Here's an updated Frisco Switch List Form CT-73, revised in January, 1980. It includes space for yard checks and blind siding reports. Perhaps this would be of use for operations on your layouts. Sorry about the bad scan, but the form is on very thin paper. Ken PS - I rescanned the form at 600 dpi. Hopefully, this will show better. K
Thanks, Ken. Another cool document. There are a number of modelers that use the switch lists to help plan their moves when working industries.
One thing I'd never noticed until now is "Column 9" with a list of descriptive abbreviations. Can anyone clarify what "Constructively Placed" meant? Best Regards,
I discussed this with a couple of retired railroaders here in KC. After thoughtful consideration, Constructively Placed was interpreted to mean that a car is set in a position that the industry can readily move the car into a position to load or unload. In a grain elevator example, a string of cars may be set out at the elevator. This first car in the string would possibly be "Set" in position to be loaded/unloaded and the rest of the string of cars would be (Constructively Placed) on the same track where they could be readily moved by winch, lever, or Trackmobile into a position for loading/unloading. The attached photos show an Advance Car Mover lever. It used leverage between the rail and wheel tread, with a pivot to lift and push the wheel forward as the crewman pushed down on the lever.
Excellent, Keith - and my thanks to the KC crew for the explanation. The diagram and photo are pretty swell, too! Best Regards,
Attached is a reproduction of the Form CT-73 Rev Jan 80 that I created in Excel and printed as a pdf file.
In between my years of college at MSM in Rolla, 9/1960-6/1964, I worked on a co-op during the summers with Lever Brothers Company here in St Louis at their Pennsylvania Avenue detergent plant. That experience is how I wound up in the detergent raw material supply business later after I graduated. Anyway, many of the weeks at Lever Bros were spent in the finished product warehouse. I saw a few of these "Advance Car Mover" levers at the car loading doors in the warehouse. We loaded box cars with case pallets of finished soap and detergent products. Rough work. I never saw one of these "movers" used, however. Looks like if you only needed to move the car a foot or two, or to get it rolling if on a down grade, that would do it. Our tracks were flat, and TRRA did a good job spotting the cars right at the loading doors, which were very wide. I far preferred standing in the plant helping to run the spray tower, etc, taking data on a clipboard than the warehouse end of things! Ken
This video from the National Film Board of Canada really gives a view into small grain elevator operations: https://www.nfb.ca/film/grain_elevator. At about 8:43 into the video you will see the use of the car mover lever.
When a shipper releases a car, the tariff allows a set amount of time for the car to arrive to destination. After that time expires, the car goes on what is called "Car Hire" which is rent for the car. Railroads charge rent on cars, so that shippers don't use the car for a warehouse. The rent is not much, and different for each type car. When a car is shown, "Constructive Placed" in the computer, the rent stops. Generally, it means, their is no room to spot the car. It sets in a yard track, until the industry switcher, spot's the car. Again the tariff, allows a certain time for the industry to unload the car. The car shows "Spotted" if the cosignee, fails to empty the car, in the amount of time. "Demurrage" starts until the car is released. Example: Tariff shows 3 days Springfield to Ft Smith, AR. It actually takes 5 days That equates to 2 day's Car Hire charged to A&M RR. Tariff shows 2 days for A OK Foods to unloaded and release car. It actually takes 4 days. That equates to 2 days demurrage to shipper / receiver A OK Foods. In the example a 100 ton Hopper Car has a per day Car Hire of $10, with a Demurrage of $25. This is a example, the system is actually a little more complicated. However, a person can see in the above example that it is in A & M's best interest to show a 50 car shipment constructively placed on time to avoid charges.
