Box Car 67 - Official Work Thread

[Philip Marshall]

Following on the topic of brake rigging, I have a question about brake wheels.

Boxcar 67, like a lot of other B&SR freight cars, appears to have had a big standard-gauge size 16" brake wheel rather than the smaller 12" brake wheels found on most 2' gauge cars. The bigger brake wheels were an important and distinctive part of the look of B&SR boxcars in particular, since the brake wheel and staff are so visible in the car's silhouette. (To be sure, I believe some MEC-built cars on the SR&RL also had 16" brake wheels -- maybe that's just what they had on hand at the Waterville shops?)

Is there an appropriate 16" brake wheel on hand to replace the missing original? If not, I have one I think may be suitable that I would be very happy to donate.

[Brendan Barry]

The wrap around style trucks were used on the earlier cars and are lighter in construction. The non wrap around trucks have heavier arch bars and were used on cars with a heavier load capacity. We have a Laconia brake wheel complete with ratchet and staff.

[Philip Marshall]

We have a Laconia brake wheel complete with ratchet and staff.

Perfect! Thanks, Brendan.

[Stewart "Start" Rhine]

Aside from brake rigging, are there any structural advantages to having a wrap around top bar?

It helps keep the truck square.

[Paul Uhland]

Having cranked down ATSF brake wheels in my younger days, the bigger the wheel, the  more mechanical advantage,  the easier it is to set a safe, tight brake.
But, it's surprisingly easy to really strain your shoulder or arm in the process.

[Joe Fox]

The problem we have found with the larger brake wheels is that they can lock up the wheels really easy. Its ok if only applying a brake to prevent a car from moving, but when a few grab the wheel and turn it as much as possible, things bend and break because of to much force.

Where as the smaller wheels on the 2' gauge cars reduced the amount of forces and limited the amount of load one could apply to the brakes and making it nearly impossible to lock the wheels.

[Paul Uhland]

Joe...makes sense.

[Brendan Barry]

The side sills have been removed from the car frame and replacement side sill timbers are being ordered this week. The trucks have been disassembled. We had one broken journal box but we have a good replacement on hand. There are a three other castings that need replacing. We have one left over from a previous project and have the pattern to make more. New white oak timbers were ordered today to replace the wood parts in the trucks.

Frame flipped over on flat car 126 with the side sills removed.





Wheel sets in the machine shop.



Journal boxes and bearings.



Arch bars for the heavier truck.



Top frame and arch bars for the lighter truck.

[Steve Smith]

Will the journal boxes have good oil seals in the back when project is done?

[Brendan Barry]

Linda was going through pictures in the archives and found pictures of 66 and 67 sitting in the same string of cars.

[Philip Marshall]

I'm trying to figure out how the SR&RL wheelsets and journal boxes might have found their way to Edaville. It seems unlikely to me that they're from the Rangeley, so could they be from the little 4-wheel trailer for Railbus No. 4 that disappeared (I think) sometime in the 1950s?

[Mike Fox]

The SR&RL cabooses made it to Edaville, along with the Rangeley. Could have come off of those during a wheel swap, shopping of a car, etc.

[Ken Fleming]

There is a photo of WW&F box car #67 up on Face Book, it appears to have a vacuum train line hose.  Did the WW&F use vacuum brakes on all rolling stock? Or only on some? Or is it a left-over?

[Dave Crow]

Ken,

I believe the brake line was only a pass-through arrangement on the freight cars; this allowed operation of the brakes on the passenger cars, no matter where and what freight cars were between the locomotive and the passenger cars.

Even though there are long(er) term plans to install vacuum brakes on all of the equipment, I think it would be neat to see boxcar 309 and creamery car 65 with pass-through train lines, for the time being, as I believe there are photos of 309 at the end of, and after, service ended, with the pass-through line plainly visible.

Dave Crow

[Philip Marshall]

The SR&RL cabooses made it to Edaville, along with the Rangeley. Could have come off of those during a wheel swap, shopping of a car, etc.

But I don't think any of the SR&RL cabooses or passenger cars other than the Rangeley came with wheels. Aren't they all riding on B&SR trucks still? So I think the wheelsets have to be from either the Rangeley or Railbus No. 4 or its trailer.