Anyone out there have any experience with the so-called "banana shoes".... the low-friction composition brake shoes (yellow color, hence the name) designed to replace the cast-iron shoes without change to brake rigging and/or cylinders?

I am thinking of these for some 12-wheel heavyweight passenger cars, operated at 25-30 mph. The 2" c.i. shoes are difficult to obtain, are heavy and costly to ship, and wear the wheel tread. Perhaps the low-comp shoes would be a good alternative.

I think Delaware-Lackawanna uses the banana shoes on much of their Alco diesel fleet.

hpincus@mindspring.com

I work for a shortline railroad in the Los Angeles area. We recently installed these shoes on one of our 5 SW1200's, but really do not have enough time on the shoes to have any good results. One problem I have noticed is they seem to be more brittle and prone to cracking than traditional compshoes. Perhaps I'll have more info as the shoes wear.

> Anyone out there have any experience with
> the so-called "banana shoes"....
> the low-friction composition brake shoes
> (yellow color, hence the name) designed to
> replace the cast-iron shoes without change
> to brake rigging and/or cylinders?

> I am thinking of these for some 12-wheel
> heavyweight passenger cars, operated at
> 25-30 mph. The 2" c.i. shoes are
> difficult to obtain, are heavy and costly to
> ship, and wear the wheel tread. Perhaps the
> low-comp shoes would be a good alternative.

> I think Delaware-Lackawanna uses the banana
> shoes on much of their Alco diesel fleet.


ptdrumford@aol.com

My experience is that the composition shoes have different braking than the cast iron shoes, especially when wet or cold. Your engine crews will have to "warm up" the shoes quite a bit longer than with the cast iron ones. I would suggest you contact Scott Whitney at GMRC for more information on this topic.

B.T. Charlie

> Anyone out there have any experience with
> the so-called "banana shoes"....
> the low-friction composition brake shoes
> (yellow color, hence the name) designed to
> replace the cast-iron shoes without change
> to brake rigging and/or cylinders?

> I am thinking of these for some 12-wheel
> heavyweight passenger cars, operated at
> 25-30 mph. The 2" c.i. shoes are
> difficult to obtain, are heavy and costly to
> ship, and wear the wheel tread. Perhaps the
> low-comp shoes would be a good alternative.

> I think Delaware-Lackawanna uses the banana
> shoes on much of their Alco diesel fleet.


r111369@yahoo.com

> Anyone out there have any experience with
> the so-called "banana shoes"....
> the low-friction composition brake shoes
> (yellow color, hence the name) designed to
> replace the cast-iron shoes without change
> to brake rigging and/or cylinders?

We converted our diesels to the low-friction comp shoes a few years ago. Personally, I think they wear faster than cast iron and of course they don't grab the engine the way cast iron does. I don't know how they would perform on a passenger car. They are much easier to ship/handle/install.

If you want more info, contact me off-line and I can put you in touch with our diesel mechanic.

Alan Maples
Everett Railroad


AMaples@aol.com

> I am thinking of these for some 12-wheel
> heavyweight passenger cars, operated at
> 25-30 mph. The 2" c.i. shoes are
> difficult to obtain,

Well, for now they are not too hard to obtain if you look in the right place. AAR 1B shoes are available through Airtek of Irwin, PA with pricing as low as $18.01 per shoe in pallet quantities. I suspect that after Jan 1 next year they will be littering the yards and rip tracks if you can swing a deal to salvage used ones from your local rr.

Bob Kutella


68trolley@comcast.net

We have been using them on the drivers of our steam locomotives (we still use cast iron on the tenders) for several years now. I have noticed no difference in performance or wear compared to cast iron, and they sure are a lot easier to change.

We use the high friction shoes on the train, and they perform entirely different than cast iron shoes, and from the engineer's point of view, cast iron is the way to go. We never tried the low friction comp shoes on the train.

Strasburg Rail Road Mechanical Dept.
kelly@strasburgrailroad.com