MAINTENANCE OF WAY IN THE 21^st CENTURY--Ballast Tampers and Beyond

(updated article on 3/25/08)

By Bob Mintz

(Special thanks to Art Muller, Gordon Wilson and Michael Rotolo in their contributions for this piece)

Gandy dancers carrying pieces of rail have all but disappeared, replaced by huge pieces of railway track operations machinery maintaining track from the ballast up rather than simply rolling along over the top of the rails.

Puffing Northerns and Mallets no longer regularly haul trains across Class 1 rails in North America, but the days of behemoths plying the tracks is not over. Using the assembly line method, these huge machines and trains of machines help railroads get he work done within today's short windows of opportunity.

Modern machinery is enabling railroads to deal with those challenges. In one pass, these motorized units working in tandem, remove old ties, fishplates, pigtails and rails, prepare the track bed for new ties, lay new ties, threads in new rails, and leave behind high-quality trackwork.

Ballast Regulators, Tie Cranes, Yard Cleaners, Shoulder Ballast Cleaners, Switch and Mainline Undercutting equipment, Tie loading machines along with other maintenance-of-way equipment are available by manufacturers such as Plasser-American and Knox Kershaw Inc.

Yard cleaning services provide for material reclamation and improving yard track condition for train crews. Undercutting services improve track drainage, lower track and resolve clearance issues.

Plasser-American does not only sell individual pieces of equipment that includes tamping technology; ballast management; stabilization; ballast cleaning; track renewal; rail treatment, track recording; and catenary, but their entire line of products work in unison, such as the THS-2000 system, which is a tie handling and track surface system that includes all of the following individual units:

Spike Puller
Loading car/Spike Collector
Tie Remover TKO
Tie Handler
Anchor Spreader
Cribber
Tie Inserter
Tie Handler
Gantry Crane
Tie Cars
More Tie Cars
Herzog Crane
Workshop car
Nipper/Tamping Machine
Rail Lifter
Spike Driver
Anchor Squeezer
Spike Driver
Plow PBR
Unimat 09-32/4S with Plow Trailer
PTS 90 Track Stabilizer with Double Broom

See this link for more information and photos:

http://www.plasseramerican.com/en/p_tamping/00index.htm

Of special interest might be the Switch/Production Tamping Machine Metro 4x4 ZW, for obvious reasons.

http://www.plasseramerican.com/en/p_tamping/metro44zw.htm

One fine morning while waiting for the LIRR commuter train to take me into Manhattan, I hit the proverbial pot of motorized unit gold, a caravan parked on a siding at my station. Talk about variations!!! And “whassup” with Gordon Wilson's hockey stick in this cavalcade of cars???

I met a man on my daily commute who had some of the best credentials for a pal around. No, my buddy did not have a heated pool nor boat. He works for the Long Island Railroad and he got me a ticket to ride the geometry car in and out of the 4 tunnels leading into Penn Station NY while he examined the tracks below for stresses, cracks and imperfections using infrared technology.

Surprisingly, much of these maintenance of way equipment pieces are made in HO.

Lionel has recently produced some new categories to be included in their maintenance of way items made after the Postwar era. These include inspection vehicles, pickup trucks, rail bonders, speeders, and step vans,

BALLAST TAMPERS:

This group will include the Postwar variety; remakes; as well as more current and prototypical versions.

Postwar style:
54 Ballast tamper	8578 NYC Ballast Tamper
18464 #54 Ballast Tamper Postwar celebration series
Modern Style:
18483 C & O Ballast Tamper “48”	18490 Union Pacific Ballast Tamper
18483 LCCA OVERSTAMP C&O Ballast Tamper "48"
18491 M.O.W. Ballast Tamper “325”	28403 Pennsylvania Ballast Tamper “18”

BURRO CRANES:

This group has the original Postwar version as well as several remakes and one that was part of a set. This particular item could be used separately and was not dependent on another piece to operate.

#3360 Lionel Lines Burro Crane	18402 Lionel Lines Burro Crane
18405 Santa Fe Burro Crane	18410 Pennsylvania Burro Crane
18477 Union Pacific Burro Crane Set #31706	28414 “#3360” Lionel Lines Burro Crane
28422 Pennsylvania Burro Crane

FIRE CARS:

This group contains the original Postwar version; remakes; one that was part of a set; another that could be considered a secondary set made up of separate sale items; as well as one never manufactured. The 1998 Service Station Set fire car could not function without the instruction/generator car. In the 1999 preview catalog, there was another firecar similar to the 1998 SSS, but in a different color scheme. This item also was dependent on the instruction/generator car to operate. In a bit of my own creativity, I purchased like separate sale identical items to make a second Lionelville Fire Company set to complement the first. #18412 Union Pacific fire fighter car as seen in the 1991 Book 1 but was not manufactured.

52 Fire car	8379 Pennsylvania motorized fire fighter
18411 Canadian Pacific fire fighter car	18412 Union Pacific fire fighter car-NOT MANUFACTURED
18470 #52 Fire Car Postwar celebration series
21753--1998 Service Station Fire Rescue Train Set:
18444 NYC Firecar
19853 NYC Instruction Generator Car	19442 Water supply flatcar/tank
19854 Lionelville Fire Company #1 searchlight car	26961 Lionelville Fire Company flatcar/ladder
26505 Lionelville Fire Company work caboose
11988--NYC Firecar and Instruction Car Set: (includes 18445 & 19857 only)
18445 NYC fire fighter car	19857 NYC Instruction Generator Car
16390 Lionel Flatcar w/ black water tankcar	19858 Lionelville Operational Searchlight Car "19584"
26991 Lionelville Ladder Firecar, Fire Dept #2	26513 NYC Fire Response Unit

GANG CARS:

This group contains the original Postwar version and remakes. Possibly in a Cheshire cat (C&O) smile towards collectors, one of the remakes included the rare gray bumpers variation.

50 Lionel gang car	18417 Gang Car
18465 #50 Gang Car Postwar celebration series	18485 New York Central Gang Car
28442 #50 Gang Car

INSPECTION CARS:

This group contains the original Postwar version; a "Mintz-Modification" variation; a regular remake; a remake of an archive sample and a street hot rod version.

I noticed a similarity of an Eastwood Memorabilia product and made some modifications here and there and created my own homage to Postwar Lionel.

68 Inspection car, DeSoto wagon	68-modified Eastwood #303500 - Lionel 1955 Chevy Delivery Van/Bank with #68 chassis
18447 Executive Inspection Vehicle Postwar celebration series	18454 Archive Collection #68 Blue Inspection Car
18463 Hot Rod Inspection Vehicle	28440 Pennsylvania Inspection Car

INSPECTION VEHICLES:

This is a new category altogether. The first issue looked similar to a Checker station wagon, while the shells of the others were all Dodge® Ram 1500 V-8s

18430 NYC Crew Car	18436 Dodge® Ram Track Inspection Vehicle
18438 PRR High Rail Vehicle "49"	18439 UP High Rail Maintenance Vehicle
18440 NJ Transit High Rail Inspection Vehicle	18484 Norfolk Southern Dodge® Inspection Vehicle

MAINTENANCE CARS:

This group contains the original Postwar version and remakes.

69 Lionel maintenance car	18406 Lionel operating track maintenance car
28404 #69 Maintenance Car Postwar celebration series

PICKUP TRUCKS:

This is also a new category, but includes a reverse color version done by LCCA, as well as a special convention issue overstamp for their 1999 convention.

18424 On-Track Pick-up Truck	52107 LCCA Pickup
52107b Lionel Pickup Truck LCCA Fort Worth convention stickers added

RAIL BONDERS:

This is also a new category of all similar shells.

18482 New Haven Rail Bonder "16"	18489 Great Northern Rail Bonder"HR-73"
18492 M.O.W. Rail Bonder "58"	28400 Amtrak Rail Bonder
28406 CSX Rail Bonder "92794"	Conrail Rail Bonder “X409”

SNOWPLOWS:

This group consists of regular wedge plows as well as rotary snowplows. The confusion of the Postwar version relates to the so-called backwards “A”. Price guides refer to a backwards version and the correct version. The only problem is that the Rio Grande intentionally used the backwards “A” as part of their logo, so the forward version is actually technically wrong, not the backwards version. Even though the backwards “A” was prototypical, I suppose that the folks at Lionel, being politically correct way back when, felt that a backwards “A” would confuse small children and made a second version. One item comes from part of a set and is not dependent on any other piece to function.

Wedge
53 Rio Grande snowplow-backwards “A”	53 Rio Grande snowplow-forward “A”
8264 Canadian Pacific snowplow	18458 #53 Rio Grande Snowplow Postwar celebration series- forward “A”
28413 Milwaukee Road snowplow “X903”	28427 Christmas Snowplow
Rotary
58 Great Northern rotating snowplow	8459 Rio Grande rotary snowplow
18400 Santa Fe, 2-4-2 snowplow, "8400"	18446 GN Rotary Snowplow "58" Postwar celebration series
18466 Rotary Snow Plow "900080"	18498 from # 31717 Canadian Pacific Rail Snow Removal Train "400802"
18488 New York Central Rotary Snowplow "5"	28417 Christmas rotary snowplow
28423 Alaska Rotary Snowplow

SPEEDERS:

This is also a new category of all similar shells. LCCA is offering a unique combination of a three part issue, a flatcar with both a powered and dummy speeder.

18468 Canadian National Railroad Speeder	18469 Chessie System Railroad Speeder "83"
18493 Santa's Speeder "No. 1"	18497 Norfolk & Western Speeder "541005"
18981 Pennsylvania Speeder	18982 Santa Fe Speeder "122"
28407 Union Pacific Speeder	LCCA_SPEEDER_01 Frisco "725"
LCCA_SPEEDER_02 MKT "730"	28412 Christmas Speeder “No. 2”
28408 New Jersey Central Speeder “MW840”	28419 Lionel Lines Speeder

STEP VANS:

Like the pickup trucks, this is also a new category, and also includes a reverse color version done by LCCA, as well as a special convention issue overstamp for their 2000 convention as well as a third party repaint and a special commemorative done by the TCA Desert Division.

From Gordon Wilson: “ I know that there were 240 of them made for sale, first to TCA and then to the general public and some "special ones". We ordered them from LIONEL, and I don't remember what they charged us, but it was way under their normal price. They were delivered in FOUR boxes to my home in Fountain Hills. One box had the chassis/motor in them; one box had the truck cabs in them; one box had the compartment part of the truck in them. The last box had the headlights and tail lights in it. They were all made of GREY plastic, which sets them apart from all the other Step Vans that were made.

To prevent them from being swapped around and made into some "RARE" item at a later date, we had them LASER engraved on the two front doors and the rear doors of the compartment part. The front doors say "TCA" over capital "DD". On the rear, the laser engraving says, "TCA (left door) DD" (right door) and under that on the left door is "5-11" and on the right door is "1996." That was the day of our Silver Anniversary Party. The Holographic decals were made by a local vendor in Scottsdale and say the following: The Roof one - It has the TCA logo in one corner and the Desert Division Logo in the other. A Railroad track runs from corner to corner in a sort of modified "S" pattern. Each side of the Track's remaining area contains, "25th Anniversary." The colors move around according to the way the light hits it. The two side decals are the same on both sides. There is a railroad track which appears to connect to the track on the roof and swings around toward the front of the body in an elongated "C". On the top section of that track is a rectangular black box with silver letters that say, "25th Anniversary". Centered underneath that box is in full caps, "DESERT DIVISION" and under that is "Train Collectors Association" and finally, under that are the dates "1971-1996". The Desert Division was founded or acknowledged as a Division by the TCA BOD in June of 1971. The decals were the stick on type, as were the decals on the rear. Each Step Van was personally numbered, from #1 #240. These decals were made by the same firm and were translucent, except for the numbers on them. The numbers were attached to the left of the left hand door and done vertically.

I remember that Bob Caplan, then TCA President Elect, was the successful bidder on at least one of the "special ones". Here goes for the special ones: At each banquet table there was ONE special van. The instructions at each table said: "Banquet Table Prize Step Van in Special Chrome Scheme. A lucky attendee at each table will win one! Additional Vans will be auctioned at the end of the evening." There were 12 tables, so there were 15 of these Chrome ones. Then something else, "ONE of a KIND Banquet Step Van Shells.Reverse Colors with Blue Cab and Silver Van". Also: "Set of Gray unetched shells, just as used for our regular run of Division Cars, but neither Cab or the Van Has been laser etched. The graphics are the final prototype provided by the decorating firm. They chose # 275 because it was outside the range of Production Units". And final factoid: "One of a kind Test Sample with Laser Etching on the Front Panel of Van. No other shells were marked in this fashion---TCA - DD and date being placed on rear doors for all other shells. The Vinyl Material is a test sample of pattern not used. The clear graphic overlay was used to test appearance against different backgrounds and is unique". To the best of what I know, that accounts for all of them and the extra unused parts that were left over. NO extra chassis were sent by Lionel- only what we paid for; I guess the plastic stuff was so cheap that they didn't miss it.

BTW, the boxes were drop shipped to me from (DRUM ROLL) CHINA. So as far back as 1996 Lionel was having things made off shore. This was, we have been told, the final item made by LTI prior to the sale to Wellspring. That info did not come to me from Dick Kughn, but from a front office employee of LIONEL who is no longer associated with Lionel.

We had a "step van assembly party" at the house of one of our members. I seem to remember that the officers at the time were the ones who did all the work, and their spouses, if they attended. Those were in 1996: Gordon Wilson, President; Bill Mack, Vice President; Beth Stange, Treasurer; Fred Hunter, Secretary; Jerry Calkins, Member at Large; Peter Coleman, Member at Large; and Paul Wassermann, Member at Large; Spouses who attended: Christie Wilson, Connie Calkins, Shirley Hunter, and TOM Stange. If memory serves me correctly the "party" was held at the Stange home in Scottsdale.”

STEPVAN UPDATE:
From Bob Caplan:

“Stepvan #276, spray painted aluminum on gray plastic unlasered cab and van shells. This was the first van assembled as a trial to see how everything went together. It is marked with the limited run violet decorations made for the banquet cars.”

“Unique set of LTI shells provided to The Desert Division by Lionel in November 1995, to help in designing graphics, perhaps one of a kind color test shot. Thought to be one of a kind in blue as no production vans were made in blue. There are no part numbers on the inside (as are found on regular shells). No tabs to secure shells to frame. From Lionel to help design our graphics prior to production. A pre-production sample.”

52088 Desert TCA 25th Anniversary On-Track Step Van	52088 Desert TCA 25th Anniversary On-Track Step Van-Banquet Variation
52088 Desert TCA 25th Anniversary On-Track Step Van -- Pre-Production sample	52088 Desert TCA 25th Anniversary On-Track Step Van -- Pre-Production sample
Unique set of LTI shells provided to The Desert Division by Lionel
18423 On-Track Step Van	52108a Grand Trunk Track Van LCCA
Monopoly Step Van - Mint Green	52108 LCCA Stepvan
Monopoly Stepvan -Blue	Monopoly Stepvan -Dark Green
Monopoly Stepvan -Silver	Monopoly Stepvan -Yellow
UPS Stepvan

(Monopoly stepvan photos courtesy of Bobby Striklin aka Trainbuddies.com)

TIE JECTORS:

This group contains the original Postwar version and remakes.

55 Tie-Jector, white lettering, "5511	18427 Tie-Jector "55"
18455 New York Central Tie-Jector "X-2"	28426 Union Pacific Tie-jector NOT MANUFACTURED

 TRACK CLEANERS:

This group will include the Postwar variety as well as more current and prototypical versions.

3927 Track cleaning car	18461 Lionel Track Cleaner
26835 M.o.W. Track Cleaning Car	36878 New York Central Track Cleaning Car