Railroad freight car draft gear friction modifying insert

A railroad freight car draft gear, comprising:

• an elongated metal and hollow housing;
• a friction clutch assembly arranged in operable combination with said housing, said friction clutch assembly including friction members arranged in operable combination with an actuator adapted for longitudinal reciprocation during operation of said draft gear, and with each friction member having an outer friction surface which slides along a mating friction surface;
• a spring assembly for absorbing, dissipating and returning energy imparted to said draft gear;
• with recesses being provided on the mating surfaces on the draft gear;
• with a preformed friction modifying insert being pressed into each recess for facilitating reciprocatory movements of said friction clutch assembly during operation of said railroad freight car draft gear, with each preformed insert including an elongated leg having opposed ends defining a length of said insert, and wherein each insert has and an outer end extending substantially the length thereof and which is disposed adjacent the closed end of the respective recess after the insert is pressed thereinto, and a flared inner end extending substantially the length of the insert and which is disposed toward the open end of each recess to enhance the fit of each insert when mating tolerances of the insert and the respective recess into which the insert is pressed approach minimum.

A railroad freight car draft gear, comprising:

• an elongated housing having external walls extending between a closed end and an open end, with the open end of said housing defining a friction bore having a curved internal surface;
• a friction clutch assembly arranged within the open end of said housing, said friction clutch assembly including at least two friction shoes arranged in operable combination with an actuator adapted for longitudinal reciprocation within the friction bore of said housing during operation of said draft gear, and with each shoe having an angled outer surface which slides along the internal surface of said friction bore;
• a spring assembly disposed within said housing between the closed end of said housing and said friction clutch assembly for absorbing, dissipating, and returning energy imparted to said draft gear;
• with recesses being cast into the internal surface of the friction bore defined by said housing, with said housing defining a closed inner end and an open outer end for each recess;
• and
• with a preformed friction modifying insert being pressed into each recess of the friction bore defined by said housing ends for facilitating reciprocatory movements of said friction clutch assembly during operation of said railroad freight car draft gear, with each insert being configured with an elongated and curved leg having opposed ends defining a length of said insert, with the curvature of said insert leg generally corresponding to the curvature of the internal surface of said friction bore, and wherein an outer end of said insert extends the length thereof and is disposed adjacent the closed end of the respective recess after said insert is pressed thereinto, and with an inner end extending the length of said insert and having a convex profile which initially projects past the curved internal surface of said friction bore after said insert is pressed thereinto.