Refurbished 1952 RCM 8060 – 80 Ton 470 hp Diesel-Electric Locomotive. Rebuilt engines (2) approximately 5 years ago. Electric motors re-wound. Original engine operation and maintenance manuals on hand. All service records available.
Your railcar mover dealer should be prepared to give you a recommended maintenance schedule. These maintenance manuals are very specific about what to do at various times throughout your maintenance program. For example, the manual will outline what work is recommended at 250 hours, 500 hours, 750 hours, etc. Also, a variety of visual inspections and field tests should be incorporated into your maintenance schedule. Plus don’t forget the simplest of all inspections – the operators Daily Check List which include visual inspection, refilling sand boxes, checking fluid levels, exterior lights and instrumentation. Lastly, don’t forget about your wheels – these will wear over time and in some cases flatten. There are wheel gauges available to make certain that you and your machine are in compliance with local rail regulations.
Railcar movers are formidable pieces of equipment used to move railroad cars around in a rail yard, rail line or industrial railway. Capable of being driven on the ground and on rails, railcar movers are so large, that they are capable of moving loads in excess of 50,000 pounds making proper safety procedures just as big of a deal as they have become.
Railcar operators have a significant responsibility to ensure safety in three key areas:
Most Common Safety Issues
Safety is not a joke. Get properly trained, maintain clear communication with ground staff and, follow rules of the rail.
A railcar mover is a road-rail vehicle (capable of travelling on both roads and rail tracks) fitted with couplers for moving small numbers of railroad cars around in a rail siding or small yard. They are extensively used by railroad customers because they are cheaper than owning a switcher locomotive, more convenient and more cost effective.
Well-known railcar mover brands in North America include Trackmobile, Rail King and Shuttlewagon. These units borrow weight from coupled railcars to increase the vehicle weight for traction (measured in what’s called tractive effort). The original design included a coupler head that could be operated from the driver’s seat, and that would raise hydraulically to lift the railcar, transferring up to 49,000 lbs (22,680 kg) to the wheels of the vehicle.