Quote:
Originally Posted by Billieboy
On the old steam locos there was a dry sand feeder in front of the main drive wheels; it was the fireman's job to check and top up the sand boxes before leaving the shed. The modern diesel and electric power units are not fitted with sand systems so far as I know.
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As far as i know all modern locos are fitted with sand boxes, an the class 66's are from what i've been told an heard are all auto sanding so as soon as wheel slip/slide is dected they inject sand onto the rail to gain traction. An interesting thing i heard a few years back when the 66's were new, they were blowing sand in copious ammounts into any S&C (Switches an Crossings) an it was costing Network Rail loads due to the sand wearing out the slide chairs. When the sand mixed with the grease, it formed a extreamly abrasive paste. So Network Rail asked for the auto sanding to be modified so as the drivers could apply the sand manually like any decent British Loco design.