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| Re: Tuscarora Almanac for January 16 (1500400) | |||
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Re: Tuscarora Almanac for January 16 |
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Posted by randyo on Fri Jan 18 18:49:48 2019, in response to Re: Tuscarora Almanac for January 16, posted by Express Rider on Fri Jan 18 02:57:32 2019. The term “steels” was in all likelihood used to differentiate them from the BUs not only in the Eastern but in the Southern as well on lines where el and subway lines shared trackage. All the cars were singles until 1923 or so when the BMT embarked on a program of linking most of the cars in 3 car sets in numerical order which were classified as Bs with the remaining single units classed as As. All were motor cars until the purchase of 50 trailer cars in the 4000 series. The 2400 series cars were initially coupled in several configurations. Some were coupled as M-T-M units with a 4000 series trailer in the middle and classed as BXs. Some were coupled as 2 car M-M units and classed as BT and a small number were coupled with a 4000 series trailer as 2 car AX units with some of the 4000 series cars equipped with controls to serve as control trailers. Eventually all the 2400s and 4000. Most of the single a cars were in the 2600 series with a few singles from other groups left as singles since they didn’t fit into the consecutive numbering scheme of the B units. All the steels had maximum traction trucks and since maximum traction trucks don't mix well with trailer cars in the consist, only one BX unit was allowed per train and BCXs were banned from the Manhattan Br although a few did occasionally find their way there. Also single BX units were not allowed to run in passenger service so when trains were cut at night to 3 cars while both sections of a train of Bs could be operated, the BX had to be laid up. The BX series lasted until circa 1960 when the NYCTA overhauled the ABs and decided to scrap the 4000s and replace them in the former BX units with a single A car from the 2600 series essentially converting them to Bs. Since the number of single As was reduced, a number of 2400 series cars from the former BX unite were coupled together into 2 car BT units which were added to trains of 2 B units to make 8 car trains for the services that required them. Exactly when the crews started calling them ABs I don’t know but I suspect that it started when a significant number of D types started to appear on the Southern Div lines and it seems that the term was used only in the Southern Division since as late as the early 1960s when I started serious railfanning, Eastern Div crews always referred to them as “steels” with the only other class of non wooden cars were the Multis and those cars were referred to by that name until the end. |
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