Class 60 rescuing Class 37 hauled vac fitted train

[pharrc20]

Hi all,

Something I have wondered for a while is whether a vacuum-fitted freight hauled by a pair of dual-braked Class 37s could be rescued by an air-brake only Class 60 in the event of the failure of both Class 37s on the mainline. Would the Class 37s be able to act as brake convertors if they are connected by the air-pipes to the Class 60 and to the vacuum-fitted wagons by the vacuum pipe only? Or would the Class 60 only be able to provide haulage power only? I would imagine both the Class 60 and the pair of 37s would need a driver each still.

 

Cheers Paul

[uax6]

It would never happen. Vac fitted freights had disappeared from the network long before the class 60's appeared....

 

Andy G

[Steadfast]

Were the Tunstead ICI hoppers not vac brake to the end in the 1990s, hence the use of 37s?

 

Jo

[Steven B]

The last train of vac brake only ICI hoppers ran in 1997 - eight years after the class 60 arrived. Vac braked engineers wagons lasted until the early 2000s.

 

Some dual braked locos have a vacuum slave system - it allows air into the system in proportion to the drop of pressure in the air-brake system. If class 37s are so fitted then the train brakes might be able to be applied from the class 60. What happens next would depend on if the class 37s could manage to re-create the vacuum once the brakes were released.

 

StevennB.

[uax6]

Ok I forgot those few flows. Upon failure of the train, control would find a suitably vac fitted loco to rescue the train...

 

Andy G

[pharrc20]

Ok just wondered. I will have to look at the photos more closely to try and work out what is going on then.

 

Cheers Paul

[adb968008]

All depends on the failure..

if the failure was a leak on the vac pipe on the 37.. its game over for that one.. said through prior experience of it happening, and ensuing 2 hours tracing the leak from the rear of the train towards the front.. only to find it was the locos pipe doing the leaking.

[roythebus]

Having not been trained on the 60 or 37, from my other driving experiences it was always possible for an air braked loco to haul anything unbraked depending on the braking capability of the assisting loco. however, that could only apply if the last vehicle had a brake van! however, if as per the OP a 60 was to haul a vac braked train, then yes that is possible providing the train engine (the 37) was running and could maintain vacuum and have a driver on it.

 

The drivers brake valve on the 37 would need to be open and in the running position in order to blow off the vacuum brake by creating vacuum. The driver on the 37 would have to do the braking but the driver on the 60 could apply the brake in emergency. In effect you would have 2 brake valves open, and even with the air/vacuum relay opening, that would not prevent the 37 from trying to create vacuum and keep the brake off. 

 

If the 37 is a failure, then the train has to be worked unbraked.

 

If the assisting loco is dual braked, then it isn't a problem. Couple up vacuum and air pipes and loco coupling of course and carry on.