Rail Car Repairers

What Does a Rail Car Repairers Do?

Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul railroad rolling stock, mine cars, or mass transit rail cars.

Day-to-Day Responsibilities

• 1Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.
• 2Inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed.
• 3Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.
• 4Inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage.
• 5Remove locomotives, car mechanical units, or other components, using pneumatic hoists and jacks, pinch bars, hand tools, and cutting torches.
• 6Test units for operability before and after repairs.
• 7Adjust repaired or replaced units as needed to ensure proper operation.
• 8Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.

Required Skills

• Adobe Acrobat
• Disassembler software
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Internet Explorer
• Microsoft Office software
• Microsoft Outlook
• Microsoft PowerPoint
• Microsoft Windows
• Microsoft Word
• Mozilla Firefox

Rail Car Repairers Salary