The spike puller is an important piece of equipment in a maintenance of way (MOW) tie gang. This is often the first piece of equipment in a line up, if you are ever lucky enough to witness a tie gang in action. As the name suggests, this machine removes the spikes from the ties that need to be replaced.
When looking at MOW equipment, the machines can look like a jumble of engines, hoses, and various machine parts to the untrained eye. The distinguishing feature is the A-frame assembly at the center of the machine, that houses the hydraulic cylinder an pulling equipment.
Nordco, now a part of Wabtech, seems to have the majority of spike pullers in the field today. Modern machines are based on a common frame used with other types of machines, and come in various cab configurations. Visible equipment include a front mounted diesel engine with an adjacent fuel tank (usually green). Directly behind that is the hydraulic oil tank (blue) with oil cooler mounted on top. Air conditioners are often mounted either on the roof, or back of cab. These units are chain driven with a hydraulic drive motor.
Each machine requires two operators, one above each rail. Each operator runs the puller work head on their side of the rail, coordinating their pulling activity on each tie.
Depending on the size of the tie gang, these are used singly, or in twos or threes, depending on the size of the tie gang. A must have for any tie gang display!
Silver Spike offers modern pullers in HO scale, in both narrow and extended cab versions.