Here is the Video. http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Freight-Train-Derails-Near-Littlerock-126279648.html
In that footage I see hoppers and tankers that are completely missing their trucks... is that normal in a derailment?
Yes. Sure can be. There is a casting on the car bottom, called a 'bolster' and also one on the truck called a 'bolster.' The car is male, the truck female. The car bolster casting sits inside the truck bolster. In the middle there is a steel pin which sits in a pocket in the truck bolster. When the car is lowered into the truck this pin also slips into a hole in the car bolster. It is not initially a tight fit. When new the pin can easily be lifted out. But over time, dirt, sand, etc, gets in. Sometimes you see the truck is still seemingly attached to a car, when in reality it's just hanging on that pin. Been around a few thousand of those parts...... Boxcab E50
I know coaches, and probably freight cars for the same reason,. are done that way for safety. The trucks can weigh almost as much as the carbody itself, (20ton) and in the case of a rollover, it's coming through the floor.
If you are talking about trucks staying attached, not from my experience working on freight cars. Passenger cars are different in consideration of human safety. But they initially fit the car same as a freight truck. The fit of both bolsters and the king pin is actually meant to be just slightly loose. The pins themselves, we used to make fom castings which were then heated and hammered for tempering. To toughen them up against wear. Sometimes the bolster castings were not quite right, so we'd need to shim them. And then we'd also need to match that by shimming side bearings. One thing I did not mention is brake rigging. Which usually gets torn away, or well mangled. Those mechanisms have no intended effect upon keeping a truck attached. Boxcab E50
Having lived in that vicinity for many years, that would be the ex-SP Colton Cutoff. I don't recall any derailments on that line in the past. :tb-sad:
Just a thought here, but that news report has a bit of confusion. It says: "Between 50 and 100 cars derailed near...." Then it says "More than 20 of the cars were off the tracks or overturned." So, which is it? If between 50 and 100 cars derailed, then between 50 and 100 cars are off the tracks... I am guessing they meant to discuss that more than twenty overturned, but the rest remained upright. :tb-wacky::tb-wacky:
That’s interesting. I drive through that area a couple of times a month. I don’t see many trains, but I see a lot of UP MOW vehicles running around. I always wondered about that line. I wish I knew more about it.
Well I heard on another news channel that there were 100 cars and 20 derailed. So your Guess is as good as mine.
