Dear Burr,
“Whoever you are” The formal name is not important as you can read my profile and judge if I am an expert in track or not. I sure have built a lot of it on a mega railroad (and NG), and even was Superintendent of the “Colorado & New Mexico RR Authority” and ran ng trains while on vacation from my job as a transportation officer on the mega RR. (By the way C-NMRRA was the construction railroad before it became C&TS and then run by a contractor and we were not under any ICC rules). Have faith, as the light tie ends are okay.
And you can believe Mark because he used to really blast me. As I told Don, when people get to know me and learn that I know what I say, they come around. And Mark nailed the very important point of why the ties should be cut to 6’8” and not installed with SG length. The Jordan Spreader blades are designed for the Narrow Gauge tie length. Thank you Mark for the support.
Let me come out with another Flat Truth: The Jordan Spreader is the best machine to maintain the narrow gauge track for proper DRAINAGE.!!!
Even if it cost more money to run, it is the best return on investment!
I observed miles of the ditching that Black Bart did with a backhoe and it was a joke. It was a square shaped ditch with burrs on the top of both edges. Any water from the track would not run over the burr and into the ditch. What it did for getting water off the ties and track was nearly zero. I can just imagine his reports of ”miles of ditching done per month” but none of it was of any real value. The Jordan Spreader shapes the ground to make the water run away like it must.
That is great that Jerry Day has offered help with the construction plans, as they are invaluable. And the Jordan Spreader Company is still barely in business and may be able to help with some needed parts if necessary. That company is one of the very few surviving original m/w suppler companies left in the industry.