Railroaders' Nostalgia > Mad Dog Chronicles II. #319,3

Locomotives That Smoke

At the end of that week, I knew more about locomotives that smoke than you may ever want to know.
which models were the worst offenders and quite a lot about why.  It was enough to make your head spin.
There was pleanty of data to analyze.  There were already some programs in place, and even implemented.
More than a few suggestions for action plans.  However, there were a few mountains to climb. And no absence of hurdles and barriers.
Classic crises stuff, which would make a good case study for anyone of several disciplines.

We set up a team to manage this issue with lots of brain power.
MDO Assistant Vice President Operations team leader
Phill Lively, Assistant Chief Mechanical Officer locomotives
Carol Harris Senior Commerce Attorney law.

We had all the authority that we needed, but as yet no budget authority.  However there was that looming pile of tickets and the fine liability.

I think that it was Carols suggestion that we hire a consultant who knew the ins and outs of the California air quality regulations.
She may already have been familiar with Markwald and Associates.  Soon, Kirk Markwald joined our team and our almost daily meetings..

It turned out that Mr Markwald had frequent meetings with SCAQMD and with CARB.  This was lucky for us for it put the SP way ahead on the curve.

Here are some of the things we tried right from the outset.

Put out instructions to engineers to shut down or isolate bad smokers in a consist if possible.
Have the Road Foremen of Engines make sure that all engineers had the ringleman chart , new how to use it, and USED it.
Bad order any smokers.  However, remember that power shortage.  This was going to make it worse.

Most of this was already outstanding instructions, we underscored them.

The biggest "new" initiative was to issue Instructions that NO GE locomotive older than a U-33-C was to operate West of El Paso.

All of this did slow down the rate of tickets.  But it did not stop them.  There were pleanty of EMD smokers too.

With Markwald's help the fines stoped, at least for awhile.

One issue that we never did resonve was the lag time between when the ticket was issued and when we received it.
We  would get more than one citation on a bad offender before we received the first ticked.

  It did really seem that one inspecter did not like the SP.
(cf.  the reply post in 319,2 about the inspecter who lived in Indio and like to hang out around Banning, Owl and the crossovers at Hinda)

mdo



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/25/20 12:44 by mdo.

Please explain ringleman chart?
I liked to start stone cold smokers in the wee hours before sunup so they were warmed up by daylight.

Actually a plastic card about 3x5 with eight pictures of Smoke with increasing density or opacity. From left to right clear to opalescent. Background
black and blue lettering.  You hold the chart up toward the smoke, and look through the chart, matching the smoke to one of the eight different opacities.
clear to ringleman eight.  The locomotive will get a smoke violation ticket for anything above ringleman 2.

Clean stack is best.   Also most fuel efficient.

And note, yet another reminder to beware of imperfect recollections of the past
Mr Wherry has kindly scanned and posted an actual card. The scale is shown as zero to 5 drop below on this thread and take a look



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/25/20 21:58 by mdo.

do they still do this?

Been retired since 2001 and  dont know. However maybe one or member might know maybe Mr,CEWherry?
 



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/25/20 13:48 by mdo.

mdo Wrote:
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> Been retired since 2001 and  dont know. However
> maybe one or member might know maybe Mr,CEWherry?

Don't know if they are still used but this is what I was issued back then.

Ask and ye shall receive.

Charlie


>  

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The Ringlemann scale was also used on stationary boiler and power plant installation. Pittsburgh PA was known to have the inspectors watch every stack in town. They knew when plants increased boiler firing rates (increased power demand, increased steam demand, etc,) and they cherry picked plants to boost ticket revenue. The jobs I had in the north east were always more strict. Anything above a Ringlemann 2 could get a phone call or a visit. One memorable job in the Cincinnati area got a call from the fire department. That was a 5 on the scale and we were lucky we didn't "puff" the boiler.
 

As of 2016 when I was still working the SJVAQMD inspectors will still using them, they would come to the port and look at the vessels in port that were docked and not on shore power.  They would then drop by the railroad and check our locomotives, by then we had 2 Tier4 Gensets and had put new fuel injectors and goveners on the locomotives and except when 1st started they had clean stacks. Plus we had a requirement to shut them down if they were left standing for over 15 minutes as part of an MOU with the air board. 

Not only is the Ringelmann Scale still being used...get this...there is now a Smartphone App to replace the card used back then.  The Ringlemann Scale wasn't a new even back then, it was first used in France in 1888.

My late mother-in-law was in SP's law department in Los Angeles and she was muchly involved in the pollution issue.  The Law group was able to get an exemption for excessive smoking engines if they were reported and then not used again until shopped in Los Angeles.   They even had a large sign placed near the track somewhere on the east end of the Beaumont grade reminding the train crews to report smoking engines.  Nothing made her more angry that lazy, could give a carp engineers who would not report a smoker.  That was all they had to do to avoid a fine. 

If I recall correctly back in 1947 it was prohibited to sand the engine until passing Pomona eastbound,

Cabhop Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> My late mother-in-law was in SP's law department
> in Los Angeles and she was muchly involved in the
> pollution issue.  The Law group was able to get
> an exemption for excessive smoking engines if they
> were reported and then not used again until
> shopped in Los Angeles.   They even had a large
> sign placed near the track somewhere on the east
> end of the Beaumont grade reminding the train
> crews to report smoking engines.  Nothing made
> her more angry that lazy, could give a carp
> engineers who would not report a smoker.  That
> was all they had to do to avoid a fine. 

   As I recall, the sign was on the curve between Myoma and Thousand Pamls.

Brian Black
Castle Rock, CO