What's my frog?


John P

John P

Active Member
Notice that the picture includes the tofrographer's shadow.

IMG_3487.jpg
 
That is odd!! If is were to guess I would say that the running rail for the up and down track is the one on the right and for the left and right track is the center rail. Can't wait to find all the details about this!!!
 
I'd guess we're looking at a situation where 1. the track from top to bottom is "standard", and 2. the track from L to R handles 2 direction traffic on 3 rails, an atypical form of gauntlet.
 
Some ingenious ideas there, but no. The picture is from the Charlestown Navy Yard, formerly the Boston Naval Shipyard. It shows a conventional railroad rail crossing a track for a dockside crane, which uses a double-flanged wheel. Here's a larger picture:
IMG_3488.JPG


Sad to say, since the yard closed (in 1974) and was transferred to the National Park Service, the cranes have just been left to rust away. I expect eventually they'll have to be cut up and removed. I thought they were so interesting that I set up a photo album about them:
http://my.opera.com/John98wbr/albums/show.dml?id=2975251

There are one or two odd features that result from a system using a very wide gauge and double flanged wheels! It also seems to me that the wheels can't possibly stay in gauge while entering a curve, but maybe they can slide sideways to deal with it.
 
There are some neat pictures. I especially like the frogs for the dual flange wheels, with the single square piece of iron standing in the center. With the switch points, could you imagine going into one of those holes with a narrow tired vehicle!!!
 
I was in Boston a few years ago and saw that giant crane. :) The USS Constitution was/is (?) moored nearby. I'll see if I can drag some of my pics of it up, as I remember I took a few good shots of it. (Didn't get close enough to check out the track work though.)

Edit: Dang it, I can't find the pics. :mad: Nevermind...
 
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