Re: 493 and 498 hauling large diameter gas pipe

Russo commented that hauling large diameter gas pipe may have ben restricted by size rather than weight. It appears to me more likely that weight was limiting, since the open end gons with a 25 ton limit were loaded with 5 pipes, while the 4500 series flat cars with a much larger load limit were loaded with six pipes in a triangular stacking arrangement.

Another comment was that hauling large diameter pipe may have been a rare event, but my memory is that the large diameter pipes were hauled fairly routinely. Attached are some photos from January 31, 1964, showing 492 heading west out of Chama with a long string of cars loaded with such pipe. Helper 493 had left a few minutes earlier. Agent Trotter's comment was that there would be twice weekly shipments of such pipes in the coming weeks, which led to an adventurous but disastrous trip to Chama a couple of weeks later (which I intend to relate shortly).


Note: it seems to me that this shipment carried pipe of a smaller diameter, since the bottom row consisted of four pipes rather than three.











Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/12/2019 08:33PM by Olaf Rasmussen.