Mobile track tamper

A mobile track tamper comprising a frame arranged for mobility on a track consisting of a multiplicity of ties and two rails fastened to the ties, a tamping head vertically movably mounted on the frame in vertical alignment with each rail, a power drive for vertically moving the tamping head, the tamping heads being arranged mirror-symmetrically with respect to a vertical center plane of the track and in transverse alignment with respect to the track, each tamping head including a pair of ballast tamping tool implements arranged for reciprocation in the direction of track elongation towards and away from each other and capable of tamping ballast under respective ones of the ties upon vertical downward movement of the tamping tool heads and immersion of the tamping tool implements in the ballast adjacent the respective ties, a carrier wherein the ballast tool implements are mounted, and drive means for vibrating and reciprocating the tamping tool implements mounted on the carrier and connected to the implements, wherein each ballast tamping tool implement is constituted by a rigid unit consisting essentially of

• 1. a tamping tool holder having
• a. an arm mounted on the carrier for pivoting in a vertical plane passing through the rail with which the tamping head is vertically aligned, the holder arm being connected to the drive means, and
• b. two arms rigidly connected to, and extending transversely of the track from, the vertically extending arm to the left and to the right of the vertical plane, and
• 2. at least one stationary tamping tool mounted on each of the transversely extending holder arms and extending vertically downwardly from the holder arms for immersion in the ballast to the left and to the right of the rail;
• and the tamping heads are vertically movably mounted by
• 3. a vertical guide column supporting each of the tamping head carriers for vertical movement on the tamper frame;
• 4. a vertical guide track mounted on the tamper frame adjacent each of the guide columns;
• and
• 5. guide means guidingly interengaging the guide column and guide track for each tamping head for guiding the carrier thereof on the column along the guide track.