Reporting Air-Brake Repair Work

to running position until the two gauge hands are within 15 pounds of each other-never permitting the black hand to rise above 70 pounds, permanently, however.

ON ARRIVAL AT ROUNDHOUSE AT FINISH OF TRIP.

Reporting Air-Brake Repair Work.-The best policy is for an engineer himself to inspect, clean and oil the equalizing-discharge piston and rotary valve of the automatic brake-valve, and the rotary valve of the independent brake-valve; to attend to any necessary adjustment of the feed valve and reducing valve, and the regulation of the pump governors. In respect to the latter, there is a fine strainer in each main-reservoir pressure pipe-connection to the governor tops which should be cleaned, and the pipes blown out occasionally.

If the return spring in the independent brake-valve gets broken, do not fail to insist on having a new spring put in at once. Don't make a single trip without this spring being in good condition, or else the handle may be forgotten in the release position-warning port gummed up-and in case a quick stop is seriously necessary, the failure of the locomotive brake to apply (which will be the result) may be disastrous.

Become well enough informed on the E-T brake to be able to make accurate and intelligent reports of necessary work. Make no such indefinite reports as

“brake valve not working properly"; state the trouble with the brake-valve, and you won't have any complaint to make against the repair men, nor trouble in handling the train next trip on account of brake-valve not working properly.

Don't allow your driver- and tender-brake piston travel to become too long, and don't permit brakecylinder leakage to exist, just because these things haven't interfered so far with the power and holding effect of your locomotive brake; don't let the driverbrake pistons run out much more than 4 inches, the tender-brake piston 7 inches, and the locomotive truckbrake piston 6 inches. If you have to shorten the piston travel yourself, take up the slack of the driverbrake rigging by means of the screw take-up arrangement in the brake rods near the cylinder-lever connections, as nearly equal on both sides as possible, and so that the shoes will hang as close to the wheels as possible without contact with the tires. The same applies to the tender brake, taking up its slack by means of the dead truck-levers, an equal amount on each truck, but do not let its piston travel be shortened to less than 5 inches.

Testing for Leaks in the No. 6 Equipment.-This concerns the SHOP MAN as well as the ENGINEMAN. Any usual reason that may be given to explain certain leakage from one pipe or air chamber to another

Testing for Leaks

can be counterfeited by leaks between ports in the distributing-valve gasket, although it is unusual for this to happen. The gasket is shown in Fig. 47; the different pressures that are ported through it are named thereon, and it can be seen that any number of pressure combinations may occur from intercommunication of the ports. To avoid possibility of such trouble, before the valve section is re-attached to the reservoir section after removal it should be seen that the gasket is in perfect condition, that no parts are torn from it and sticking to the faces of the sections of the distributing valve; then rub dry graphite on both sides of the gasket, and after the two sections are together tighten the bolts alternately and gradually, working around until all are perfectly tight.

The same thing applies to gaskets 18 and 19 of the automatic brake-valve, and gasket 25 of the independent brake-valve, to a certain extent. See that the long bolts through the brake-valves are always perfectly tight, and if either valve is placed so close to the boiler that the heat will harden and crack the gaskets, have the brake-valve relocated in a better place.

In erecting the piping, it should be seen that the pipe to the black hand of the small duplex gauge is connected to a tee in the brake pipe below the double-heading cock, so that brake-pipe pressure will be indicated when the brake-valve is cut out.

Have all pipes secure against vibration. Have the feed valve and reducing valve bolted firmly to an iron support; don't compel the pipes to support themselves and the heavy valves, too.

If anything about the tender brake becomes defective, necessitating cutting it out, remember the cut-out cock

FIG. 47. Distributing-Valve Gasket. No. 6 distributing valve. Used between valve section and double-chamber reservoir.

for that purpose is not on the tender, but is located on the engine, in the branch of the brake-cylinder pipe that leads to the tender brake, and close to the hose connection with tender.

Regular signal hose, one pair complete, are used in the brake-cylinder pipe line between engine and tender. When the engine-truck brake is part of the equipment, the pipe line to truck brake terminates in a single-hose connection with the brake cylinder, the ends of this hose being fitted with union and nipple, respectively.

Broken or Leaking Pipes

See that the pipe conveying main-reservoir air to the high-pressure governor top is connected to the mainreservoir cut-out cock, and that the cock is so put up that the governor-pipe connection will be on the mainreservoir side. If the cut-out cock is located on the opposite side of the engine from the pump governor, connect this governor pipe to a branch of the main-reservoir pipe that can not be cut out; this to insure the pump always being under the control of the governor, for when the main-reservoir cut-out cock is closed the pressure will be exhausted from all other parts of the locomotive air-brake equipment.

BROKEN OR LEAKING PIPES.

Main Brake Pipe (“train line") Under Tender.-When broken or badly leaking, dispense with the use of the train air signal, and use the main signal pipe under the tender in place of the defective brake pipe. Every engine should carry two “combination hose" complete -very short hose with brake couplings on one end and signal couplings on the other end-for use in such cases, and also when the brake-pipe rupture occurs under any car in a passenger train and it may be undesirable to switch the car to the rear of the train. Place the automatic brake-valve on lap, and close the cut-out cock in the signal line supply-pipe near the combined