# Railroad scrap



## Toddntucson7 (Apr 29, 2016)

I know when I started working at the railroad back in 2000 I was just coming in as the ol timers were leaving it was one big hire every 30 years. I worked major derailments along the main line where they had multi car pile ups, twisted so bad we would use burn rods to cut couplers off and let the cars fall were they could, just to clear traffic, then re rail what we could and get things moving. Cost 1 million an hour shut down. Some cars filled with computers, electronics anything that could cause a customer problems down the line they would call a insurance adjuster write it and it was up to us to dump usually wherever in a unloaded car etc. Some companies would haul. Back ten years prior they just dug a hole off the frontage road 200 feet off the track and dumped sometimes a few hundred of those old computers you all like so much and cover it up with a couple feet of dirt. Talking with some of the older workers they still remember where and what some interesting dumps were. As long at its not on railroad property a lot of times they are not my metal detector finds all kinds of stuff on a day trip. Talk to some old railroad workers in your area about that, you might have a honey hole 45 min from house they thought was high tech land fills. Good luck


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## silversaddle1 (Apr 29, 2016)

Being in the railroad scrap business for 28 years, I can tell you stories that will make you cry. Sometimes I still shake my head.


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## goldsilverpro (Apr 30, 2016)

Silver lined bearings are a good RR scrap item.


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## everydayisalesson (Apr 30, 2016)

I had a guy give me a lead weight used on the under carriage of some cars back when I was hauling scrap. It was roughly 14" x 6" x 4". It weighed 176 pounds. I wish I would have kept it or sold it in pieces on Ebay. Scrap yard gave me 40 cents a pound but I have since sold many lead items on Ebay for a dollar a pound.


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## lunker (May 1, 2016)

GSP,

Could you please elaborate on the rail car bearings? I do dealings with a yard here in Canada and they get wheels by the hundreds.Where are the bearings located? In the actual wheel itself? Or on the shaft? Any hints would be greatly appreciated!
Regards.


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## its-all-a-lie (May 1, 2016)

lunker said:


> GSP,
> 
> Could you please elaborate on the rail car bearings? I do dealings with a yard here in Canada and they get wheels by the hundreds.Where are the bearings located? In the actual wheel itself? Or on the shaft? Any hints would be greatly appreciated!
> Regards.



I was wondering the same thing. The steel mill i work in receives a couple railcars per month to cut up, might be a few bucks extra i could make!


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## goldsilverpro (May 1, 2016)

The only time I saw them was at a RR auction somewhere in Kansas about 25 years ago. There were several tons of them. The silver was probably 1/16" thick. I didn't get the bid and I really don't remember what they ran, what they did, or what they looked like.

One time, we had maybe 50 or more drums of similar silver-coated aircraft bearings. They ran about 2 oz of Ag each, if I remember right. They were made in 2 semi-circle halves with a 2" or 3" wide band of thick silver covering most of the outside. We tried several different chemicals but the steel used was too sensitive to attack. We tried sweating the silver off but there were always BBs left on the parts. We ended up chucking 2 halves together in a lathe and cutting the silver off. There is ALWAYS more than one way to skin a cat. We also ran a few drums of wrist pins with about an inch wide band of silver but they weren't as good as the bearings.

There's a very informative chapter about silver bearings in a book I have. "Silver: Economics, Metallurgy, and Use" by Butts and Coxe (no joke, that's their names). Great book. It even tells you how to make Thum silver cells, with all the dimensions, solution makeup, etc. Also, that's where I got all the info on silver plating thickness on different grades of flatware and holloware.


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## Toddntucson7 (May 2, 2016)

Yes I know where tons of those bearings are at they come off the locomotive mainly I'm sure. They are bearing for the traction motor when we pull and replace units that drive train. People think trains have a big engine with drive shafts. They are not. They are basically just a huge generator for two electric motors that roll out when we jack the engine up unplug and replace. The silver are in those bearings. You would have a field day on a old locomotive. Your hands would be cramped for years from stripping stuff. My 4th month working there the boss loaded about 600 pounds of copper wire that was very old from the old telegraph line. Old nasty hard wire big around as pencil in the back of my truck with a forklift and the nose of my truck pointed at the moon.


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## silversaddle1 (May 2, 2016)

Toddntucson7 said:


> Yes I know where tons of those bearings are at they come off the locomotive mainly I'm sure. They are bearing for the traction motor when we pull and replace units that drive train. People think trains have a big engine with drive shafts. They are not. They are basically just a huge generator for two electric motors that roll out when we jack the engine up unplug and replace. The silver are in those bearings. You would have a field day on a old locomotive. Your hands would be cramped for years from stripping stuff. My 4th month working there the boss loaded about 600 pounds of copper wire that was very old from the old telegraph line. Old nasty hard wire big around as pencil in the back of my truck with a forklift and the nose of my truck pointed at the moon.



Each traction motor from even the early GP series locos have 1 traction motor per axle. Last ones I scrapped yielded 600 pounds of #1 copper from each traction motor, not including what was in the armature.


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## Lou (May 2, 2016)

I can't say I've ever seen any. It'd be nice to have some to process!

Chris, what about dipping them in molten silver?

I have run stainless steel bolts that had silver plated in their threads. Can deplate them in 2 percent nitric onto Ti or SS sheet.


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## Toddntucson7 (May 2, 2016)

lunker said:


> GSP,
> 
> Could you please elaborate on the rail car bearings? I do dealings with a yard here in Canada and they get wheels by the hundreds.Where are the bearings located? In the actual wheel itself? Or on the shaft? Any hints would be greatly appreciated!
> Regards.


 
Look for the steering wheel in the locomotive! That's where the 24k gold ones are at.


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## Toddntucson7 (May 2, 2016)

silversaddle1 said:


> Toddntucson7 said:
> 
> 
> > Yes I know where tons of those bearings are at they come off the locomotive mainly I'm sure. They are bearing for the traction motor when we pull and replace units that drive train. People think trains have a big engine with drive shafts. They are not. They are basically just a huge generator for two electric motors that roll out when we jack the engine up unplug and replace. The silver are in those bearings. You would have a field day on a old locomotive. Your hands would be cramped for years from stripping stuff. My 4th month working there the boss loaded about 600 pounds of copper wire that was very old from the old telegraph line. Old nasty hard wire big around as pencil in the back of my truck with a forklift and the nose of my truck pointed at the moon.



Each traction motor from even the early GP series locos have 1 traction motor per axle. Last ones I scrapped yielded 600 pounds of #1 copper from each traction motor, not including what was in the armature.[/quote

We send in use or those off to be rebuilt unless they break on mainline in our servic unit. Too much work with only jacks. Plus we technically can get time slip by round house employees for taking their work. Now we even send the yard ones off I we can. Maybe 2 times a year here do we replace a traction engine because we only have 1-2 guys in locomotive department. Otherwise Omaha takes em in. We only change the first front A end or the B end rear motor It he yard. They are unmanned, stripped down on remote control "Junkers" that were almost past date of service. I don't think we ever have changed a inside axle in yard.


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## Toddntucson7 (May 3, 2016)

everydayisalesson said:


> I had a guy give me a lead weight used on the under carriage of some cars back when I was hauling scrap. It was roughly 14" x 6" x 4". It weighed 176 pounds. I wish I would have kept it or sold it in pieces on Ebay. Scrap yard gave me 40 cents a pound but I have since sold many lead items on Ebay for a dollar a pound.


I have no idea what car that came off of. The pull them out of service after so many years. That must have been a really really old car. Because I have replaced everything and every part on every car. I am looking for scrap lead, where is a good source? I heard old roof shingles I already raided the shooting range and tire stores. I need a good amount 1000 pounds.


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## goldsilverpro (May 3, 2016)

Lou said:


> I can't say I've ever seen any. It'd be nice to have some to process!
> 
> Chris, what about dipping them in molten silver?
> 
> I have run stainless steel bolts that had silver plated in their threads. Can deplate them in 2 percent nitric onto Ti or SS sheet.


Something I had forgotten. On many or most, there was an overlay of lead on top of the silver. The lathe worked amazingly well.


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## everydayisalesson (May 3, 2016)

Hey Todd, this was about 5 years ago and the guy said he had gotten it 30 years earlier. I know some sail boats use lead for underbelly weight. Hope that helps.

Mike


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