[PRCo] Re: PCC being towed

[Boris Cefer]

I heard an indication that PAAC did not take any care of the commutator
controllers. The commutators had pretty deep grooves in mid 60s.

>From my view (understand: the vast experience with schematic diagrams :-)
;-) ), the GE design did not contain one very useful feature that
Westinghouse cars used from the very beginning - on a downgrade the GE cars
were not able of any appreciable speed increase without touching power pedal
because the GE commutator controller does not have any way to increase
braking resistance during coast or brake. Pittsburghers may remember that.

B

----- Original Message -----
From: "Fred Schneider" <fwschneider at comcast.net>
To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 30, 2005 7:57 PM
Subject: [PRCo] Re: PCC being towed


> They had their proponents and their detractors.   Maybe one of the
> chief arguments against them was the expense of physically removing
> the commutator controller from the car in order to work on it while
> work on the Westinghouse unit could largely be done in place.   As a
> young man, I don't know that I could ever recall any difference
> between a GE or a Westinghouse car if I rode them with my eyes closed.
>
> The G. E. cars were the first to go in Pittsburgh but many managers
> would have done the same when confronted with a 1 to 3 equipment
> split and and a need to keep either 75 of one type and 25 of another
> or 100 of one type given that a few of them might be four years
> older.....   I don't think the early disappearance of the GE 1600s
> and 1700s related to any overwhelming fault in their design but more
> simply a need to get a handle on maintenance.     Might have been
> easier to have a few compressor to maintain than a few cars with GE
> KM units.
>
> I once asked the shop foreman for SEPTA at 3rd and Wyoming which he
> thought was better, G. E. or Westinghouse and he favored G. E.   Then
> I counted the cars in the shop and found 60 percent were G. E.
> cars.   Maybe he liked them because of job security or maybe it was
> just an off day.
>
> Shaker Heights was fond of G. E. because if they had a problem, an
> engineer from Erie would be in Cleveland within a day.