380-Ton Schnabel Transformer Car (North American Style)??

[union pacific 844]

will that work on 18 or 22   turns

[bapguy]

Model Railroader reviewed this recently and listed the minimum radius as 22". It will probably work on this radius but not very well. The problem is the over hang as the car goes around the curve.  Joe

[jward]

do you have any idea how big this car is? even on 22r, you'd better have alot of space between the track and any lineside scenery. if not you'll sideswipe things everywhere you run it.   this is a car best run on extremely wide radii.....

[union pacific 844]

i have  no scenery just two loops of track on 4x8 broad  one loop is 22 and one loop is 18 and i have no clue how big it is 

[jward]

according to the web site it is 27 1/2 inches long. each of the 4 groups of trucks would be about the size of a 50' freight car. each of the span bolsters would be about the same lenght as a dash 8, and the arms supporting the load itself much longer than a dda40x.  this thing is so huge that the real ones have the ability to crank the load to either side to keep from sideswiping lineside items. they are run in special trains, which wait in wide spots in the track, or in a siding well off the main, for opposing trains to pass. they don't run in a regular freight train.

to give you an idea how much they swing inward on curves, take two passener cars, with a 50 foot boxcar between them. find the center of each passenger car, and lay a yardstick between them. that would be a very conservative estimate of how much room they'd need on your curves.

[WoundedBear]

Save your money and buy that new soldering gun you need

Sid

[union pacific 844]

why? im staying dc for the rest of the year and i just wanted info on this car
   sound like i a lot of room for it to swing  i don't use my 18 r loop that  much  most of my engine are to big for 18 r

[Piyer]

Here you go, UP, the Schnabel car on 22" curves: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gxk5R2mao4.

[Jerrys HO]

Thanks for the video Piyer.
Not quite as bad as i thought it would look.

[jward]

the real ones don't do much better on curves:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO7xcQq0EXU

[the Bach-man]

Dear All,
We regularly run them on 18" radius at shows. They look really strange but fascinating with their tremendous overang.
Have fun!
the Bach-man

[uscgtanker]

I have seen one of these cars in Duluth. They usually have one there to transfer from boat to shore. one section alone is 160'.