Tractor? Locomotive? WTF?

[Joseph Cummings]

Just saw the picture. Can't find a story behind it or where it is. Seems like it'd be too light to get any traction. Maybe it picks up on the coupler like a car mover?

[Geoff Weeks]

??? I agree, no load on the drives. I don't think you can transfer much if any vertical load via the coupling knuckle.

I've seen that company (Brant ??) that had Western Star high rail trucks, but they were much more purpose built.

May be it was used to keep company drivers from "going off the rails"!😃

EDIT: may be the company name was "Brandt"?

Edited Thursday at 06:08 PM by Geoff Weeks

[Joseph Cummings]

1 minute ago, Geoff Weeks said:

??? I agree, no load on the drives. I don't think you can transfer much if any vertical load via the coupling knuckle.

I've seen that company (Brant ??) that had Western Star high rail trucks, but they were much more purpose built.

May be it was used to keep company drivers from "going off the rails"!😃

Years ago at Certified Steel we had a Trackmobile 2TM for moving railcars in the yard. It had a Willys Hurricane 4 cylinder in it, and to get traction it picked up on the rail car's coupler. But it was only rated for 2 railcars

 

[Geoff Weeks]

I tried to blow up the pic and look and the coupler but couldn't see it clearly. I thought it looked like a plain coupler,but you might be right, and it has someway to transfer load (plate at bottom/top) like the jockey does.

[Joseph Cummings]

It seems to be way overkill if they are just using it to move a couple railcars around a yard. I moved a lot of that stuff and MOW equipment on my Landoll and even a 6 car mover only has like a 100 HP engine if even that much. I'd love to know the "why" behind building it

[Geoff Weeks]

The why, may have been someones "why not?" and then they got the answer after they built it.

[davehummell]

Many years ago I rigged up a rail car coupler on the loader arms of a wheel loader a new Cat for a wood mill in Tunkhannock they used it to spot cars in their yard I used to see the loader all the time. I used to spot the rail cars down in our yard in Northampton but the loco I drove scaled out at 250 tons

[Joseph Cummings]

35 minutes ago, davehummell said:

Many years ago I rigged up a rail car coupler on the loader arms of a wheel loader a new Cat for a wood mill in Tunkhannock they used it to spot cars in their yard I used to see the loader all the time. I used to spot the rail cars down in our yard in Northampton but the loco I drove scaled out at 250 tons

The biggest thing I ever ran was one of these 44 tonners when I worked for McHugh on their Tyburn RR division. We handled lots of stuff for the USS Fairless Works there. That one had 6-71 Detroits in it.

[Joseph Cummings]

58 minutes ago, Geoff Weeks said:

The why, may have been someones "why not?" and then they got the answer after they built it.

Yeah could be a fail

[kscarbel2]

 

[tjc transport]

truck has air ride suspension.  if the coupler has a plate on the bottom to put weight on the back of the truck, drop suspension, lock coupler, load air bags, and put weight in drives. probably an old rig that was not really roadworthy anymore, but was perfect for car shuttling in the yard

 

[The Heinz]

Looks like he's hooked to a log car, so I bet it's a logging company that didn't want to buy a trackmobile or small locomotive and uses an old semi that was past its roadworthy days to shuttle their cars to the interchange with a larger railroad. 

[Joseph Cummings]

2 hours ago, kscarbel2 said:

 

JC McHugh had at least one of them

https://www.mchughlocomotive.com/historic-locomotives-saved-from-the-flames-of-the-scrappers-torch-by-mchugh/

[Joey Mack]

Neat stuff guys.... 👍

[mrsmackpaul]

A similar thing was trialled in Australia 

https://pjv101.net/cd/pages/c561m.htm

Paul