track. An L-shapedpieceof rodhada secondpieceof rod sol-
dered to it at a90degreeangle.”
The L-shape rests ina recessbetween the railswith the short
legof the Lextendingbeyond the track (5, previouspage)
such that itwill clear the sidesof a car. The secondpiece is
positioned slightlyoff-center toavoid the car couplers. The
L-shapedpiece is allowed topivot in tubing that isheld inplace
by the track. The crossties are trimmed in themiddle toallow
the secondpiece to swingupor down. (A counterweight on
thearmoutsideof the rails canact as anoperatinghandleand
keep the stopout of thewaywhen it isn’t needed.)
George’s “NewGreatWesternRailway” is at
PatrickStanleyuses a coupleofmethods toprevent runaways.
One is to install someWoodlandScenics grassbetween the
rails. Hekeeps it out of the center of thegauge so it doesn't
interferewithKadee coupler pins, and trims theheight
so it just contacts axles. Thegrass is enough tokeepa car
from rolling, but allows switching the spurwithout special
considerations.
Patrick sometimesplaces a small clumpof loose foliage in front
of the car, on thedownhill side. LikeGeorgeBooth’s eraser, it
holds the car andhas tobemechanicallyplaced/removeddur-
ing switching. But it looksmoreprototypical.
BobBattles suggestedusing sisal rope. He cuts the stifffibers
toaxle-height, andglues them inplaceasneeded. They look
likeweeds growingbetween the rails. Theyare stiffenough to
keep cars from rolling, but a locomotive can still pull or push
the cars through the "weeds." For threeor four cars ina small
siding itworksfine.
Questions, Answers&Tips - 4
RichardMorrison suggestsholdingamotor tool roughlyparal-
lelwith the rails andmakinga slight dip that's the same radius
as a car'swheels (a smoothnotch) ineach. Thenotch should
be just bigenough so that thefirstwheel of a car or carson
the sidingwill rest thereandwon't roll past it unless it’spulled
bya loco.
“Greenville”hada steepgradewhereheneeded to setout cars.
“I drilledaholebeside the rail bigenough tofit thewoodenpart
of acotton-tippedapplicator. I positioned thehole in frontof a
signal cabinet so I couldfind it.When I stop the train, I put the
dowel in theholeandback the train slowly so thecaron the
uphill sideof thegrade restsagainst it. That alsobunches the
slack so I canuncouple.When the locomotive returnsandcou-
ples to the train, I pull ahead slightly tomake sure it coupledand
remove thedowel. Itworksgreat and ishardlynoticeable.”
Formanymore ideas about holding carsongrades:
ACI label placement
Q.
Could someone suggestwhere IwouldputanACI label on
this coveredhopper (6nextpage)?
–Deemiorgos
A.
JurgenKleyleinandRobSpangleroffered somegeneral
answersonplacingACI labels, but aprototypephotoof thecar
hasn’t turnedupyet.OncarswhereACI labelswereoriginal fac-
toryor railwaypaint shop installations, the locationwouldbe
dictatedby the letteringdiagram (7nextpage), andwouldbe
consistent fromcar tocar in the series.
Oncars retrofitted, itwouldmostlybedoneby someworkeron
footwitha rivet gun, sohewouldmount it someplacewherehe
MRH-Apr2014
