THE SCNABEL CAR

As part of the AP&W main line from the Midwest to the Northeast, Hillsdale sees a number of large cars designed to move large objects, such as transformers. Among these cars was this particular car, called a Schnabel car.


Sitting in the yard awaiting forwarding back west, Schnabel car, PTDX 202 gets a once-over by Norman and another worker.

Mark Davis goes to check the caboose while the other two discuss the car's massive size. The Engineering Department caboose houses the crew that accompanies the Schnabel when it's carrying a load.

The sheer size of the car is apparent when viewed from the side. At 120' long and 13' tall, it's a big beast when empty; when loaded with a transformer it's even bigger! It also has 40 wheels to help spread out the weight on the rails.

Here, the car has been placed in a train, and is headed back home to Muncie, Ind.

Schnabel cars have the unique ability to separate into two halves to accommodate the load. Thus, these cars have no set length when loaded. The equipment at the ends of the car allow the load to be raised and/or shifted to one side or the other for clearance purposes en-route -hence the need for an operating crew to accompany the load. Originally built for Westinghouse, PTDX 202 can carry up to 1,200,000 pounds between its two halves! These cars have strict operating rules on the AP&W;

1) 15mph max when loaded and must be accompanied by at least two cars plus crew car

2) 25mph max and near the head-end of the train (within 3-5 cars of the locomotives) when empty.
While the AP&W is a fast freight railroad, when dealing with these behemoths, sometimes haste makes waste!