How i do i make a car railroad compatible?

Question

i seen a union pacific truck has normal wheels then train wheels under it how would i go alone in doin that

Answer 1

I think you are on your own on this.  I doubt the kits are sold to the public.  The best thing to do is to find an old track speeder for sale and use it on little used tracks with railroad permission.

Answer 2

I just saw one today. Some reason he though just becasues hes on the rails, he thinks he doesnt hav to stop. Well He does!..

   ha when I was a kid, well 16-17 I made one,, well a go kart. I made axle wide enough, and took off tires (too just rim) and hard wood coating on inside, and yaa I was going down the track! I was so proud! (dont worry they were exempt)

Answer 3

You can not put a private own car or truck on a railroad track, it would be trespassing.

It would also cost $2000 - $3000. to change everything.

Answer 4

There is a company (or more than one) that make conversion kits and are usually installed by the RR company on their vehicles. They can be installed on almost anything. I assume you are just curious and not seriously considering doing this. Besides being very very illegal it is way dangerous and hearses are NOT equiped with hy-rail conversions.

Answer 5

That's Hy-Rail.

http://www.fairmonttamper.com/hy-rail.ht...

It only works on vehicles with real frames (no unibody). It includes custom-offset wheels (rims) so your highway tires match railroad width.  (this messes with your steering and makes the car less stable.)

There was also a Monster Garage episode about building one, but it didn't make it to the DVD.

Don't ever set on a railroad without official clearance from the railroad to be there.  That's called bandit-running.  It can get you killed or maimed, but far worse, you'll get BANNED from sanctioned rides!  

Yes, there's a very active community of people who own vehicles of this sort, and they organize, gosh about 100 meets a year all over the USA, where they ride lines for fun with support of the railroad.

http://www.narcoa.org/

So decide early. You're either legit, or an outlaw.  Can't have it both ways.  If I spot you bandit-running, I will get you arrested (or at least identified) because you're s******g it up for the rest of us.

Like Hoghead says, on shiny rails, bandit running is auto-death.  On rusty rails it's also very dangerous, though.  In the early 80s (before NARCOA) there was a horrible collision between a motorcar and a flying shingle (cheesy homebrew motorcar) on the dormant Adirondack Railway.  Apparently, neither guy expected anyone else to be out there.  Both motorcars damaged, the less injured had to limp out, while the worst injured waited 12 hours in horrible agony for a Med-evac copter.

Meanwhile a legit motorcar hobby was starting based on a conversation between a motorcar owner and an executive of the Susquehanna railway:

"I notice one of your lines is grown over with trees. Can we cut them for firewood?"

"Sure, that helps us. How do you plan to get the wood out?"

"Railway motorcars."

"Go for it."

The motor car enthusiasts got the line passable and used it for years, until Susquehanna reopened it for heavy freight service.  This gave the emerging hobby a good relationship with that railroad.

Answer 6

Well, they can be adapted of course, and you can get on the tracks at a grade crossing and go on your merry way, just like railroad employees do when Hi-railing.

The difference is, you'll die.

Railroad workers get permission and authority from a train dispatcher to operate on the rails, and this always comes with protection against trains via the miracle of '"track and time," flag protection or track warrant or DTC block authority.

It'd be a lot of work to do, just to have the car turned into graphite and take you along with it.