a. Flangers are used to clear snow from between the rails, especially from the gage side of the rails.
Their blades must be power operated so that they may be raised to permit passage over crossings and switches.
Flangers may be mounted on special cars, on locomotives, or on other types of plows.
b. Spreader plows may be ordinary spreader ditchers used for snow removal as shown in the sketch; or
they may be specially designed equipment meant only for that purpose. Both are widely used. These plows have
"wings" reaching out from their sides that shove the snow a considerable distance from
the track. This feature makes them especially desirable for clearing yards and multiple-track lines. They may be
used in moderate snowfalls or to clear the ridges of snow left near the track by flangers or by push or rotary
plows.
c. Push plows are used on heavier snowfalls. They may be wedge shaped to distribute snow on both
sides of the track or sloped to throw the snow on one side only. The sloped type is used on double-track lines in
preference to the wedge-shaped one. Simple push plows may be mounted on flatcars, as shown in figure 4.7.
But they are more often attached to ballast-filled gondola cars, which are heavier and less likely to derail.
A more elaborate push plow is shown in figure 4.8. Here the plow is a fixed part of a special car. It is
equipped with wings, to spread the snow out to the side, as well as a flanger attachment not visible in these
views. An operator's compartment contains controls by which the wings and flanger are operated. This plow is
operated at high speeds, up to 30 mph or 48 kmph. It may be used to clear medium-sized drifts, although several
passes may be needed for complete removal.
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