Hey there,

I was curious if anyone here has tried using a wooden block in place of missing journal brass for small moves or emergency situations. What type of wood did you use, and what type of preparation did you make, like soaking in oil and for how long? If you used a block for a stationary piece of equipment, what type of life expectancy could you expect before it deteriorated too badly?

Last year I was told by a C&TS Friends member that they attempted some moves with a few freight cars with wooden bearings at very slow speed around the Chama yard due to a shortage of brasses. They caught fire after a very short period of time, though I wasn't there and I don't know what type of preparation they did to the blocks. Thanks for your input!

I have had a few narrow gauge freight cars that have sat on wood blocks in place of journals for years. My blocks are nothing more than a pine 2x4 cut to the rough length of the missing journal brass and keeper (I have even used 1x4's when the keepers were present). As for preparation, I just made sure the journal surface was clean and covered it and the block of wood with a liberal coating of grease. Admittedly the cars have never moved more than a couple hundred yards at a time and never at more than a walking pace, but that said I have never noticed the journals even getting so much as warm from moving the car. I suppose if you were to move a car from one and of the Chama yards to another (about half a mile) at 15mph with no grease on the wood blocks or journal surface, you may encounter a problem, but that course of action seems beyond the scope of temporarily putting wood blocks in a serviceable car or permanantley putting them in an out of service car anyway.

As far as deterioration of the blocks, I have yet to notice any, given that the blocks are in the journal boxes and out of the weather. The blocks do wear or compress a bit, so if you were moving the car often it would pay to keep an eye on them, but I have had some wood blocks in place for the better part of a decade with no ill effects.

Jason Midyette

Have had wooden blocks in journals for years. The best ones are oak blocks cut to look just like a journal brass. Then they are soaked in journal oil for a month or so. They are installed just like a regular brass, pads are packed in and the box is kept well oiled. Cars are switched just like any other car. Most crews probably never knew any cars had woodn brass. The wooden brass run on rough journals better than brass bearings.

This practice was done at a railroad I once worked for. If brass were stolen and the journals damaged, wooden brass were installed to get the cars back to the shop. Some cars were stored on them for years. One car got away and ran on the mainline for 70 miles. No problem. So the car was oiled and routed back to the shop, still on its wooden brass.

Around twenty years ago British Railways used to do this in the Sheffield area. The wagons concerned were passed fit for "one journey only" - for about a mile from Tinsley yard to the scrapyards and no doubt at very low speed. I believe the blocks were greased hardwood cut to the shape of the journals. Bearing theft was endemic around Tinsley and the thieves had the trick of jacking up the wagons by the axlebox guides and sliding the bearing out.

I framed a bid for my group for a 60 ft rail carrying wagon and was careful to state that a full set of bearings must be included; it turned out to have one metal bearing left and seven blocks, which BR had to replace.

Tim

We have a car that has been on wooden bearings for at least 10 years... They were cut to look like a regular bearing from oak... soaked in oil for some weeks... we were careful to cut them with the grain across the axle not with it... to prevent splitting... We have not restrictions on moving the car on our railroad (less than 10 mph)

We have a second 4 wheel replica car designed with wooden bearings... the wood bearings used with nasty journals... which have been polished by the wood bearing blocks...

Wood is much more forgiving than a badly fitted brass or babbitt bearing...

Randy

If you do go with wood I recommend White Oak, much denser than Red Oak, still porous to wick up oil, also less likely to crush or split.

Lignum vitae. It's what water powered turbines at hydroelectric stations use, and the water flowing through lubricates it. Might not be as easy to find as Oak, though.

dave

Many thanks to John for asking this question and for those of you who posted replies. I have a whole string of disconnected trucks to move to gain access to some other parts of our railroad as well as to recover both the trucks and some cars beyond. Not a single one has a brass, but most have keepers. They will have to go about a mile to storage, but from what I read, I can use 1 X 4 pine (of which I have a huge quantity) and lots of grease and be able to move the trucks to safety.

http://lignum-vitae-bearings.com/

All the fuss over plain bearings vs. roller....when all they needed was wood, a couple of rain gutters, and a cistern on each car.

Steve