[PRCo] Re: Trolley Pole Dewirements

Mon Apr 2 17:39:30 EDT 2001

I remember a PERC fantrip back around 1960 that was called the "Bent Trolley Pole
Special" because of the PCC they used on it.  The trip flyer included a drawing of
the car with a badly bent pole, but the pole was bent before the trip started..

Bob 4/2/01

John Swindler wrote:

> There was a fantrip during which the pole was bent into an interesting 90
> degree angle trying to reverse at the "wye" at west end of Castle Shannon
> training loop.  And yes, Jim, I remember that dewirement while inbound on
> Shannon.  Was that the one in which the pole exhibited some properties of a
> 'sine' wave?
>
> John
>
> >From: Jim Holland <pghpcc at pacbell.net>
> >Reply-To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
> >To: "-->- PRCo -- WP -- JTC -- The Big *3* -<--"
> ><pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
> >Subject: [PRCo] Trolley  Pole  Dewirements
> >Date: Sun, 01 Apr 2001 07:13:27 -0700
> >
> >
> >Rich Wagner of  *Wagner Car Company*  and  *Trolley Talk*  always said
> >that the flanged wheel and trolley pole//harp are the symbols of the
> >traction community.
> >
> >       I was always fascinated with both as well and the symmetry of the
> >overhead and the way the trolleypole tracked always fascinated me!
> >Dewirements were a fascination as well but seemed very few and far
> >between!
> >
> >       Don't remember any dewirements on Drake except possibly outbound thru
> >the turnout at Wash. Jct once.  Drake used directional frogs at the
> >sidings.  And only one dewirement on Library inbound leaving Simmons
> >loop.
> >
> >       And NO dewirements between Wash. Jct and Castle Shannon as well as NO
> >dewirements on the single track gauntlet wire on Overbrook.
> >
> >       Remember one dewirement inbound near Poplar with an operator in
> >training.  Also one inbound near Overbrook Blvd. or Inglewood inbound,
> >South Park special with mostly *foreign* riders coming home from the
> >Fair who only rode the interurban on this occasion.  It was at night and
> >Walther was operating the car; people got dead quiet when the lights
> >went out.  One other time in the daytime Walther was operating about the
> >same location and we had a dewirement; John Swindler took a movie of me
> >replacing the pole!
> >
> >       And I only remember 2-dewirements outbound on Overbrook, both the same
> >day, both the same trip, and obviously the same car - 1710.  Pole spring
> >might have been weak and trolley retriever was bad as Charlie (who
> >else?!(:=>))  had a terrible time resetting it!  The pole dewired
> >crossing the Elwyn trestle at just average speed - we had taken it much
> >faster before - and we coasted to the grade crossing at Cretestone to
> >replace the pole.  Then as we crossed CS Blvd into Castle Shannon the
> >pole came off again.
> >
> >       Don't remember any dewirements at SHJ - absolutely amazing considering
> >the web of overhead.  Charlie dewired once entering a yard track, but
> >that is it!
> >
> >       Never saw nor experienced any dewirements at Smithfield and Carson but
> >the interurban inbound turning from the bridge onto the ramp was going
> >thru a spiral easement which is a tricky location for the pole to follow
> >correctly and remember a dewirement or two here.  NEVER  saw a
> >dewirement from Grant to Liberty nor Liberty to Wood nor Wood to Water
> >and the cars used to whip thru the latter turn!
> >
> >       Those are the only dewirements I remember on the interurbans and I was
> >on them as often or more than my hometown 42-Dormont!
> >
> >       And on my hometown line, dewirements were extremely few.  If the spring
> >switch failed and a car backed out of the 42-line wye the wrong way the
> >pole would dewire.  Also, outbound, the frog leading into the wye saw
> >tremendous use and the runners wore to that direction and sometimes
> >caused the owl going straight thru to MtLebanon at 1.25-AM to dewire -
> >the flashing could be seen from my window!
> >       Outbound between Hillsdale and Alabama was a gentle banked curve to the
> >left.  At one point the banking leveled out and the wire was out of
> >alignment so it caused a sharp angle in the overhead and would sometimes
> >throw poles.  The line car was out one day and I mentioned where I saw
> >the pole dewire; they then tapped that hanger toward the inside of the
> >curve to remove the angle and it was fine after that.
> >       And outbound where the 42 split from the 38//39 was a shallow angle
> >turnout where my father and I experienced a dewirement on 1454 coming
> >home from a baseball game.  Remember the number because it was the
> >number of the house across the street from ours!
> >       And inbound thru the yard once, possibly on the 38-line, a hanger was
> >broken with the ear perpendicular to and below the contact wire which
> >caused us to dewire.  Isadore Reichert didn't believe me but when we
> >were heading outbound an inbound 39-line car hit that at tremendous
> >speed and went about 5-6 car lengths before getting his car stopped.
> >Izzy saw the hanger then and called it in!
> >       Saw a dewirement at Clearview loop - wire seemed higher here and this
> >might have contributed and we dewired outbound once on a city 17 with
> >mushy springs at the 38//39 junction.
> >       Never experienced a dewirement downtown on the 38//39//42 lines -
> >Never!
> >
> >       There was a trailing turnout from Stanwix at Fort Duquesne (connection
> >from the West End lines) and only 1000--series cars would dewire thru
> >this frog - no others!  Watched it for several hours!
> >       And inbound on Federal passing thru the underpass of the RR on a
> >17-city car the pole dewired 3-times - probably a badly worn wheel with
> >a groove which could snag the wire!
> >       Saw an 88-line dewire outbound on Liberty thru the first turn after
> >Butler - too fast around the turn!
> >
> >       Don't remember any dewirements on 56-McKeesport, very popular
> >Sunday--pass ride; none on 87, don't remember any in East Liberty near
> >where grandparents lived!  And off-hand, don't remember any others.
> >
> >       Quite amazing for the amount of riding I did there!
> >
> >--
> >James B. Holland
> >
> >         Pittsburgh  Railways  Company  (PRCo),   1930  --  1950
> >     To e-mail privately, please click here: mailto:pghpcc at pacbell.net
> >N.M.R.A.  Life member #2190; http://www.mcs.net:80/~weyand/nmra/
> >
>
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