On the way into work this morning, I noticed a full train of military equipment leaving Fort Lewis. They were mostly light trucks and trailers and small cranes and tankers - maybe an engineering unit. The equipment was on TTX flats (some said "Trailer Train" on the sides). I remember in past years heavier stuff (tanks mostly) were moved on six-axle flats. There used to be a large supply of these parked on base visible from I-5. A few questions:

1. Are these military flats in short supply because of the Iraq situation?

2. Are they usually used only for the heavy applications (like tanks)?

3. What is the history of these cars? Are any currently produced?

Thanks, as always in advance.

Scott

I believe we have two of them on our roster at IRM in Union, IL. One is on site and one on loan to MOT if I am not mistaken. I am betting a lot of these vintage cars are retired with the 40 year rule, whether they have a lot of mileage on them or not.

Bob Kutella

Our local carshop did a lot of work on the DODX six-axles in the 80's eand early 90's - mostly redecking. A lot of them were sold, and a lot were retired. One of our local industries even bought a couple for heavy equipment moves.

I think - but don't know - that the remaining six-axle cars are only really needed for the M1 Abrams Tank moves - anything else can pretty much travel by a standard _TTX flat with either 70 ton or 100 ton limits, depending on the car. An M1A2 Abrams weighs almost 70 tons per tank, so a 140-ton six-axle car is still pushing the axle limits to the point where it is necessary for six axles.

Man, eveything's online! Here's the instruction manual; they are 140-ton cars and it is two per car:
http://www.tpub.com/content/semis/TM-55 ... /index.htm

Haven't seen any six axle flats in QUITE some time. This includes Desert Storm and the current operation in Iraq. I have photos of movements during these times, and all equipment, like a prior posted noted, seems to sit well with the current standard four-axle flats. Recently the military depot in Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania has used the Delaware- Lackawanna Railroad for movement of equipment to the Middle East, all of it on standard 4 axle TTX flats.

Here's one, but it's not like the 'classic' DODX flats. (3/12/2005) This looks more like a TTX-frame flat with six-wheel trucks. The car is slightly swayed with two tanks on it, too:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=98987

Looks like the answer is a 'yes and no', yes there are still six-axle DODX flats but not like the ones that were retired at all.

Along the Northeast Corridor, Amtrak has a number of former D of D 6-wheel trucked flats which they use for M of W service. Concrete ties, high-level platform decks, bridge components, etc,

G.F.Payne
Baltimore

I don't have access to the equipment databases, but I still see a fair amount of 6 axle flats come through the base here in Port Hueneme. And I've seen a lot more up in Barstow.

But you're right that the 6 axle flats are primairly required for the heavy armor like M1s and some of the armored recovery vehicles. And some of the 6 axle flats are TTX instead of DODX. Of the 4 axle flats used for most everything else, an increasing number are TTX now replacing the DODX.

Greg

The real problem with the Abrams is not their weight but their width. With the skirt armor over tracks installed they are within less than half an inch of exceeding the normal clearance diagrams. When I was assigned to MOT Bayonne in the late eighties one of my normal tasks was the accident investigations and damage assessment on these monsters because we couldn't seem to get them there from Ohio without sideswiping something. For a while we were mounting wooden "feelers" on the lead engines and there would be a cop (either Conrail's or one of mine) with a tape measure and a track worker with a chain saw riding the head end of every move. In the end we fabricated a little wooden gauge block which probably cost 17 about cents to make and could be placed against the track pad and the car edge and would show right away if the centering of the load was within tolerance.

MEA