Trainings

Why Teach the 26L Locomotive Air Brake System?

It is the dominant air brake system in North America. When you understand the 26L brake system,

you understand a great deal about today’s software driven electronic brake systems, such as CCB26.

Your Three-Day Experience

If you have always wanted to be more effective at troubleshooting locomotive brake systems or you just

want to understand how the system works, this is the training for you. No hours of tracing diagrams with

colored pencils. Join your instructors for three 8-hour days of fast-paced learning as we cover the four

primary values and how they interact. Each presentation will be followed by quizzes to reinforce learning.

Day one we explain the 26C automatic brake valves, the signals it sends, six common fixes for equalizing

reservoir leaks, the 26F control valve and a methodical locomotive brake test. On day two we introduce

line piping diagrams, the A-1 Charging Cut Off Pilot Valve, the P-2A Application Valve and the remedies for

9 common airbrake problems. On the last day we learn the common variations of the 26L system, try

troubleshooting techniques on an SD45-2 locomotive, and close out with a 100-question final exam.

Your Instructors

Don and Allen worked at two different Class I “Granger Railroads” before meeting at Norfolk & Western.

Over the years they were supervisors in locomotive shops at Silvis, Decatur, and Chicago, Illinois and

managed larger shop groups in Roanoke, Va and Chattanooga, TN. Allen retired as Manager of

Locomotive Engineering and Don as Vice President Mechanical from Norfolk Southern. Both have been

involved in air brake modifications, test procedures, waiver applications, specifications, regulatory

compliance and troubleshooting since the ‘80s and have degrees in mechanical engineering.

The cost is $1100 per participant. Class size is limited. Payment is required in advance by credit card to

the Railroaders Memorial Museum. Payments are refundable until October 30th. Payments can be made

at https://www.railroadcity.org/trainings.The email address you provide upon enrolling will be used

for communicating information about starting times, the classroom location and pre-read materials.

Direct questions to Don Graab at ddgraab@gmail.com

Derailment Investigation and Cause-Finding Training

When: November 11th (8AM-5PM) and 12th (8AM-noon) 2025

Where: Railroaders Memorial Museum

1200 9th Ave Altoona PA 16601

Cost: $200 per participant or $500 for (up-to) three participants per railroad/organization

“One-wheelers” and single-car derailments are the canary in the coal mine. Are you investigating them to find the root causes, so bigger derailments don’t happen?

This class will teach you how to investigate derailments to find the true root cause(s), to prevent recurrence. It is intended for mid-level railroad operations managers, such as

Track supervisors, roadmasters, division engineers
General supervisors, division mechanical managers, master mechanics
Supervising locomotive engineers, road foremen, division superintendents

Railroads receive the most beneficial training when members of all three departments attend together, because derailment-causing factors and conditions are often interrelated. Railroaders, whether “wearing many hats” at short lines or departmentally specialized at Class I’s, need to understand why derailments happen and how to prevent them.

Day 1 morning classroom instruction includes:

1. Fundamentals – Safety and Philosophy of Cause-Finding

2. Communication and Basic Concepts

3. Collecting Information

a. Point Of Derailment (POD) and first wheel to derail

b. Train operating information

c. Track inspection

d. Equipment inspection

Day 1 afternoon hands-on training includes:

Mechanical “truck teardown” inspection: wheel profiles, bearing adapters, spring nests, wedge rise, side bearings, centerbowl and centerplate; plus draft gear and carbody.
Track measurements: gage, crosslevel, and mid-chord alignment at stations and joints

Day 2 morning classroom instruction includes:

1. Investigations, POD intact: wheel lift and climb, stringline, jackknife, blowover

2. Investigations, POD destroyed: rail rollover, broken rail, broken or loose wheels

3. Investigations, turnout related: picked switches, guardrail climbs

4. Analysis: Event recorder, train makeup, track geometry car data

5. Write-up/Close-out

The instructor for this training will be Walter Rosenberger. Walter has over 25 years of railroad experience, primarily investigating hundreds of derailments at Rail Sciences Inc. and Norfolk Southern Research and Tests. He has investigated, analyzed, and computer-simulated many types of derailments to understand the physics and causal factors involved, so you can understand why your derailments happen, and how to prevent them.

The cost is $200 per participant or $500 for up to three participants from a single organization.

(This is to encourage engineering, mechanical, and transportation employees to attend together.) Pre-registration is required along with payment by credit card to the Railroaders Memorial Museum using this link: https://www.railroadcity.org/trainings. Participants should provide their email address to receive additional class information.

Direct questions to Walter Rosenberger at walter@railphysics.com or 540-597-2428.