Dynamic Buff and Draft Testing Techniques

摘要

The test car was used to evaluate the safe curving limits of two candidate cars,namely the Frontrunner and the 89-foot flatcar, under buff and draft loads of up to 250,000 pounds and for a 10-degree curve. The tests, supported by analysis, showed that coupling of the Frontrunner to the 89-foot flatcar reduces the faltcar's ability to negotiate curves safely for draft loads higher than 220,000 pounds and buff loads higher than 180,000 pounds.