Low-profile railway car retarder

A low-profile pneumatically operated car retarder comprising, a pair of braking bars disposed parallel and on opposite sides of a track rail, an upper and a lower pivotal lever, each of said upper and lower pivotal levers having a platform portion for carrying a respective one of said pair of braking bars, said lower pivotal lever having a laterally extending arm, said upper lever initially extending upwardly and outwardly and subsequently bent outwardly to form a horizontal arm, a pneumatic piston-cylinder actuator, said piston of said pneumatic piston-cylinder actuator pivotally connected to the outer extremity of said laterally extending arm of said lower pivotal lever, said cylinder of said pneumatic piston-cylinder actuator includes an upper casting, a lower casting and an intermediate casing which is held together by a plurality of tie bolts, said upper casting of said pneumatic piston-cylinder actuator pivotally connected to the outer extremity of said horizontal are of said upper pivotal lever, the height of the pivotal connection of said cylinder with the outer extremity of said horizontal arm of said upper pivotal lever is substantially at the same level as the top of the rail so that a low slung railway vehicle is permitted to freely pass through the car retarder, and said pneumatic piston-cylinder actuator lifting said upper pivotal lever and depressing said lower pivotal lever for moving said pair of braking bars to a closed braking position when pressure is supplied to said pneumatic piston-cylinder actuator so that said pair of braking bars engage the opposite sides of the vehicle wheels at a relatively high retardation on the passing vehicles than if said pair of braking bars engaged the opposite sides of the vehicle wheels a quarter of an inch below the high point.