Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Freight Car Springs but were Afraid to Ask
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ก.พ. 2025
- All about freight rail car springs. This is one Cool Video! Show you defects and types of springs on rail freight cars along with showing you the springs getting compressed
as the car is loaded and decompressed as the car is getting unloaded. We will show
you rail car spring groups and patterns of groups along with a nest of springs and
spring designations.
Check out my other You Tube channel with more cool railroad and
rail fanning videos along with other adventures Dave has:
/ @thatsdavesotherdoings
This video made April 2023
Disclaimer: I am an employee of Iron Senergy at Cumberland
Mine. My job is railroad track maintenance. I am very fortunate to
have this job and everyone at the mine is very fortunate to have
Iron Senergy as it's current owner. Our past owners had every
intention of shutting this mine down, but Iron Senergy took
over and have kept this mine alive.
Please understand: I am NOT in any way an official or unofficial
spokes person for Iron Senergy or Cumberland Mine. Any viewpoints,
opinions or anything that I show in the videos, or write in the video
descriptions or any answer to any comment, should NEVER be
misconstrued or interpreted as being in any way shape or form,
any kind of official or unofficial statement from Iron Senergy,
Iron Cumberland, Cumberland Mine, any of the mine's management,
any of the contractors that may be shown in any video, nor of
any of my fellow co-workers.
Any viewpoints or opinions I may make in the videos, in the
descriptions, or in any answer to a comment is strictly that of my
own and NOT an official or unofficial statement or viewpoint that
Iron Synergy or any one at Iron Senergy or Cumberland Mine
necessarily has or makes.
Again, we are very fortunate to have Iron Senergy as our current
owners. Please, when making a comment be respectful of Iron Senergy,
Cumberland Mine, my fellow coworkers and also any contractors
that may be shown. Thank You, Dave
#freightcarsprings#railcarsprings#railfreightcars
Check out my other You Tube channel with more cool railroad and
rail fanning videos along with other adventures Dave has:
www.youtube.com/@ThatsDavesOtherDoings
I have a question for you. Do you have any crates full of springs? With A tag on it that says Union Spring ......if you do could you include them in a video close up sometime...
You should do a video, from loading the coal to dumping at the port, a how it's done ride along.
@parker990 we have 1 crate with new springs i checked today no tags on the crate
@@ccrx6700 thanks for looking probley wouldn't be any writing left on a tag if there was one there. after all its been 20 years just was hoping there was something left over from back then .i use to be a palletizer at union spring in chillicothe ohio
Thanks, so much for your informative videos!! Kudos to Both you and your company. I learned something new today after 50 + years o foaming: one rocker in a cut, can be a broken spring! Great Great video!
I think it’s very wholesome that your company lets you film and record videos so that you can help spread knowledge to your audience.
I would hope the company also sees the positive business reason to invest his time. I guarantee his videos have recruited young people in to the railroad industry, where they otherwise might have never considered going into that career. These videos are really interesting and show the many facets of the railroad world.
it's good to show people how this kind of thing gets done so that they have an appreciation of the work. There are a lot of times when rules and legislation is done without the people writing the rules and legislation having any idea about the subject matter. The rail industry (and coal for that matter) are background industries that people take for granted. What these guys do makes our way of life possible and people should see it. Besides, it's just fun stuff to watch!
@@acars9999 I have often wished I had gone into it in my 20's. Now in my 40's I suspect I might not have enough in me to try.
Thank you for the nice comment Local Railfan and you are right. We are very fortunate they do allow me to make these. Very much appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
@@ccrx6700 thank you! I hope you have a great day as well
When it seems that the world is burning and everything is bleak your videos are a godsend. Your positivity is seriously a ray of hope Dave!
Thank you for the kind words Jonathan. Appreciate very much your visiting with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
These coal runners have never heard of fossil fueled climate change.
@@howardsimpson489 Sure they have but they are just trying to keep your lights on.
@@howardsimpson489A single diesel electric freight train is more environmentally friendly than over 100 semi trucks, or a dozen of those electric cars you lot like to call "carbon neutral", guess what, they're not at all.
If we as a planet want to reduce harm from our existence then trains are most definitely the future, you cannot get more efficient then that, but you drones keep listening to those politicians about the future being electric cars. I sincerely pitty you
@@howardsimpson489You have no understanding of anything
I guess it's fitting that this video came out in the spring time.
LOL, I never thought about that Arkay, but you are right, spring
show for the spring season! Thank you very much for visiting with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
That comment will get you suspended 😊
"Ahh, spring is in the air!"
"No wait, we don't want them in the air"
This comment made me feel decompressed.
I would make a reply here but nothing springs to mind.
Ive seen the cars loaded and unloaded, but never watched the springs compress as its getting loaded. That was pretty cool! 👍
Glad you liked that Michael, I've gotten many requests to show
that and most folks have never really seen that either. I'll bet the
next time you see a car getting loaded you will watch the springs
and bolster going down. :-) Thanks so much my friend for watching and may you have a very good day.
That's pretty coil!
@@curtishollerback1517 😎😅
I have a freight car spring story from my childhood. In the 1920s there was a train wreck near my house in southern illinois, and they left most of the wreckage in the creek. As a child in the 1990s and 2000s I dug up a lot of that debris in the creek and those springs must have been born to fly because some were a bit further from the wreckage than I expected. I can imagine they were under a lot of tension when the bridge collapsed and then got instantly released. I still have those springs and they are absolute beasts.
They likely more moved about by little boys such as yourself.
Wow that's a pretty cool story Rinoa, those springs that old
should be real keep sakes. Thanks so much for sharing and may
you have a really good day my friend.
thanks. every time Im stopped at a RR crossing, I am watching the trains, the wheels, the cars, and now I gotta look at the springs.
Your quite welcome David, glad you found this interesting. it makes for train watching more interesting doesn't it. Thank
you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Your positivity and joyful approach to your career, plus your appreciation of your job is a real inspiration. Plus, I hope I can swing a sledge like you at almost 70 years old.
Very glad to hear you enjoyed Eric and thank you for the nice
comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
I’m a sucker for the introductions absolutely love it! Ah ha!
I'm very pleased to hear you are enjoying them Rosco. Really appreciate your taking the time to watch my friend and may you
have a very good day.
You don't know what "fun" truly is until you replace the leaf springs on a heavyweight Pullman passenger car. My Dad taught me when I was a little kid how to check the springs to see if the car was loaded or not. I seem to recall certain Milwaukee Road boxcars with wood sides and fishbelly frames with leaf springs that had been converted to work train service. Excellent video, thanks Dave!
I bet it wasn't easy.
@@looptheloopish Lots of weight, tight confines and hoping the bolts used for spring compressors don't fail before the install.
Leaf springs work well on cars that are light weight and aren't
loaded very heavy like cabooses Poowg. They would never work
on the heavy cars we have tho. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Hello Dave, I just want to tell you how much I enjoy your videos, you are one lucky guy to have a great job that you love, keep the videos coming. Sincerely, John
Really glad you are enjoying the home movies John. Thanks for
the nice comment and for taking the time to visit with us. May
you have a very good day my friend.
And Dave knocks another video out of the Park !!
👍👍🚂🚂
Thank you for the nice comment Yellow Lab and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
@@ccrx6700 , as always , friend, my pleasure!!👍🚂
@@yellowlab5624 👍😊
Thanks Dave it is nice to see parts that my dad help make for 39 years in your video. My dad worked for American Steel Foundries in Geanite City, IL which made side frames.
Sounds like your Dad had some cool stories.
Wow that's really cool Leonard, I would love to see how they
are made. Wasn't there also rail rolled at one time in Granite City?
Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Your enthusiasm is infectious! I always end your videos in a better mood. Your grin from ear to ear... it's very clear you are sincere and joyful about these trains. I wish I could have seen these when I was a kid.
Exactly... I'm sure he has inspired more than a few young folks to choose railroading as a career. This guy is an inspiration.
Thank you for the nice comment Music By Winston, glad you
enjoyed this one. We very much appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
14:30 for anyone who maybe didn't spend time in science labs in high school, a "tare" is the weight of the container without anything in it. The tare weight of a beaker or a rail car is used to zero out the scales so you can measure the weight of the contents, and not count the weight of the container. Just a little sidebar for the wider audience. Such that there might be a wide audience of people watching a video about rail car springs :) But you never know! As the gentleman says, this is interesting stuff!
I surf youtube for railcams sometimes but this video was just randomly on my youtube page suggested, glad I happened upon your channels! It's fun to watch em go, but interesting from someone outside the rail industry to see some of HOW they go.
Appreciate your sharing that info with us Gretchen, you are
correct. Seems like this video is getting a pretty wide audience.
I could look at those books you have for weeks on end. Thankyou Dave for shearing more RXR knowledge.
I bought those books Eddie, no one here has anything like them.
I wanted to learn from the experts and not go around not knowing. But you know I love all things RR anyway. Thank you for visiting with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
Excellent stuff! Love watching springs as cars are loaded with over 100 tons! Incredible how little they move. Maybe 1.5 inches?
Thank you One Giant Lie and glad you enjoyed. We really appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a wonderful day my friend.
Having built several 7.5” gauge cars, I’ve gained respect for the all the technology and engineering that goes into frames and and trucks to keep them on the tracks
We visited the Mill Creek Central last summer and rode on their
7 inch track Tom, it was a really cool 2 days there. Have yet to
show the videos tho. I was just amazed at the detail in those
steam locos they had there. Thank you for visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
Interesting video Dave. I have seen springs painted different colours and although knew they must be stronger / weaker had not thought about the bar diameter used to make them, I thought the tempering was different. I used to see hot springs made at our works open days, that was great to watch and how quick they could make them, sadly we no longer have railway workshops like that now, and even if we did I doubt they would be making things like that with people stood by watching.
Great to hear you found it interesting Cedarcam. We also have
various color springs but those are for some of the coal feeders
we have, not the rail cars . Appreciate very much your visiting with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
Thanks for posting this Dave. I always learn something new from your videos. It’s always great to see your enthusiasm for railroading!
Very glad to hear you enjoyed Canuckman and thank you for the nice comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks for the video! I watch the train pass here in Washington.D.C. every day. Although I drive semi trucks, I happen to love trains! I love everything about them. This stuff is very interesting! I've loved trains every since I was a child!
Your very welcome Christopher and glad you are enjoying the home
movies we put out. Trains are always fun to watch. I sure don't envy
you driving a semi in or around Washington tho!
Those cars were the best to hop as kids. Nice platform to stretch out on to lay low when passing crossings and RR detectives. Fun times.
Not a very good idea to train hop, but I did a lot of stupid things
myself when I was younger. Thank you so much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
First thing when I woke up this morning I was thinking about my knowledge gap on freight car springs. You da man! 😊 Okay 👌!
I had a premonition myself this morning and it was Mark is needing
to find this information out, so I followed my intuitions and made
this just for you. Appreciate your visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thank You. Very Informative. Awesome to watch the springs compress when loading and decompress when unloading. You are hilarious and make me laugh.
Your quite welcome Paul, glad you found this interesting. Thank
you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
great Dave! so much information in the manuals you have on the springs, yes never do you want contact
between the rod of the spring, you do not have any suspension then! probably crack / damage the spring.
plus cause damage to the truck’s. they are heat treated to harden them to with stand the repeated movements,
intern if overly hard will make them brittle, causing them to crack. too soft and cannot support the weight
of the cars. there is a ton of science in the proper formation of a good quality springs. at work we have tank
and hopper rail cars. when they are empty there is 4-5 inches above the bolster cross member, when full
it increases, and springs more compressed.they (as best that I can see ) all in a square 9 spring pattern.
most are ARR trucks. ( always think of a dice pattern ) with the triple spring set each. now this is a topic
rarely discussed, but so critical for safe movements of the cars, having all steel in the drive line, all the
forces are directly transferred through the system , and car! are made less by those springs! such a education
about the springs! yes old springs need to be scraped due to not knowing what part of their life they are in!
and can be full of internal stress fractures about ready to fail! Dave do they replace all 9 sets or just the one failed?
Very good comment Barry and you are right. Springs are critical for the cars safe movement going up and down track. If one
spring is broken they only replace that one spring pack. Thank you for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very
good day my friend.
I learn something new with every presentation Dave. Thanks for sharing my friend.
Your quite welcome Robert, glad you found this interesting. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Dave, this was great! I was hoping you would have walked over to 3098 and had a few images of those springs, too. When I was a kid, probably 1961, my older brother and I were standing near the C&NW main near our home as a daily local came past. We were about 50 feet from a turnout. (If you have never heard freight cars pounding a frog, I can tell you it's loud!) About half train there were 4 or 5 flatcars hauling structural steel. One of them hit the frog and there was a very, very loud bang that scared us into retreat. My brother saw the spring let loose and fly into the ditch. He had that half of the busted spring on his workbenches from that day until he passed away last year. Now it's on my desk.
Really glad you enjoyed this one Patrick. That is pretty cool
about how you got that spring. Very much appreciate your
taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very
good day my friend.
A good teacher knows how to break down complaketed subjects into simplified understandable bite sizes. They also know how to make relatively simple subjects interesting. You made springs interesting. There were several interesting points. Great video.
I really enjoy the enthusiasm you have about your career. I'm now retired, and I was fairly enthusiastic about my career as a heavy equipment mechanic and later as an industrial maintenance technician. Please help us all figure out how to bottle up enthusiasm and soak the young people with it.
Thank you for the nice comment Namar and great to hear you
found it interesting. If I could bottle enthusiasm and sell it I'd have more money than I know what to do with... :-) Appreciate very much your visiting with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
I like your enthusiasm 😊
Appreciate the kind words linandy. Thanks so much for stopping by
to watch and may you have a very good day my friend.
How is it something so simple can be so fascinating!! Thanks Dave! i wish more folks enjoyed their jobs as much as you do! Keep up the good, no wait, keep up the GREAT work!!!
Thank you for the nice comment Michael and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
I used to weld for a small co. In Racine Wisconsin ,small job shop ,we stamped out the break wheels for RR Cars.by the 1000s I welded a piolet bushing on the plate ,then I it got fastened to a houseing filled with gears.
Wow that's pretty cool to hear David. I will have to check our
brake wheels to see where they were made, who knows, maybe
you made some of them. Thanks so much for visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks for taking the time to share some knowledge with us Dave. Them sure are very beefy looking springs.
Your quite welcome William, glad you found this interesting. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks Dave, very interesting video! 👍
Your welcome Feisar, glad you found it to be of interest to you.
Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a wonderful day my friend.
@@ccrx6700 : Hi Dave ; I'm an Italian railway enthusiast, 62 years old 😃 as you know, but I know little about those in the United States, so I try to find out as much as possible, so I recently discovered your videos and found very interesting things, I'm trying to follow you as much as possible possible and I find your descriptive way of the aspects of a railway unique and very exhaustive compared to many others also because your keen enthusiasm for this work of yours can be felt! Thank you !! Good day !! 😉👍👍
Always learning something New Have a wonderful day.Be Safe!
Glad you enjoyed this Alan and found out something new. Thank you for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very
good day my friend.
I have been nuts about trains since I was a kid. This is the 1st time I have actually understood what someone was explaining and what exactly is going on in the video.
Thank you. I have subscribed too.
🙈🙉🙊😎🇺🇸
Thank you for the nice comment George and welcome to our
channel. Hope you will continue to enjoy the home movies. We very much appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks for always being fun with a good attitude and making interesting programs. I always enjoy learning from you. Like when I was a kid in school. The best teacher's made learning fun.
Thank you for the very kind words Adriaan. Glad you are having a good
time with us. We very much appreciate your taking the time to visit
with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
You are blessed to have a job you love. Thank you for your excellent videos, they are some of the best stuff on the internet.
Really appreciate the nice comment Deborah and glad you are enjoying. Thanks so much for visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
To an untrained eye it looks like some of the bolsters drop more than others. I'm fascinated with trains, railroad etc. If I knew the stuff you've forgotten about the trains I'd be alright.I love how you love your job and the company you work for. Mr, that's becoming more and more rare. I've done road building construction for 24 years. 20 years ago I had so much fun that it never felt like work.
Very observant Brian. I bet not a whole lot of folks noticed that.
We have 3 different makers of truck sets under our cars. Barber, Motion Control and Ridemaster. Each maker has their own design for the damping system (suspension system). Although each maker is similar and they all work, but the different designs are what you are seeing in the difference in bolster drop and rise.
Really appreciate your writing in and for taking the time to watch.
May you have a very good day my friend.
30 plus years ago when I started loading scrap gons we used a number 2 pencil and the gap in the spring to judge a legal load. Before we had rail scale and loader scales. 😊 cool video
Really glad you found this interesting Matthew. Thank you so much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Wow, this was really neat to watch those springs in action! Always wondered about how far they compress, and how it would look while decompressing.
Cool video. Learn more every time I watch!! Thank you for posting. Have a great day!
Thank you for the nice comment Trena and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
For many years I worked for co. that made repair parts for railroads. We made thousands of wear plates for the coil springs to rest on as well as the center wear plate that came between the truck and the car.
That would be really cool to see that stuff being made John, things
like that turn me on. Really appreciate your taking the time to watch and may you have a really good day my friend.
If I have a bad day for whatever reason that's all I have to do is come on TH-cam and watch a couple of your videos, Dave. You Brighten Everybody's Day Up with your Personality you are Truly One of a Kind that's for sure no Doubt about it. Great Video Dave, very, very Interesting. Much Love Dave From GMCGUY From New England Area up in the North East Near Boston we All Love you Dave Thanks for keeping Me and Everyone Else In a good mood and in great spirits.❤❤❤❤🎉🎉🎉🎉Great Video Buddy 🥳🥳🥳🥳
Thank you for the kind words GMC Guy. Really glad you enjoyed watching this video. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
Sorry I’m late been a hell of a week ,absolutely loved the vid interesting subject all the best.thanks DAVE.
No worries Lawrie, hope your days are going better. Glad you
enjoyed the show and may you have a very good day my friend.
What I never knew is the small spring inside a bigger spring inside an even bigger spring!
Glad you found out something new Bassotronics. Most folks did not know that either. Thank you for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
It's a small wonder how anything could compress 9 heavy spring sets at the corners, amazing to see this in action, GREAT video!
You are right and remember there are 9 other spring packs on
the opposite side of the bolster that are being compressed
also. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us
and may you have a wonderful day my friend.
Whoopee I learned something new today. Thank you
Your quite welcome hootnanny, glad you found this interesting. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thank you very much for sharing
Your certainly welcome Mike. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Good job Dave 👏 👍 👍.
It's always a good spring day when you have enough grass around for your nest😮😂😂😂😂.
The casting dates stand out on the truck frames and bolster with the build date on the consolidated stencil.
Built November 1996.
Oh, 😮 bent sturipp , defect in need of fixing 😂.
Stay safe and have fun my friend.
Very glad to hear you enjoyed Richard and thank you for the nice
comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
@@ccrx6700
Remember, to always wear the appropriate PPE 😉 when moving your lawn 😀 ,
But have fun doing so.
Picking up my B-day 🎂 present 🎁 Monday from East Terminal Railroad.
Volvo Hi-Rail logtruck with magnet 🧲.
Need a hand 🤚?or 2🤚🤚.
Very interesting and informative video.
Thank you Charles, glad you liked the video. Appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks. Didn't know that much about spring packs until your video.
Your quite welcome Jim, glad you found this interesting. Thank
you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Very very cool. Thanks.
Thank you Richard and glad you enjoyed. Appreciate very much your
tuning in to the show and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks Dave, for another excellent educational video!
Your quite welcome Brian, glad you found this interesting. Thank
you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
A couple-three observations:
- More joust - the amount the suspension moves vertically - than I expected. Always heard rail only had a couple-three inches or so. These seemed capable of moving quite a bit more than that.
- Ride height varies with weight. Heavier cars sit lower and lighter ones sit higher. And I suppose it would have to unless it was pneumaticly suspended. These will adjust to a specific height by varying the air pressure in the airbag which really just an air filled cylinder with a piston.
- No shocks. Only springs.
Informative video. Fun stuff.
Appreciate the nice comment LI and glad to hear you enjoyed. Thank you very much for taking the time to watch the video and may you have a very good day my friend.
Another well done video Dave. Sometime you will have to make a video to test us on all the things we have learned !
Thank you for the nice comment Scott. Final tests will be cominig
out soon, so study up..... :-) Very much appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Quite interesting. Lot of information here.
Really appreciate the nice comment. Thanks so much for visiting with us and may you have a very good day.
I don't know what's wrong with me but I can't get enough of this program. Who enjoys watching rocks, who salivates when a rail is cracked? I am guilty of a strange addiction to That's Railroading.
Unfortionately there is is no cure for being addicted to my channel, and no therapy you can go to Lynn, so sorry bout your
luck on that.... :-) Really appreciate the nice comment and for
your faithfulness in watching. May you have a very good day
my friend.
Just discovered your channel. I love it.
Very glad you are enjoying the home movies Christiane. Welcome
to the channel and hope you will continue to have a good time with us. Thank you very much for taking the time to watch the video and may you have a very good day my friend.
After this vid somehow appeared in my YT feed, I just popped on to give the vid a 👍for the title alone.
Appreciate the thumbs up Jim. Thank you very much for visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Great video Dave. I'm smarter now. I try to learn new things as often as I can. Thank you. I get to go home from the hospital tomorrow.
Really glad to hear you are going home John, take care of yourself and keep me posted how you're doing. Glad you think
your smarter now.... :-) Thank you very much for watching and
may you have a very good day.
That was great ! Learned something new.
Very glad to hear you enjoyed Gunsaway and thank you for the nice comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
That was fun, nice to see a guy that loves his job.
Glad to hear you enjoyed Bob. Thank you very much for taking the time to watch the video and may you have a very good day my friend.
Your welcome, even though I knew everything you showed, I watched the whole thing. Then I sent it to my girlfriend, lol, now she's familiar with bolsters and springs.😁
@@bobwickes1380 👍😊
Nice Dave. Show more Railroading 101 type videos.
Very glad to hear you enjoyed Keiro. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
All this time, I thought there were six spring sets on each side of the trucks..but with your video, I learn there's nine!..and there's up to three coils assembled together making each spring pack! Wow! Thanks for another educational video Dave. You always keep it interesting. Have a good rest of the weekend my friend.
🚂🚃🚃🚃🚃🚃🚃🚃🚃💯👍🇺🇸
Thank you for the nice comment Jim and glad you found out
something new. We very much appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
When i was young and restless, (many, many moons ago), i went to a local RR shop and got 4 discarded freight car springs. I had them put in the suspension of my "roll'n' can hardly" at an automotive shop, they gave it quite a bit more ground clearance, but also a very stiff ride. (Even with expensive shock absorbers!)
I can imagine that ride was pretty stiff Paul! :-)
@@ccrx6700 and i didnt have to get a "lift kit" like a lot of "motorheads" at the time did. And, with me being short, those springs provided just enough lift for me to see further down the road !
@@paulsmith5398 👍😊
A blacksmith who I know has or had a full set from a railcar that had been wrecked & was using them to make knives very good knives
When I was a little kid our house was adjacent to a railroad. One time I found one of the springs laying in the yard! I remember it was so heavy I could barely lift it!
A spring pack of 3 springs weighs 30 pounds. That's a pretty hefty
lift for a young kid. Hope you kept that spring. Thank you for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Your enthusiasm and love of your job is absolutely contagious! They say if a man loves his job he will never work a day in his life and I truly believe that in your case. Thank you so much for allowing us mere mortals a glimpse into what you do, it truly is a treasure and a blessing.
I live across the pond in the UK and would absolutely love to work on the railways (railroads) doing similar work to you. Unfortunately I do not think I will be able to due to the fact that (as far as I know anyway) I would need to work on and around passenger services for a few years. At the moment this is not an option as I witnessed a suicide by train last year and it has completely scared me away from my dream. I can at least live vicariously through you and your videos!
Many thanks for never failing to put a smile on my face and teaching me something, helping me slowly but surely creep my way back on to the path of my dreams. All the very best from sunny old England!
FT
Thank you for the nice comment FT. Suicides happen around
trains, but certainly it can be devastating for someone who
witnesses it. Many big railroads here have special therapy available for engineers and conductors who are involved in hitting
a person. Some guys never recover emotionally. It can be
something that will haunt a person for the rest of their life. So
I can understand your emotions. At least I'm glad you like
the videos and they can fulfill a small part of your dreams.
Really appreciate your taking the time to check out the video my friend and may you have a very good day.
I never knew there were so many springs in a coal carrying railcar
And now you know, don't feel bad a lot of folks didn't know
that either Kabukee. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Great presentation !
Appreciate the nice comment Norm. Thank you for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Boy daby those springs look a lot easier to change the the ones I have done on my cars in the long past. Have a great day my friend .
Bit harder to change the springs on the inside of the truck set
Lewis, but it can be done. Outside springs are easy. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
I don’t know you but the video looks wholesome so I decided to watch gotta start watching good things.
Thank you for the nice comment Atlas. Appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
That was fascinating. It never ceases to amaze me the extensive design and engineering that goes into every bit of a railroad. Sure appreciate you taking the time to really explain and demonstrate how things work. Thank you!
Appreciate the nice comment Erin and great to hear you
found it interesting. The entire damping system on the truck sets
are fascinating to me how they work.
Very interesting. I never knew so much about truck springs. Watching train wheels slowly roll by as the cars take on tons of loads is really cool. I could watch that for hours. And then your additional commentary makes it all that more interesting and educational. Thank you!
Really appreciate the nice comment Wally and glad you enjoyed. Thanks so much for visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
This was terrific!! Thanks Dave. I’m looking forward to seeing more on the trucks. Awesome job as usual. 😊👍👍
Thank you for the nice comment aceadman and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
Interesting stuff. Learned something new.
Thank you and glad you enjoyed. Really appreciate your taking the
time to visit with us and may you have a wonderful day my friend.
Very interesting video never really thought much about the train car suspension so now we all know how it works
Thank you for the nice comment Tony and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
So I should be changing a spring on the lady's car now she is out with her Dad but have ended up watching this instead! A welcome distraction. I found this fascinating, especially how the springs in the nest of spring are counter wound to each other. Interesting stuff!!!
This is much more fun than changing a car part Rosco.... :-) Thank you very much your watching and may you have a very good day my friend.
Thanks dave for posting this very informative video, you are a fantastic service tech teacher of rail cars, as always i enjoy watching your video channel,anyone who watched your videos can honestly say, "Wow, i didn't know that".👍
Thank you for the nice comment Joseph and glad you are enjoying the home movies. We very much appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Well Dave, you do know somethings about passenger car suspensions. Tho there may be significant differences from freight trucks there are also many basic similarities to passenger gear (like springs!) and your expertise on freight trucks gives you much basic knowhow on passenger car requiements.
Always good to have you demonstrate the critical basics of railroad equipment and functions!
And some Amtrak cars have super-duper sized airbags in their trucks instead of springs, for a really smooth ride, and disc brakes instead of the shoe-types.
You may be true in that Kenneth but I sure don't know enough about them yet to be able to make a video that has any kind
of authority about it. But that don't mean I can't learn and you
are right, I do have a basic knowledge. Thank you for visiting with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
Thanks Dave
Your certainly welcome Thomas. Thanks so much for taking the time to check out the video and may you have a very good day my friend.
Love this! Thanks!
Very glad you enjoyed the video Earl and your welcome. Appreciate your visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Its fascinating watching them compress like that. I didnt realise that there are two sets of three, paired like that. I take it thats 12 per bogey. Incredible. I love finding jewels like this site on TH-cam. Just what ive been hoping for! ♥from 🇬🇧
Thank you Peter, glad you enjoyed the show. Really appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
It’s so cool to have real engineers talking about trains from the real thing! My child is fascinated, so don’t be surprised if you get a new member to the railroading family in a few years!
Appreciate the very nice comment Mark and great to hear you
child is enjoying the home movies. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
That was awesome. Loved all that information. Thank you Dave.
Thank you for the nice comment Ed and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
You do have a good job sir. Carry on mate!
Appreciate the nice comment Southernshaker. Thank
you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you
have a very good day my friend.
I really enjoyed that video and learned a lot. I just think I know it all... 🤓
Glad to hear you enjoyed ebecken. Thank you very much for checking out the video and may you have a very good day my friend.
Well done Dave, that's a fantastic insight! Great to see the movement of those springs relative to the load too. There sure is a lot to understand! Keep up the wonderful work 👍
Thank you for the nice comment Richard and great to hear you
found it interesting. Appreciate very much your visiting with us
and may you have a really good day my friend.
ALWAYS enjoyed your shows Dave, you remind me of my favorite cartoon character Porky Pig, both you
guys are AWESOME !
Glad you are enjoying the home movies Goodshaft. Porky makes more money than I do tho.... Appreciate very much your taking
the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Really interesting! Thanks for sharing!
Your welcome Keith and glad you enjoyed the video. Thank
you for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very
good day my friend.
@@ccrx6700 I grew up in Waterloo, Iowa with the Rock Island train tracks running past the end of our dead end street. After changing to a new elementary school, I used to walk the train tracks to school from 4th grade thru 6th grade almost every day. As a little boy I was a train nut. Walking home if I saw the signal light way down the track a mile or more away turn red, I’d dilly dally along and soon the headlight would appear of an oncoming freight train. Then I’d hussle to get to the main line switch to be there as the brakeman would climb down from the cab and get off as the locomotives rumbled on by. The special smell of their diesel smoke and train smells. I’d watch with the most intense interest as they switched out a long group of cars and pushed in on a siding track, and then pull back out and the engines couple back up to the rest of the long train on the mainline. I knew all the hand signals of the brakeman by heart. I loved to listen to the unique sounds of air in the lines to cars and the air pressure restored and brakes released from cars. Couple blasts of the horn and as slack in the couplers removed the the train was pulling out. In the evenings the RI Rocket passengers train would race by heading south. Pedal fast on my bicycle to be there as it roared past and all the shiny passenger cars. Gosh I miss those days. Today I work for a major airline, an even though of my love for airplanes, my love for trains is still in my heart, and I love to be the first one sitting at a railroad crossing . If I see crossing gates coming down , I love being the first vehicle at those gates just to watch a train. Love all you share with us about railroading!!
@@keithross4511 👍😊😎
I really enjoy watching You work and all the knowledge that You share with us! Keep up the great work my friend! 👍
Appreciate the nice comment DirectCurrent, glad you are enjoying. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Professor Dave at his best again!
Very glad to hear you enjoyed Dale and thank you for the nice
comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Your show is delightful to learn from and watch. I never knew that freight cars have suspension springs on their trucks as do modern rapid transit rail cars. Thank you for teaching us more about railcars no one would ever teach. I love your "stuff!"💙
Appreciate the nice comment Captain Keyboard and glad to hear you enjoyed. Thank you very much for taking the time to watch the video and may you have a very good day my friend.
@@ccrx6700 I am pleased to be your friend. I wish I knew what I know now when I was younger! I thank you, you are welcome, and Happy Railroading!
@@captainkeyboard1007 👍😊
@@ccrx6700 Happy Railroading!⭐
I actually never wanted to know this, but I can't sleep and I like your channel.
Thank you clqudy. Glad you like the channel. Really appreciate your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
I just discovered your channel by watching this video and I'm subscribing . What I really enjoy is hearing somebody enthusiastic about the subject being discussed who clearly enjoys his work! You informed and cheered me up at the same time! Thank you.
Thank you for the nice comment Gary. We do welcome you to our
channel and hope you will continue to have a good time with us. Really appreciate your taking the time to pay us a visit and may you have a very good day my friend.
Very interesting video-! Thanks-!
Your certainly welcome Yambo and glad you enjoyed. Thank
you very much for checking out the video and may you have
a very good day my friend.
That was cool! Yes; learned something new. Thank you.
Really appreciate the nice comment Joanie and glad you enjoyed. Thanks so much for visiting with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Just love to hear the passion in your voice sir 💪👍
Glad to hear you enjoyed that MadMax. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
Great video Dave! I never knew there was three springs in a pack on some cars (or two for that matter), or that there were so many versions of springs! Do you ever lose a spring? When we were kids, we would find a spring along the tracks now and then. 🤔
A whole lot of folks never knew that either Mojo so don't feel
bad. On occasion we do lose a spring, it gets broken and just
pops out. Not very often tho. Appreciate very much your taking
the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
I worked at a company that made various springs, including springs for trains.
I would really like to go see how those springs are made Kenneth. That would be cool to see. Thank you very much for taking the time to visit with us and may you have a really good day my friend.
Dave, you are fantastic! I could watch your "how it works" videos all day, every day, and still want more.
You know what we, the armchair railroaders, want to learn and see.
Excellent video!
"God is the coal for our heart's furnace"
Very glad to hear you enjoyed the movie Trainman and thanks for the nice comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.
One of your most educational videos yet, Dave! Great job!
Very glad to hear you enjoyed the movie Nolan and thank you for
the nice comment. Appreciate very much your taking the time to visit with us and may you have a very good day my friend.