Catch Points - Trap Points
 

Can anyone tell me what the difference is? I thought they were two names used interchangeably for the same thing - but I am looking a hand-drawn track plan here which clearly referes to both types separately. Mostly it shows Trap points on sidings, and mostly Catch points on the running lines.

I assume that both types derail the wagon if it runs away in a siding, or rolls backwards on a gradient.

(Ok so its not "on-track machinery", but it's close. Perhaps it should have been in "Derailed":D )

One de-rails the other stops. See here for better explanation:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catchpoints

Great link - Thanks southernsteam

Basically they do the same thing. (derail the truck or divert into a sand drag to stop it running away) but were located at different places

Catch points are "largely obsolete"

I recognised that sand drag in that picture on Wiki straight away. Its from the down platform at Goathland station.

I've only ever known 3 occasions where people have put trains into sand drags. Twice the sand drag was at Philips Petrolium at Port Clarence, and the other time was in that sand drag at Goathland when a guard left a rake of coaches in the down platform there and when the brakes leaked off during the night, off it rode towards it. Funny thing is, the guard who was guilty of that is now a Thornaby driver and was responsible for putting one of the trains into the sand drag at Port Clarence as well.

I'm lucky in that I've never put a train over catch points, but I came very close one day while shunting at Grosmont shed. I was headed towards the tunnel, which has catch points at the station end of it, with a line of loco's including a Deltic and a few steam loco's, using an 03 Drewery loco. When I was handsignalled to stop, the weight of the rake of loco's together with the falling gradient and the greasy railhead conditions in the tunnel just kept me going further and further into the tunnel, albeit at very slow speed. I fought with the brake and the sands for ages and was well past the halfway point in the tunnel, which is about a quarter of a mile long, before I managed to bring the rake to a stand. Hairy stuff. :D

Cheers. Ewan.

Trap & Catch points
 

Trap points were normaly found where a loop branches off and before it re-joines the mainline also where sidings have no headshunt. I.e. to shunt you would have to use the mainline where by the points would be reversed so shunting move can take place.As years ago where by a pick up freight would uncouple on the mainline and shunt the yard. Catch points on the other hand are spring points which when a train has passed either one or two blades would spring open as to de-rail any wagons that could have broken away from the train and run backwards.So as above description Trap points are worked from a controlling signal box, Catch points are train worked NOTworked by a signal box. Just for information the catch points at the bottom of the Lickey Incline have been clipped out of use pending recovery??????.PHILL. Hope this answers your query.

A very good shorthand way of remembering the difference, Thanks.

In Limerick, Ireland, they use these contraptions to protect the points in the station:
http://www.railsceneireland.fotopic.net/p47040913.html

I've seen de-railers similar to that on sheds like Thornaby.

They used to have a different type of de-railer at Darlington station before electrification but that type are a thing of past these days as far as I am aware.

A couple of pictures showing a type of derailer often used in Switzerland instead of trap points.
Attachment 427
Attachment 428
I do believe that's a piece of litter underneath the motor:eek:

There are de-railers situated before the end of P 5 and 6 at Huddersfield. In the old days they used to freeze up when the train standing in P5 drew out and before the one in P 4 was ready to leave. Cotton waste, Paraffin and a box of matches used to be the cure. Probably be locked away as a terrorist now!

We used this sort of de-railer in Rhodesia, only the ones we used were set by hand and locked with a great big padlock. Most of Rhodesia was single line working with crossing loops. At some of the sidings there was a storage track where farmers were able to load cattle or other farm goods. The de-railer was to stop wagons from running away and fouling the main line.

With the demise of Class 9 loose coupled trains all the catch points were removed from the lines. There are still these types of points about but they are probably clamped out of use.
The last class 9 train I worked was on Christmas Week in 1991.
The job was to conduct a Donny Guard from Turners Lane at Wakefield upto Neville Hill Shed at Leeds.
The BV concerned was a Shark Ballast Brake. These rode like a nuclear explosion at owt over 20mph.
The guard had not lit van fire and it was freezing cold, it took me a year to warm me feet up again.
The best brake vans were those which had Timken Roller Bearings fitted, these were the Eastern region Brakes.
10 minutes after leaving York Yard South you could be fast asleep, with the stove a deep cherry red blaasting out the heat.
The only problems was the gaps in the floor boards where a 35 mph wind would blow up yer legs.
These were normally blocked with rolled up newspapers.

One Sunday night, a Huddersfield driver who will remain un named came into this platform from Wakefield too fast, and slammed into the buffers, and made a bit of a mess in the down bay platforms.(1981)
The only clue I will give is the name John.

Calder Loop, at Wakefield was always a popular spot for running out through the traps.
We had to run round trains in this location, the SPA trucks from Cardiff Rod Mill conveying coils of wire to Cobra.
The driver would hook off, come down to Cobra to pick up the shunter, then rr the train at the top end of the loop.
The loco was then hooked on, and shunter walked down to loop and did a brake test.
At this point after the test I always left the train brake blowing, so that the train could not move.
The shunter then phoned Kirkgate Box to tell him the train was ready from the SPT
When the signal came off the guard would radio the driver to tell him to propel into cobra. The air brake tap was then closed, the brake came off and the driver would propel the train at 3mph into the yard. This was done to make sure the train did not move until the traps were in the correct position.
The train had a length of 42 slu's
Now Cobra has closed.
I worked in and out of that Yard for over 25 years on a daily basis, and kept HM Guards/Shunters in work for that period of time.

Catch points are trailing in direction of travel. Trap points are facing in direction of travel. Generally 'Catch points' we used on running lines to protect following trains should a coupling break or to stop in emergency runaway wagons. 'Trap points' are integrated into the signalling set up to protect junctions, single lines. Whilst there are still 'catch points' on the system they have been largely eliminated in track modernisation schemes due to the fact loose coupled have been done away with.

Ah, I think I get it now. Catch points are spring loaded, trailing in the direction of travel, so trains can run over them in the normal direction of travel. But if a coupling should break in a loose-coupled train, then the wagon(s) would be derailed if they ran back – thus protecting a following train frm running into them. I guess they would have been used mainly at the foot of an incline.

You have got it in one boilersuit.

ccmmick

"Argh" the old cotton waste, however have we managed without it for so long :D

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