Hi all.

At the museum I volunteer at, we use a metal rod with a handle on one end and a tab on the other end for checking journals, as it makes pulling the journal lids open much easier than opening them by hand.

I'm wondering if the "car knockers" back in the day had a similar tool. If they did, did it have an official name? Or was it just called a "journal puller"? If there was such a tool, I'd like to find a few more to donate to the museum for train service.

Thank you.

--Drew Black

Packing hook.

Either "Packing Hook" or "Journal Hook".

Here is a common type, although the handle is more often centered:

http://www.google.ca/imgres?q=journal+hook&hl=en&biw=1333&bih=708&tbm=isch&tbnid=pFBjMKn-K_NEbM:&imgrefurl=http://amhistory.si.edu/onthemove/collection/object_130.html&docid=WmbmqTWQfnz2IM&imgurl=http://amhistory.si.edu/onthemove/img/media/l/1006.jpg&w=300&h=225&ei=iGKmUbanMumfyQH05YHADQ&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:5,s:0,i:93&iact=rc&dur=138&page=1&tbnh=171&tbnw=205&start=0&ndsp=19&tx=62&ty=63

Another type, probably very similar to what you have:

http://www.google.ca/imgres?q=railroad+packing+hook&hl=en&biw=1333&bih=708&tbm=isch&tbnid=qYO6GQBxe_VpHM:&imgrefurl=http://www.industryrailway.com/c/8/tools%3Fpagenumber%3D2&docid=ECHhyedePQEqtM&imgurl=http://www.industryrailway.com/content/images/thumbs/0000171_packing_hook_la212_125.jpeg&w=125&h=95&ei=H2OmUejtM8fFyAHs9oHgDg&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:0,s:0,i:78&iact=rc&dur=337&page=1&tbnh=76&tbnw=85&start=0&ndsp=18&tx=39&ty=33

http://www.nwhs.org/archivesdb/detail.php?ID=94061

Steve Hunter

Thank you Steve and Dennis, that's exactly what I'm looking for. Steve's second link is the same kind we have at the museum. Come to think of it, I have heard of "packing hooks" and "journal hooks", but never realized that I was using one.

Thanks again. :)

--Drew Black

I remember visiting a hump yard, it may have been Elkhart, but before the hump as the cars were moved for the hump the train was slowly moved for the hump, a few buildings next to the track before the hump, one fellow was there popping the journals open (This before the roller bearing era)
then an oil gun was next down the way aimed at the journals at the right moment an operator hits the button (or there may have been an actuator) and a big ole squirt of oil is shot into the journal.
The journals are left open flying down the hump, when the trains are built and done they are closed. Trainmen, brakemen etc may be checking the train setting hoses dropping journal covers.

There are also "journal hammers".

Here is one of the green hat guy's colleagues preparing the museum's Saturday train a couple years ago.

Oh, how those out-of-date DOWT t-shirts get "re-purposed"!!!

That hammer may more likelyused for connecting and breaking steam connectors on passenger cars; the sharply-curved "hook" is used to extract the Bakelite gasket in the steam connector coupling. I watched that happen many times at GCT, New Haven, Hoboken, etc. The sharply-curved "claw" car knocker's hammer is another on of those old railroad tools that seem to have vanished, except for collector pieces on E-bay.

Howard P.
Barco, CT