[clemmie_doris12]

Holey smokes. There wasn’t much left of that unit. What a tragic incident.

Ted, we thank you for digging through the archives in order to find and post this photo.

[clemmie_doris12]

This resembles a locomotive seat, but there are a few details that make me think it is not. The seat material would not stay clean for very long on a locomotive. I think it is more than likely off of a light rail vehicle such as a PCC car or something similar. Does anyone out there have a better guess?

[clemmie_doris12]

To build on Charlie’s comments, the main driver behind car scheduling in TCS was the trip plan. When a car was released for movement, TCS developed a trip plan for that car from origin to destination. It would take into account the day and time released and determine the first job available to move the car and then determine each subsequent move based on the schedule of the previous train or yard job. Determining the scheduling for each potential move would seem to be the biggest issue in creating the program.

[clemmie_doris12]

Dana,

I will let Charlie Duckworth chime in on this issue. He is more familiar with both the programming aspect and the modeling aspect than I am.

[clemmie_doris12]

Ryan, the computer system that UP uses was developed by the MP. It was named Transportation Control System, TCS, and it was first begun with federal assistance in the early 1970s. It was and is a very good system. It can be argued that one of the reasons that UP sought to merge with MP was this system. It survives in an updated state, but it is very much a part of the MP legacy. UP’s COIN, Computer Operated Information Network, was dropped like a hot rock after the merger.

UP is moving toward a PC based interface, but the old mainframe TCS system keeps chugging along in the background. Some argue that the base TCS system was difficult to use, but I “grew up” with it and had no problem. I would stack TCS up against any other system in current use. Zone-Track-Spot was an integral part of TCS and was MP all the way. It could have changed, recently, but a lot of UP’s IT development is still carried out in the old MP headquarters building in St. Louis.

There are several “power users” of TCS that are on this forum. That includes me and the moderator. We would be happy to answer any questions.

[clemmie_doris12]

I never heard any stories about company hired cooks for bunk car outfits. I think it is possible that individual gangs were allowed to hire their own cooks. If so, I would imagine that each member of the gang was required to contribute a set amount on a regular basis. Most of the stories that I heard involved members of the gang doing the cooking and clean up chores.

If anyone has any information with reference to bunk car cooks, I would love to see it.

[clemmie_doris12]

Interesting, but tragic report. This incident shows just how critical having and acting on the proper information can be.

That appears to be a rather large passenger train. Too bad those days are long gone.

[clemmie_doris12]

Here are the direct links:

Hotel
http://www.mopac.org/38-convention-content/189-hotel-reservation-information

Woody Sutton
http://www.mopac.org/38-convention-content/188-woody-sutton-convention-bio

General convention page
http://www.mopac.org/annual-convention/185-2017-mt-vernon-il

[clemmie_doris12]

The convention page has been updated with the biography for our keynote speaker, Woody Sutton. The convention hotel will be the Drury Inn & Suites in Mt. Vernon. Reservation information will be coming soon.

[clemmie_doris12]

David,

Can you narrow down the territory a little? Talking about the entire railroad makes it difficult as traffic will vary by region.

[clemmie_doris12]

I bought the Walthers offering at my LHS the other day. They don’t look too bad. I am not an expert on trailers, so I can’t comment on their accuracy. They are good enough for me.

The TrainWorx trailers will be available in the Company Store. If you are interested, please make your purchase there and support the MPHS.

[clemmie_doris12]

As David mentioned, the branchline caboose is in terrible condition. The roof has been leaking for quite some time and you can imagine the trouble that condition has caused. Serious rust is everywhere. The trucks are not original, either. I tried to buy it when it first came up for disposal, but my offer was rejected. They probably did me a favor. As much as I would like to restore it, I just don’t think it is worth it. I could be conned into taking it, if they want to give it away or sell it for a dollar. I would have to wrangle UP out of a free move on a flat car, also.

[clemmie_doris12]

Ron, I saw this post a few weeks ago and I have been trying to decide how to reply. I have worked in and around Durand many times since my railroad career started in 1978. The Coffeyville Subdiv. (north-south) was ABS until 1978/1979 when it was changed over to CTC. That creates a few differences in signal arrangement when you compare one to another. In other words, what you see today will not be like what it was in the ’60s or early ’70s.

I think you have the signal configuration down pretty close. In ABS, the signals governing the entrance to the siding will be “paired up” and placed just ahead of the switch points at a standard switch. A spring switch would more than likely be different, but there was no such switch in use at this location. The two signals you note on the main, on either side of the diamond are wired to the gate and were there to protect the crossing. The east-west route, I don’t have a TT handy to check the subdiv. name, was not signaled. The normal position of the gate was against movement on this track, so you had to approach the crossing prepared to stop. I can confirm this, as I saw the cast iron crossing warning sign when I was on the track one mile east of where the diamond used to be on a cold winter’s night in December 1978.

The crossover that you mentioned probably did not have any signals associated with it. The signals at either end of the siding would have offered adequate protection and efficiency at this location. The MP was a big user of GRS signal equipment and preferred three color type signals over searchlights. I could not say for sure what type of three color signal it was. It could have been vertical or the triangle configuration.

As for traffic to and from Wichita, I think quite a bit of it went through to Rich Hill and then up to Pleasant Hill on the Carthage Subdiv. I know for a fact that there was a regular through freight between Wichita and St. Louis during WWII. It’s flip-flopped now, but the main track portion of the wye at Pleasant Hill was originally the east leg which supported the traffic patterns prior to the 1950s.

Is there anyway that you can post a scan of the condensed profile for this location? I might be able to offer more/better info if I could view it.

[clemmie_doris12]

Received my shirt today, must say I was very pleased. Good quality and printing.

If you passed on this you may have lost. Many thanks to all that made this possible.

Thanks, Bill. Your feedback is greatly appreciated. We work very diligently to provide a quality product that is relevant to the convention. And, we are fortunate to have a supplier that is generally quite accommodating.

For those that might be interested, we still have a few of these available. You can order them through our website – http://www.mopac.org/store/convention-events

[clemmie_doris12]

Thanks, Bill. It now has one heck of a paint job. It will look even better when the decals and striping are applied.

For anyone that is interested, this caboose was painted with Imron Safety Red. In my opinion, it is a perfect match, if there is such a thing. I have checked and Rustoleum Safety Red is almost as good of a match.

[attachment=0:3g28nm5a]2016-10-21 12.29.55.jpg[/attachment:3g28nm5a]

[Author]

Posts