Railroaders' Nostalgia > A Few More RR Lingo Selections

TURNOUT - Another word for a track switch.

CORNERED - During a switching move gone bad, an attempt may be made to route a second car through a switch though the first car has not rolled into the clear of the path of the second.  See this thread from about a year and a half ago:
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4992372,4992587#msg-4992587

ON THE GROUND - A train belongs on the tracks.  If it leaves the tracks it's said to be on the ground.  This term does not convey any information about the extent of the incident.  That is, if a single wheel slips off the rail it is said to have gone on the ground.  However, if a runaway train leaves the track on a curve near the bottom of a steep grade, plows its wreckage into another train at a control point, and shoves that wreckage into a third train on another adjacent track (as occurred in St. Paul this week) - it's also said to be "on the ground". 

SPLIT SWITCH - Two meanings.  As a noun it's the full name for the common type of track switch.  As a verb it's the result of a car moving over a switch (defective or not thrown properly) and not takiing either the normal main route or the diverging route, but rather the car splits the difference and winding up "on the ground" between the two preferred routss.

DYNAMITE - An emergency application of the air brakes.  It may be intentional, initiated by the engineer or by a trainman or carman by use of an emergency brake valve on passenger cars or by use of tailhose, caboose valve, or opening of angle cock at end of train.  It may also be unintentional due ot breakage of the air brake  hose or a defective control valve on a car.  A car with such a defective control valve is called a DYNAMITER or a KICKER.

JOIN THE BIRDS - To jump off a moving train.

-LD

I had a 'dynamiter' in a key train a couple months ago. The engineer made a set to stop so I could protect a crossing and, bam, into emergency. When I called the DS and he asked me what I thought happened, I told him we had a dynamiter. My young engineer had never heard the term but the DS knew exactly what I meant. He didn't know the term "kicker" either. My misery (since I had to walk and inspect the entire train) was his teachable moment. 

Back in the day when I had a dynamiter in the train called for some "Feed Valve" braking. These new high tech unis don't have them anymore. I definitely did not learn that in the L&N Apprentice Engineer program, Tricks learned from the old heads. Saved a lot of headaches and walking.

Steve

I've used that trick too. Here's a good one for all the engineers, have you ever made a running release from emergency without stopping? Think of how many rules you would violate now for doing that. I told a CSX instructor i had at recertification once. He said you couldn't do it. My comment, you came off the C&O where 40 was a fast train. I have seen it done twice. Once firing I didn't know waht I was seeing with about 60 pigs. Then I did it once with about 50 or so pigs. Never saw it done with a merchandise train or a coal train. Although, a coal train down a small grade should work fairly well.

Sam

That wasn't too hard to do on the Super C at 79 mph with a short train.
 

I have also done a running release from an UDE. Going fast enough with a short train to reset the pc and knock them off. I have heard old heads could do it with the old 24 brake valve.

Steve

Done that twice but going right into dynamic braking. 130 coal train two trips in a row with the same power, same train on a heavy grade while going from first service to about 10 lbs the brakes released. Speed picked right up and put it into emergency. Had time to recover the PCS with handle at handle off position and right back into DB instead of burning up the engine brakes. Took three miles to come to a stop and at that location knew the DB would take us rest of the way. So released the brakes and continuted the trip. Later learned that the electronic brake valve was the cause of the failure. . 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/01/21 13:18 by PCCRNSEngr.

Long ago, I overheard a conversation on the scanner between two D&H crews having a meet here near Schenectady, NY. 

One engineer noted surprise that the crew he was meeting wasn't the crew he was expecting to see on the opposing train. Turns out the original crew had run out of hours and had been relieved en route, on account of persistent emergency braking problems. 

But on the radio it sounded like this:

"Yeah, that crew died at Oneonta.  They had a dynamiter in their train leaving Binghamton."

The approaching 9/11 anniversary makes me wonder how that comment would be understood today, if the person listening in didn't know some RR lingo.