Mike's Railroad Crossing Forum

I have heard some crossings are having WCH Tyoe 4's. How rare are WCH Type 4s? Which railroads use WCH Type 4s?

These are a thing?!

Apparently so. IIRC, the pitch is somewhere between that of a Type 1.5 and Type 2 or between a Type 2 and Type 3. AFAIK, any railroad that currently installs WCH e-bells (so UP, MBTA, various shortlines like the ones owned by the G&W, etc.) will use them.

Caltrain started using WCH Type 4s as new installs, as well as Metrolink, BNSF, and UP, ?NCTD (i think so)

freebrickproductions wrote:Apparently so. IIRC, the pitch is somewhere between that of a Type 1.5 and Type 2 or between a Type 2 and Type 3. AFAIK, any railroad that currently installs WCH e-bells (so UP, MBTA, various shortlines like the ones owned by the G&W, etc.) will use them.

Wasn't UP using NEGs earlier in the decade? When did they go back to WCH?

ZachL wrote:

freebrickproductions wrote:Apparently so. IIRC, the pitch is somewhere between that of a Type 1.5 and Type 2 or between a Type 2 and Type 3. AFAIK, any railroad that currently installs WCH e-bells (so UP, MBTA, various shortlines like the ones owned by the G&W, etc.) will use them.

Wasn't UP using NEGs earlier in the decade? When did they go back to WCH?

Seems to be a mix, honestly. NEG e-bells seem to go up on new mast signals while WCH is typically used for bell replacements and new cantilever signals. They also appear to use GS Type 3s for bell replacements as well.

It may also vary by region, as some things do with railroads (like NS using US&S Model 95s almost exclusively in the Carolinas, and using GE e-bells up in PA).

freebrickproductions wrote:

ZachL wrote:

freebrickproductions wrote:Apparently so. IIRC, the pitch is somewhere between that of a Type 1.5 and Type 2 or between a Type 2 and Type 3. AFAIK, any railroad that currently installs WCH e-bells (so UP, MBTA, various shortlines like the ones owned by the G&W, etc.) will use them.

Wasn't UP using NEGs earlier in the decade? When did they go back to WCH?

Seems to be a mix, honestly. NEG e-bells seem to go up on new mast signals while WCH is typically used for bell replacements and new cantilever signals. They also appear to use GS Type 3s for bell replacements as well.

It may also vary by region, as some things do with railroads (like NS using US&S Model 95s almost exclusively in the Carolinas, and using GE e-bells up in PA).

Interesting that ASTS is continuing use of the US&S name on equipment.

I guess it's no different than Siemens still using the Safetran logo on its light heads, though kinda odd considering gate mechs are not the same way.

ZachL wrote:

freebrickproductions wrote:

ZachL wrote:

freebrickproductions wrote:Apparently so. IIRC, the pitch is somewhere between that of a Type 1.5 and Type 2 or between a Type 2 and Type 3. AFAIK, any railroad that currently installs WCH e-bells (so UP, MBTA, various shortlines like the ones owned by the G&W, etc.) will use them.

Wasn't UP using NEGs earlier in the decade? When did they go back to WCH?

Seems to be a mix, honestly. NEG e-bells seem to go up on new mast signals while WCH is typically used for bell replacements and new cantilever signals. They also appear to use GS Type 3s for bell replacements as well.

It may also vary by region, as some things do with railroads (like NS using US&S Model 95s almost exclusively in the Carolinas, and using GE e-bells up in PA).

Interesting that ASTS is continuing use of the US&S name on equipment.

I guess it's no different than Siemens still using the Safetran logo on its light heads, though kinda odd considering gate mechs are not the same way.

Well, it is cheaper not to change the molds.

For UP in the bay area they use GS Type 3s for replacements. For new signals the cantilevers they would use WCH E-Bells, but for non cantilever signals mast they would use NEGs

There’s three in Dekalb il but they are in bell combos so it’s quite hard to hear them by them selves. Route 38s west cantilever on the Geneva sub has one and a gate on 6th st has one and the cantilever gate on the Fairview crossing on the Troy grove branch has one.