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if you live near a large library, you can do what i have done, and still do. get the Simmons-Boardman freight car cyclopedias for the time period you are interested in. the pictures are all black and white, but do show graplhics, appliances, and trucks in use on various railroads. you may not be able to check these books out, but you generally can have photocopies made at the library. another good source of information on this era is the, "NEB&W Guide to Steam-Era Freight Car Modeling." it has been available from the Rensselaer Railroad Shop in Troy, NY. I also have several of the Newton Gregg reprints of car cyclopedii. These are a good source of specific data as well. 36' cars were still abundant on Americas' railroads into World War II. many of the 8'6" IH and 10" IH cars were operational. some had been re-sheathed with steel sides, and other "wood" cars were still being built, at least through the early years of the war. these were outside braced, shingle wood sheathed cars. the plan here was to save steel for the war effort. composite gondolas were also in vogue for the same reason. the biggest problem i have had is determining correct car colors for various railroads. most of the pictures from that era were done in black and white, so i have had to resort to historical societies and other sources for information. when i just cannot determine the color, i choose a color, then weather the car extensively so the base color is just a suggestion. most of the cars from the 30's and early 40's were tuscan, boxcar or oxide red (with exceptions of course). there were some cars that appear to be roof brown as well. don't let me mislead you, there were plenty of 40' cars on the rails as well, and many of them were the ARA all-steel cars that were produced in the 30's. several model railroad producers currently make copies of the ARA designs, very good copies i might add. 50' cars were also in use, both single and double door versions. i hope this is all of some help. if you get nothing else from my response, know that to get an era right - proper cars, proper graphics, correct colors, correct appliances - takes some effort. research is the answer if you really want your model to be a true representation of the prototype. i wish you the seasons best. tom tom
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