Let’s see your Custom or rare flatbed loads!

I recently acquired a Western Maryland TOFC and quickly discovered that the trailer is too tall to clear my upper level line. So what's a modeler to do? Get creative!

I had two trailer frames that were sitting around collecting dust. Found a good use for them and I'm happy with the way the car looks.

Adriatic,

Thanks for trying to help explain. 

I do understand the problem pretty well from a pure mathematical standpoint  (engineer- halfway decent at basic math ), but was curious how much effect was seen in real life, and how it was dealt with. 

What also occurred to me (though obviously would not work for a real concrete pipe) was that it could benefit from slight flexing of the plastic (if the pipe is some sort of styrene), combined with either the pipe sliding along the long axis of the car within the mounts or the mounts shifting a little left to right along the short axis of the cars as I was trying to suggest in my original post (would have been easier to describe on a white board with some markers ).

Hopefully Paul will chime in to confirm or deny.

-Dave

 

Dave45681 posted:

PAUL ROMANO posted:

 

                      Weaver 50' flat cars w/swiveling homemade pipe load.

That's interesting!

Can you explain briefly what happens in curves?  Is there some minimum diameter of track it can navigate (I suspect it's something like at least O54 or O72?). 

Is it truly just a pivot or swivel on just the center point of each mount, or do the pipe holder pieces slide (side to side) along the wood supports they rest on?  If so, is there some sort of mechanism in there to re-center them once on straight track again?

Maybe I am over thinking it.  I guess it looks like it could be similar to a Schnabel car, which I'm pretty sure is is just a pivot point (that happens to have three trucks under it) under both ends (at least for our models - I don't know if the prototype is different).  Of course the Schnabel doesn't have a coupler in the middle holding the ends, just the structure of the transformer and girders holding it mounted to each set of trucks at each end.

Sorry for the long question...   Geometric issues sometimes fascinate me a little too much.

-Dave

      Dave- 072 curves and swivel details. Hope this answers your questions. 

coach joe posted:

Johan, like most of your work that home made engine-generator is fantastic.  Did you start out with something that was supposed to be an engine or is it made entirely out of random shapes and pieces assembled into that very realistic load?

Joe. Thank you. This EMD -engine-generator is a only load, i don´t have any plan put that anywhere else than flat car. This is a my third steam boiler/engine load and i think more comes.

Johan

Well, a while back I wanted some flatcars for my "work-train". So I made 2-3 that fit what I was attempting to represent. (please remember these are home made for a specific need at the time)

Two tractors being delivered via flat car. 

That's a very handsome delivery of tractors on the team track Patrick.

PAUL ROMANO posted:

   Dave- 072 curves and swivel details. Hope this answers your questions. 

  I can't say for sure for Dave; but no, it was great to see but missed one part .

Does sliding of the pipe occur?      ( Why? To compensate for the changed distance of pivot points fom  "a"to"b" once the cars are in a curve vs straight).

If not, does the pipe flex some? (Dave asks)

Or does cribbing slide and pivot? (seems to only pivot)

No compensation for it needed at 0-72?

The whole point (reason😊)  being at some max angle between cars in curves there is bind with stationary pivot alone.

Would it run on say 64" or 58" ? (ugly overhang, etc. aside )  If the pipe slides it "could/might/"almost but trucks hit"/etc.)

In real life the pipe is either cupped loosely or is making up part of the rolling structure. So does the pipe slide loose, or does the cribbing below allow fore and aft shifts to allow for slack travel between cars well as the angle shifts without putting pulling stresses on the pipe?  

Adriatic posted:

PAUL ROMANO posted:

   Dave- 072 curves and swivel details. Hope this answers your questions. 

  I can't say for sure for Dave; but no, it was great to see but missed one part .

Does sliding of the pipe occur?      ( Why? To compensate for the changed distance of pivot points fom  "a"to"b" once the cars are in a curve vs straight).

If not, does the pipe flex some? (Dave asks)

Or does cribbing slide and pivot? (seems to only pivot)

No compensation for it needed at 0-72?

The whole point (reason😊)  being at some max angle between cars in curves there is bind with stationary pivot alone.

Would it run on say 64" or 58" ? (ugly overhang, etc. aside )  If the pipe slides it "could/might/"almost but trucks hit"/etc.)

In real life the pipe is either cupped loosely or is making up part of the rolling structure. So does the pipe slide loose, or does the cribbing below allow fore and aft shifts to allow for slack travel between cars well as the angle shifts without putting pulling stresses on the pipe?  

No, the pipe does not slide or flex, nor does the cribbing slide or pivot. No compensation needed for it on 072 curves. I ran this car at my club, NJ Hirailers, through reverse curves of 072 and greater with no problem and no binding at the pivot points simply because the pipe just swivels on curves.  

Boom section from a Manitowoc 16000

 

                        Weaver 50' flatcar w/Weaver Alco truck load.  

coach joe posted:

That's a very handsome delivery of tractors on the team track Patrick.

Thanks Coach Joe!  The photos of the semi - tractors on flats cars are some re-runs from past episodes of  TTT.

I figured arc length from the chord length (stringline of pivot) of 12.5"(50'cars) and 36R (0-72") and the difference between chord and arc length is about 1/16" give or take 1/64" (3/64-5/64). I couldn't find a calculator to get arc length from the chord and radius without figuring the angle without stigilli ..... it would've been easier to draw it all " 1/16" play/slack is needed on 0-72 " to stop bind.

Not such an unusual flat car load, however a not so common layout scene, demonstrating the circus style unloading process employed during the early piggyback era. 

Love the thread, thanks to all the posters. there are a ton of great ideas here.

 I wanted to encourage Paul to consider the Alaska pipe line car next time with the pipe situated on cribbing like this.

 

Here's a fairly obscure flatcar and load - Fandor flatcar with an airplane. The painted and lithographed tin for the plane is very thin.

just a few pictures...

 

One of these days will get around to blocking and chaining it down per Mil Specs.  Guess am waiting until get the Paladin (M109) assembled and painted for a related load.

Ron

PRRronbh posted:

One of these days will get around to blocking and chaining it down per Mil Specs.  Guess am waiting until get the Paladin (M109) assembled and painted for a related load.

Ron

Im hoping to make a custom flatcar with a custom tank in the future too. I have glimmers of hope now that the 50' Sherman Flatcars have been announced.

...although the Shermans I want to add to the flatcars are a bit different than normal.