Nostalgia & History > Why does this engine have three slots?

Were standards for link and pin heights not yet established at the time of this engine?

Picture 1 and 2 are from the website,

http://imgzoom.cdlib.org/Fullscreen.ics?ark=ark:/13030/kt0779q5qv/z1&&brand=calisphere#

Picture 1, “Title: Engine No. 4 from the Mount Tamalpais & Muir Woods Railroad on a flat car to be shipped to the Northwestern Pacific Railroad shops in Tiburon. Creator: unknown. Description: Jake Johnson, engineer, left and unidentified man, right leaning on Engine No. 4 from the Mount Tamalpais & Muir Woods Railroad, between two buildings, location is on the present site of 74 Throckmorton Avenue; mountain and house on mountain are visible in the background; Engine is on a flat car being shipped to the North Western Pacific Shops in Tiburon. Publisher: Mill Valley Public Library. Contributor: unknown. Date: circa 1930 1983.” http://www.millvalleylibrary.org Source: Selected photograph from page 100 of ‘The Crookedest Railroad in the World’ by Ted Wurm and Al Graves.

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Picture 2, picture 1 enlarged.

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I did a Google image search for Railroad Pin and Coupler. On the search page I found pictures 3 and 5.

Picture 3 is from the website,

http://harveycountyvoices.blogspot.com/2013/04/tools-from-our-collection-link-and-pin.html

Picture 3, “harveycountyvoices.blogspot.com-1600 × 1040. AT&SF Engine 1863, ca. 1900. Conductor - R.H. Chandler; Brakemen - A.W. Watson & G.W. McMurray; Fireman - P.K. Richardson & Hill.” “In 1887, many began to use the automatic general coupler. The manual link and pin coupler became illegal in the United States on mainline railroads with the passage of the Railway Safety Appliance Act in 1893.”

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Picture 4, picture 3 enlarged.

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flynn Wrote:
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Early on there was no standard, and engines were equipped for many situations. Also equipment moves up and down relative to the weight of the equipment. Link and pin couplers out of vertical alignment might bend, wear, or lead a car to derail by lifting the end up.

The Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 31, 2014 is The Milky Way over Devils Tower.

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap141031.html

I did a Google image search for Railroad Devil’s Tower and got lots of beautiful pictures of Devil’s Tower and pictures and websites of the wildlife. I got only one picture of the railroad and Devil’s Tower on the following website. Is this a real picture or has it been photoshoped?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/49296258@N00/4404717992

Thanks nicknack for the information. flynn



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/14 08:53 by flynn.

These two might help. Wheeler & Dusenbury/Hickory Valley Railroad 1887-1938 - my own shots, so I can post.

This was one of the classic railroads that was neither fish nor fowl; a common-carrier on the interchange 2.5 miles but otherwise a logger, and the motive power was used wherever required. In fact, this is the little railroad that actually spawned the ICC war on defining a common-carrier vs. an industrial carrier, and they won against PRR as being the originating "common" carrier.

The W&D logging equipment was entirely link-and-pin. Notice how LOW the link & pin drawhead is on these cars, that's a small wheel to begin with and the drawhead is barely above the axle.
http://www.randgust.com/loadr1.jpg
You don't see any air brakes either.

The locomotive normally assigned for common-carrier switching had one of the darndest arrangements you'll ever see, and this is right at the close of business in 1938: HVRR Lima-built 2-6-0 #5 (1910 - after the Act). Note that rear tender pocket - high split knuckle with pin, plus a lower link and pin drawbar!
http://www.randgust.com/Hv5D.jpg
Those cast three-slot link & pin drawheads WERE standard, at least on a great number of geared steam locomotives. As near as I can tell, ever Climax A ever built had one.

On log cars at least, you wanted to get the center of gravity as low as you could; easier to load and safer to run, not as tippy - particularly with the loader on top, and many had to be low enough to fit under a McGiffert loader.
Another favorite I've run across is a Class A Climax doing common-carrier switching in California with a knuckle adapter fitted right into the link-and-pin drawhead so that it could pull standard-gauge cars.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/14 11:01 by randgust.

The Mount Tamalpias & Muir Woods (1896-1930) had some unusual passenger cars, including unique "gravity cars" and former San Francisco cable cars. The ex-cable cars and gravity cars had much lower floors than the usual for standard-guage railroads, hence the lower-than-usual coupler pockets. I suspect the lowest was for the gravity cars, the middle one may have been for the other passenger cars. Occasionally the MT&MWRR would receive a tank car of locomotive fuel oil and tow it to the shops, so they also needed a standard-height coupler pocket.

The railroad started in Mill Valley, which is roughly 40' above sea level. The summit station is nearly at the top of the mountain (2751' elevation), with a spectacular view. Passenger cars were pushed up the mountain by a Shay or Heisler engine. Gravity cars were towed up the mountain. After lunch, passengers boarded gravity cars - each with a uniformed brakeman/attendant - for a world's-longest-roller-coater ride down to Muir Woods. A gravity car has been recreated.

See websites:

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/A-piece-of-railroad-history-returns-to-Mt-Tam-3249930.php
http://www.friendsofmttam.org/railroad/gravity-car-barn
http://www.funimag.com/photoblog/index.php/articles/us-mount-tamalpais-muir-woods-railway/

- Doug Debs



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/31/14 10:47 by DWDebs/2472.

Top slot: Z-gauge
Middle slot: N-gauge
Bottom Slot: HO gauge

Only ten digit's away, I have the bell off AT&SF 1873.

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