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Batman1988
Junior Train Controller
Joined: Apr 17, 2008
Last Visited: Mar 10, 2009
Location: Wayne Tower railway station, Gotham City
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| Batman1988 |
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Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 7:07 am
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I was on my home in the wee hours of this morning from work, and was listenig to Rod Quinn. At about 2:10, he got a call from a guy at Spotswood station saying that he was there doing some work on the tracks with a series of linked detonators(!).
Anyone know what might be going on? I'm not familiar with track maintenance procedures, but detonators? Someone help me out?
"Nobody panics when things go 'according to plan'. Even if the plan is horrifying. If I tell the press that, like, a tram will break down or a train full of people will be running late, nobody panics. Because it's all 'part of the plan'. But when I say that one little old freeway will gridlock... WELL THEN EVERYONE LOSES THEIR MINDS! Introduce a little anarchy, upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos."
"Oh, and you know the thing about chaos? It's fair."
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kuldalai
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Jan 14, 2003
Last Visited: Jul 27, 2010
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Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 11:02 am
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Detonators are used as an outer protection on approach on tracks where maintenance works are in progress . They are placed on one rail - three at even intervals. A train running over them will explode them alerting the driver of impending danger .
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TheLoadedDog
El Sombrero!
Joined: Jun 19, 2003
Last Visited: Jul 30, 2010
Location: At the pub with 42101
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FieldShunt74
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Nov 06, 2004
Last Visited: Jul 30, 2010
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steveo2004
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Apr 19, 2004
Last Visited: Jun 8, 2010
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| steveo2004 |
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Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 10:45 am
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I have been told when they used to make them they got a handfull and just smashed them on the floor for a bit of fun
Proud to be one of the last 3 Gate Keepers in Melbourne
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dalts 1985
Banned
Joined: Jul 29, 2003
Last Visited: Feb 25, 2009
Location: Banned
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| dalts 1985 |
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Posted: Sun May 18, 2008 11:44 pm
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| FieldShunt74 wrote: | They used to be an important tool in the Darwinian process of weeding out overly curious children with too many fingers, hands, eyes etc.
The killjoy railways are more careful with them these days, making Mr Darwin's important work more hit & miss. |
Ahhh, how ironic this thread & inparticular, this topic of discussion on "DETS" should have popped up & inparticular the cleaver post by Sir FieldShunt74 on Darwin's selection & eradication practises   ...
Living across the road from the Mainline into W'bool on the South West Mainline from Geelong, I have heard DET's go off a few times...
The most scariest thing through ever to happen, was when a kid, living in a flat backing on to the line (who's long since moved away) was mucking around over on the rail reservation, came across a Det in the ballest, picked it up & carted it across the road, to my father, whom was at the time watering the front garden, he showed it to my dad & asked him what it was  I just happened to come along, took one look at the thing & politely said: "Ahh Phillip, you may wish to put that "deliteful thing" down right now, & be very careful with it for godsake Why he asked Dad asked me what it was I told them both it's a Rail track DET, or more commonly known as an Auditble Explosive Track Warning Devise, used for warning loco crews of trackwork in the close proximitty to the area...
This the young foolish gent took it away, but for some reason I didn't trust him with it (most likely after hearing a loud bang from memory), so I went with dad up the private driveway to the unmarked/unprotected Private LX that leads to the house across the railway track, to see where he had buggered off to & see just what he was doing with it
Here I find the fool with a hammer in hand, about to smash the thing...
This I called out to him to put the hammer down, & move away very very slowly, unless he would like to be one less arm &/or leg or like facial damage of some description... Once he was clear of the dreaded darm thing I removed the det from the track & placed it in the shed at our house overnite & took it first thing next day to the Rail Station the next day, I was rewarded with $20...
That afternoon I had one of the Track Gangers trucks pull up out front our house & a knock on the door, The lead ganger had been notified & was asked to come round to find out where we had found this "Marvalious" thing... I showed him & the scary thing was I found another 5 I was told, they had most likely come off the track, due to the wires that hold them to the track having broken off, this instead of exploding, the train had some how sent them flying off the track... The Ganger said the one we found (along with the other 5 we found later were put on the rails that nite be the local ganger, after the up pass had left to warn the driver of the dwn pass later that nite to slow up for the old bridge over Simpson St that was under repair/replacem't at the time...
The ganger, said next time should you come across some unexploded one's grab some tape & just tape them to the track, their better off being exploded & minimising the protential risks, them left in a position where they could go off it mishandled in the wrong hands...
Luck would have it, to date, I have never seen another one since that day around here...
Banned
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northbritish
Junior Train Controller
Joined: Sep 16, 2006
Last Visited: Jun 7, 2010
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Posted: Tue May 20, 2008 7:20 pm
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A det going off under a tram in Collins St. late at night many decades ago, did cause a little consternation with both motorists and tram crew who all thought their vehicles had "blown up" and got out to look.
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lordofthesheep
Train Controller
Joined: Mar 27, 2006
Last Visited: Dec 18, 2008
Location: Where facts are few and experts are many, Vic
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ZH836301
Chief Commissioner
Joined: Apr 26, 2006
Last Visited: Jul 30, 2010
Location: BleakCity
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| ZH836301 |
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Posted: Thu May 22, 2008 11:04 pm
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What a waste of C4.
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KEV
Train Controller
Joined: Aug 18, 2006
Last Visited: Jun 3, 2010
Location: Melbourne
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2008 5:34 am
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| northbritish wrote: | | A det going off under a tram in Collins St. late at night many decades ago, did cause a little consternation with both motorists and tram crew who all thought their vehicles had "blown up" and got out to look. |
Sound very similar to a story I was told by the person who did it... you sure it wasn't bourke st?  I may be wrong though.
ATW's as they're know today because Detonator or dets sound too much like something a terrorist would use. In the good book it states that "one must be standing at least 40M away when a train rolls over them. lol.
WORST JOKE EVER
Q: Why did the Loco blow it's horn?
A: To wake the sleepers.....
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