Well after the Split points thread...

[jbaakko]

Here's another catch, figure out what this baby is used for!!!

 

[jbaakko]

Four more pics to help out... Come on now I want good educated guesses!

 

[jbaakko]

So, who saw the Trains Mag cover? Look some what simular:
View attachment 2923

I SAW A D9-40C (Dash 9-40C/C40-9...)
View attachment 2924

Two more various shots too...
View attachment 2925
View attachment 2926

 

[RCH]

Apparently it's some kind of collapsible ramp, possibly for track work/MOW equipment, based on the ballast hoppers it's connected to. I wonder what powers the ramp hydraulics?

 

[RexHea]

It looks like it uses train air supply to operate ramps and has a rail on top for a rail car of some sort.

I can see the pivot points, but I'll be darned if I can unbox it. Hope you have a picture of this creature opened up.

 

[jbaakko]

No luck opened up, but I'll try tomorrow to see what I can find online, here's two more shots of some detail, and yes its a rail/truck ramp. There's bars on the ramp, and a mesh too for trucks. I also saw in a pic, it says "L 89-4" so maybe it is 89'? Of note, it opens, in 5, 5 1/2, or 6 parts depending on how you look at it, there's 5 main parts and a final what looks like 1/2 piece, the diagonal portion across the middle, that you can either choose to no count, count as a half or a whole.

EDIT Also, note what look to be MU... ;-)

 

[RexHea]

Another thought is the presence of the rails on top may be throwing us off. They may be used for added strength and not for anything to ride on them. On the thoughts of RCH, it may be for some kind of very heavy MOW equipment. Capture a railroader and interrogate him.

 

[RCH]

Okay, I see it now. I didn't notice the rails, but now I can see them on the ramp. They're actually tapered at the sixth section so that something can ride up onto the flatcar from the rails. The vertical section toward the end is the first movable section of the ramp. Each successive piece folds anti-clock.

What the piece of equipment is that rides up on this thing, I have no idea.

 

[jbaakko]

I've caught MOW equipment on flats before but never anything like this. I stopped for the ballast hoppers and got excited!

 

[NZRMac]

I emailed BNSF and this is the reply.

The car is used by our MOW forces to load a gantry into position.

-----Original Message-----
From: Ken & Jan [mailto:kenjanmac@xtra.co.nz]
Sent: Thursday, February 23, 2006 12:21 PM
To: Smock, Jeff A
Subject: Re: BNSF Complaint Form


Ken.

 

[jbaakko]

LMAO Now Ken I never thought of complaining to BNSF about it!

 

[csxmu]

It has already been answered but here are some more pics of a similar MOW train. This is on a siding next to my house of the NS Pittsburgh line. It is used to load / unload small MOW equipment. It is pretty cool to watch. I witnessed them loading to move to the next job. Then a train came , stopped droped the lead engine and pulled off. The engine sat idling on the siding for almost 2 days until the crew came to pick up the train. They must have to be straight to load because they bolted track between the cars for loading, and removed it before hooking up to the cars.

 

[IronBeltKen]

It has already been answered but here are some more pics of a similar MOW train. This is on a siding next to my house of the NS Pittsburgh line...

Excellent photos JoshZ, thanx for sharing them! That train is just "crying out" to be modeled...

 

[NZRMac]

LMAO Now Ken I never thought of complaining to BNSF about it!

It was the only way I could see of emailing them

Nice pics csxmu!!

Ken.

 

[jbaakko]

If you start modeling it, let me know, I'd like pointers, It's be a nich peice to have on my layout too.