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Path: utzoo!linus!rcs
From: rcs@linus.UUCP (Richard C. Smith)
Newsgroups: net.railroad
Subject: Re: Sand Towers
Message-ID: <489@linus.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 9-Aug-85 15:40:58 EDT
Article-I.D.: linus.489
Posted: Fri Aug  9 15:40:58 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 11-Aug-85 07:06:24 EDT
Distribution: net
Organization: The MITRE Corporation, Bedford, MA
Lines: 17


	The sand towers had nothing to do with the fires in locomotives.
Rather, they were used to add a little friction to the drive wheels when
needed.  These towers are one (or possibly more) of the domes that rest
on top of the boiler.  Sand is placed in them.  A pipe runs from the tower
to the drive wheels, just above the rails.  When the wheels slipped, the
engineer would give a metal rod a pull-push, and a quantity of sand would
slide down the pipe to the wheel.

	I wasn't aware that these were still in use in todays engines,
but, I can't think of any other reason of carrying a sand tower on an
engine.


				Rick Smith