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As kids we used to find those all over. Flagmen would lay them between himself and an idle train in case an approaching engineer failed to see them flagging. On the walk back, they often just kicked them off the rails. The Casey Jones newspaper stories mention their use(or misuse) and give reference to just how common and important a safety device they can be. 

Ahh yes the torpedo, cool pic.

No longer used today. Outlawed...

So, how does a track crew warn an approaching train that they're working ahead?

Thanks,

Rick

Interesting - today, one of those torpedoes can be replaced by 6 or so union employees.

How's that for progress?  I watched a SEPTA crew working on the right of way - there were at least 6 employees there to blow one air horn attached to a can.  Can't be too safe...  I assume one looked East, one looked West, another was a back up and each of them had a back up of there own?  May have been another one to work the radio. Could be unique to the city of Philadelphia and it's commuter department.

/Mitch

In case you didn't read the BS:

quote:

Prior to working on the track, work crews strapped the torpedos to the rail using the soft, lead straps. This device was strapped to the rail about 1/4 to 1/2 mile from the work crew. They would be placed in a pattern so that when the oncoming train ran over the torpedos, the train crew would hear a bam...then bam, bam, or some pattern like that to alert them to the work crew ahead. The bang was so loud, that the work crew could hear it, too, alerting them to a train approaching. Once the track work was done for the day, the track crew removed the torpedo(s) prior to leaving the work site.

Actually, these were standard flagging equipment to be used by whoever was sent out to flag for a following or opposing train. When the torpedos/torpedo exploded the engineer was supposed to blow a road crossing signal and look out for someone flagging.

Used properly, they would be too far away from a work crew that they would hear them. They would hear the whistle or horn. Now a days with the engine windows closed, it would be hard for the engineer to hear the thing go off under his unit.

When did they stop using them? Probably for safety reasons, leading to and stemming from, situations like this.....

I remember two kids walking the tracks near our ball field one day must have found one and attached it to a rail, because about 20 minutes later BANG!and a northbound (F series) freight train with only a few empties, screeched to a halt, and the most P.O.-ed guys you've ever saw jumped from the cab, and caboose, and started running after everyone in the field (private, not RR property), the "engineer" finally catching one girl. Seeing how they didn't kill her, or beat her, figuring a parlay to be a God given right, and not being guilty of anything, or even knowing what the bang was about, or of a torpedoes function yet, we decided to approach her captors to find out what was wrong. They let her go, but.. Mistake! Once near enough the "conductor" grabbed 2 boys, and handed one off to the "engineer". They listened, then called us liars, and the beating of two of the bigger older boys they had began. Luckily a few local grown ups made their way there quickly, having heard the torpedo, and train wheel screeches. Not seeing the crowd of locals coming, they were caught off guard and stammering excuses till one rather large father gathered the kids(and RR people) to hear what we all had to say. Bruises on one boy, issued by the "conductor", were beginning to show already, and a mob of PO-ed mothers began to surround him. "Hold him" the big dad said grabbing a handfull of engineer bib strap. The guy in the striped bibs had been giving "spankings" so got a few "big hand" open slaps, and a hard kick in the butt as he scurried back to the cab. The "conductor" was quite old, so was held down for the boy to hit for a while, he left with blackened eye, and a nicely split lip. Soon the police arrived, local and railroad. And it turned out the "conductor" was also RR Police. Standing there in his opened dress shirt dirty, and blood stained enough that it soaked to his stark white t-shirt, and still nursing his lip with his handkerchief, he was shocked, as his superior made him apologize to the boy from his split lip(more blood). Nobody was arrested that day, but after that we hid behind trees from cabooses the next few years. Why? Because of the occasional pellet gun shot coming from the rails. I wonder who it was?.