Today I was following up on a small list of issues that were found during last weekend's ops session. One of the Bad Order forms was a boxcar that derailed on a switch in the Weyerhaeuser mill. I used to be able to stick my face right down on a turnout and see what was going on, but the eyeballs are slowly fading, so I use the headset magnifiers a lot more now. I was unable to get my head under the upper deck with the Optivisor on, and at the correct angle to inspect the turnout. So I pulled out one of my newer tools as of late (Iphone 6S), and turned on the video mode with flash to get a closer look. The latest version now has zoom capability in the video mode, so it is a sweet tool for being able to quickly get a real close look (and without storing any data). Below are a couple still images that portray what is seen, and how helpful it is to make use of this tool when the work angle is not user friendly. Many of you probably do this without thinking much about it, but I know a lot of guys that have phones that dont utilize them, still have not moved to a smart phone, or are just stuck in their old ways (like me).
Here is a shot of the work area I was trying to get my head under (it didnt seem so bad 15 years ago!):
Here is a "before" image where the flange was getting caught on a handlaid switch point, because the gauge was a bit narrow:
I moved the point over slightly and took an "after" shot which reveals plenty of extra clearance now:
Sometimes we overlook the obvious, so just wanted to share with the rest of you all.
Happy RRing!
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