Turn Your Tractor Into A Locomotive

Turn Your Tractor Into A Locomotive TRACTORS Conversions 24-1-44 You can turn any farm tractor into a mini locomotive for use in freight yards for moving rail cars around. And you can do it for a fraction of the cost of other freight yard movers, according to Kentucky inventor James L. Pyle. He's had interest from grain elevators, scrap yards, industrial and chemical warehouses and many other businesses that ship by rail. He says farmers looking for a side business could contract out their service using his new "Freightshaker" farm system. It takes only about 90 minutes to attach the Freightshaker to any 100 hp, wide-front, row-crop tractor that has a 1,000 rpm PTO and remote hydraulics. No alterations to the tractor are necessary. There are four mounting pads that bolt to tractor û two under the rear axle and two on the front side frames. The operator just attaches the pto and auxiliary throttle, and the unit is ready to work. It takes only an hour to disconnect the tractor which can then be used for other purposes. "You can go straight out and plow if you want to," Pyle says. "This invention came out of an effort to find a cheaper and safer way for grain elevators to handle grain cars," Pyle says. "Grain elevator business is cyclical û spring and fall harvest being very busy and the balance of the year being relatively slow. I noticed a common thread begin to emerge. Nearly every elevator location I saw had one or more farm tractors that were used to power blowers, slingers and portable conveyors for grounds maintenance. As a result, I decided to devise a system that would allow these tractors to be used to pull cars." "The drive system proved to be the biggest hurdle," says Pyle of his quest to design the unit. "I looked a four or five methods, including the reciprocating pistons used on steam locomotives. These methods were abandoned for one or more of three reasons: cost, complexity and maintenance. The drive system I ultimately designed is about as simple and rugged as it gets. It consists of one pressure-compensated pump, one four-position valve, one pressure-compensated motor, and a large oil reservoir. Traction is enhanced by a weight-transfer system that shifts weight from the car to the driving axle. This mechanism is protected by a preset maximum pressure and a compensator to allow for inequalities in the track." "It will haul four to six loaded cars or eight to 12 empties," Pyle says. The Freightshaker's traction is aided by sanders. Sanders have been used on many locomotives for over a century. In this system, sand pours through delivery tubes and lands between the rail and the driving wheels. The Freightshaker Modular Locomotive sells for $46,000 (buyer must supply the tractor). Order turn-around time is two months. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, James L. Pyle, Freightshaker, Inc., 1708 Perryville Road, Harrodsburg, Ky. 40330 (ph 606 734-0057; fax 606 734-0743; E-mail: jpyle@klh.net; Website: http://members.aol.com/shakerfr8/freightshaker.html)

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