad
Organization: Tandem Computers (Cupertino, CA)
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 20:27:27 GMT

> 
> Isn't there also a spiral on the Roaring Camp, Big Trees, & Pacific (or the
> other RR with a similar name that operates in the same area)?
> 
There was a spiral trestle, but it was vandalized in the mid-70s (arson).
The railroad quickly built some switchbacks to bypass the trestle. You
can walk down from the summit of the hill, and follow the path that the
trains used to take. I walked out on the trestle a ways. It's all charred,
but can take an individual's weight no problem. But, it's very high, and it
gets scary. 

DGB }
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: jones@pyrite.cs.uiowa.edu (Douglas W. Jones,201H MLH,3193350740,3193382879)
Subject: Re: Unusual Trackage (Was: Unusual tunnels?)
Date: Thu, 24 Dec 1992 21:12:05 GMT
Organization: University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

From article <1992Dec24.150513.15529@bony1.bony.com>,
by billg@bony1.bony.com (Bill Gripp):

> 1) At Elizabethport, the CNJ had a "Grand Four"

>              |
>             /|\
>            / | \
>       ----------------
>            \ | /
>             \|/
>              |

> While many intersections have connecting tracks, I can't think of any
> others which have all four ...

The Chicago Tunnel Company may have held the record, among ICC regulated
common carrier railroads.  They had grand unions under most of the
street intersections of the Chicago Loop district.  Of course, it was all
2 foot gauge traction, using mine locomotives, but they had something
like 50 miles of track.

The CTC tunnels, by the way, were the tunnels that were flooded last
summer when someone drove a piling too close to one of the tunnels
under the Chicago River and cracked the cement tunnel liner.

Grand unions were common on urban traction lines, but relatively uncommon
on railroads.  I've seen plenty of half-grands, with a wye and crossing,
or with a pair of diagonally opposite interchange tracks, but a full grand
on a major railroad is something I haven't seen.

					Doug Jones
					jones@cs.uiowa.edu
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: roma@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu (Jon Roma)
Subject: Re: Employee TTs (was Re: Talking Detectors)
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 18:11:53 GMT

In an earlier posting, I wrote:

>All four of the western roads (BN, UP, SP/D&RGW, and AT&SF) now use the 
>``General Code of Operating Rules''.  Neither the ``Uniform Code of Operating
>Rules'' nor the ``Consolidated Code of Operating Rules'' are in use by any
>major railroad.  Beginning in 1985, the ``General Code of Operating Rules''
>has been adopted by most western carriers.

I should add that there were two operating rule books entitled ``Uniform
Code of Operating Rules''.  One was used by midwestern roads (Rock Island,
Cotton Belt, M-K-T, etc.).  The other Uniform Code was in use on Canadian
roads (and sometimes on their U. S. counterparts) until it was replaced by
the ``Canadian Rail Operating Rules'' in 1990.
-- 
Jon Roma
Computing and Communications Services Office,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Internet:  roma@uiuc.edu      	UUCP:      uunet!uiucuxc!uiuc.edu!roma
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
From: jtbell@hubcap.clemson.edu (Jon Bell)
Subject: Re: DMU's and putting the world to rights.
Organization: Presbyterian College, Clinton SC
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1992 21:49:43 GMT

In article <63030@mimsy.umd.edu> mangoe@cs.umd.edu (Charley Wingate) writes:
>
>Application of European experience to the USA is basically relevant to the
>northeast.  Even then, it is limited by the ease of moving away.  Americans
>don't want to be huddled together into urban areas while the countryside
>around them is basically empty-- that's what a lot of mass transit planning
>looks like.

Most Americans don't want to live in the central city (too much crime, too
expensive, not enough room) but they don't want to get too far away from
it, either.  So we have decaying cities surrounded by diffuse suburbs which
are in turn surrounded by emptying countryside.  The "real" countryside is
becoming emptier because people move to the suburbs looking for jobs.

So now most Americans live in areas which are diffuse enough that mass transit
isn't economically feasable, but dense enough to produce horrible automobile
congestion.  I can stand visiting the Atlanta area for only a day or two
at a time, because the traffic drives me up the wall after a while.

Jon Bell / Dept. of Physics & C.S. / Presbyterian College / Clinton SC
From: pvmason@cco.caltech.edu (Peter V. Mason)
Newsgroups: rec.railroad
Subject: Re: Oil Bearings (was Re: Grand Canyon Railway)
Date: 30 Dec 1992 01:36:38 GMT
Organization: California Institute of Technology, Pasadena
NNTP-Posting-Host: alumni.caltech.edu

In article <1992Dec22.152513.25799@ee.ryerson.ca> iain@ee.ryerson.ca (Iain Campbell) writes:
>In article <1992Dec21.223512.12593@mel.dit.csiro.au> ajw@squid.mel.dit.CSIRO.AU (Andrew Waugh) writes:
>
>The bearing is normally either made of, or lined
>with, a material which is softer than the journal material.  This
>is so that the bearing can conform as closely as possible to the 
>shape of the journal.  This is necessary because of the principle
>which makes these bearings work (and they do work very well ... keep
>in mind the note about auto engines ... there may in fact be more 
>journal bearings in the world than just about any other type of
>bearing).  The principle is known as "hydrodynamic lubrication".
>


My recollection is that soft bearing materials are used against hard    
journals because hard-against-hard results in galling and seizing.  Any
bearing experts out there?


>If there is enough interest, I'll talk about why journal bearings have 
>been replaced by roller bearings in another post.
>

 Would be interested.

>   S     I   G      iain@ee.ryerson.ca       < now showing    S     I   G
>    SS   I  G  GGG  iain@acsserv1.ryerson.ca < coming soon     SS   I  G  GGG


pvmason@alumni.caltech.edu (Peter V. Mason)