You've probably heard the term car oiler(I read this week in Railway age that
Hunter Harrison got his start in the business as one on the Frisco). Train
crews on locals routinely carried jugs of journal box oil or used motor oil
from home.What for you ask? Well after throwing switches for 12 -14 hours a
day your arms,back and legs get pretty tired and its not long before you
start looking for ways to make life easier. Since locals usually operated on
branch line and industry tracks where the section gang seldom wondered in;the
switches were never oiled.So self preservation demanded you oil your
switches.On the Earlville turn we kept a plastic gallon jug of used motor oil
on the engine and usually one day a week oiled every switch we came to. Leo
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