Fwd: Re: Line under number

[NW Mailing List]

I got this Mechanical Department answer from Bill Honeycutt.  No turnips endangered in this translation...

Skip

> ---------- Original Message ----------
>     From: WILLIAM HONEYCUTT <werails at comcast.net>
>     To: C SALMON JR <gkholine at cox.net>
>     Date: March 7, 2023 at 10:02 AM
>     Subject: Re: Line under number
> 
>     Hey Skip,
> 
>     It arose from former Nickel Plate and Wabash switchers and road switchers and also the T-6's having non-alignment control draft gear (better known as swivel butt couplers) which resulted in jackknifing when the locomotive consist was in high buff situations like coming east out of Bluefield in dynamic braking.  Later Geeps like the NKP GP30's came with alignment control so there wasn't a problem with them.
> 
>     There were several derailments when the NKP and Wabash older Geeps started showing up on this end of the railroad and the result was the rule about using dynamic brake and moving units dead-in-tow when one of the flat land units showed up in the consist.  Since not everyone looked at the list of the non-alignment units in the old N&W Form G-66 (eventually NS-1, Rule L-214), we started painting the line under the numbers to alert engineers that they had one in the consist.
> 
>     Alignment control couplers had "ears" on either side of the shank that engaged with the alignment control draft gear to restrict the swing of the couplers.
> 
>     Bill
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>         > >         On 03/07/2023 1:16 PM C SALMON JR <gkholine at cox.net> wrote:
> > 
> > 
> > 
> >         Bill 
> > 
> >         Do you have anything that will explain why some locomotives had a line under their numbers.  I think it has some to do with possible "jack knifing".
> > 
> >         Skip
> > 
> >     > 





SKIP SALMON
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