QUOTE: Originally posted by nicknoyes When 40 foot box cars were used for bulk grain shipment, how was the grain loaded into the car? How was the grain removed at the destination? Help on answering these questions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
I tried to sell my two cents worth, but no one would give me a plug nickel for it.
I don't have a leg to stand on.
Originally posted by neilmac Can anybody direct me to any details on the web about the earliest purpose built grain hopper cars to run in the US? The reason for my request is that I am building a freelance New England narrow gauge layout,/quote] neilmac-' since you are following a 'what if' scenario premise for your RR why not use the early 2 Bay Cvd Hoppers produced by Gen American in 1946 and PS/ AC&F types that follow? The DRGW bought these to haul cement- high weight ratio of course but just as useful as the earliest grain hoppers. Whose to say your RR didnt have an[:0]exceptional talent for creative application and test them for grain. The DRGW was not a granger road is often quoted yet they ended the 70's with hundreds of 3 Bay/100T lease hoppers for just that and more. Lined hoppers for 'powdered' products were the exception- so to justify your 'position' ear;y adoption of the 'new techncology' cuould be a possibility. I note also that apparently the RG had 'home grown' covers on 'ancient' 2 bay hoppers (may have been composites) that the above 1946 purhcases were to replace, so you could always scratchbuild some unique covers and hatches on cheaper 2 bay cars models available now. regards, dave Reply Edit leighant Member sinceAugust 2002 From: Corpus Christi, Texas 2,377 posts Posted by leighant on Thursday, December 16, 2004 4:18 PM Santa Fe went to the 47' 3-bay covered hoppers with the GA-90 introduced in 1954. note: originally bought NOT for grain, but for barley, oats, carbon black, rice & light soda ash GA-93 "single bay" Airslide in 1955 for flour and finely granulated material. About as long as 2-bay cov hopper. GA-94 3-bay in 1956 GA-111 3-bay in 1958 GA-113 3-bay in 1959 etc. Earlier, Santa converted hoppers originally built as open to "roofed" hoppers, AAR classification HTR. CLASS GA-21 Triple open hopper, offset sides blt 1929 ACF converted to roofed hopper 1941 CLASS GA-24 Ralston open quad hopper 1929 converted to roofed hopper 1945 w BX-8,-9,-10 roofs There was an article on kitbashing this car in Model Railroader in the June, 1947 issue, p.476, if you have all your old magazines handy. Reply dknelson Member sinceMarch 2002 From: Milwaukee WI (Fox Point) 11,439 posts Posted by dknelson on Thursday, December 16, 2004 8:23 AM There were covered hoppers in the 1930s (some even earlier) but they were for powdered commodities, not grain. One reason why 40 foot boxcars in grain service lasted well into the covered hopper era is that small grain elevators tended to be located on branch lines and very old spurs that were often used only in the spring for fertilizer delivery and in the fall for grain shipments. The grain business was very decentralized then The big 100 ton covered hoppers were not suited to such track. More and more grain terminals are in large centrally located areas often with newly laid track but that is a fairly recent development. Dave Nelson Reply Anonymous Member sinceApril 2003 305,205 posts Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, December 15, 2004 8:57 PM There were some 40' Grain Box cars built in the late 50's, early 60's. Athearn offers them. The item number is in the 209x series. They got plug doors with a grain door and inspection door inserted in the plug doors. Walther has offered common box cars in the past with boards across the door opening as was done for grain. It's also simple enough for you to do it your self on your box car fleet. Reply Edit joseph2 Member sinceJanuary 2003 From: indiana 792 posts Posted by joseph2 on Wednesday, December 15, 2004 7:33 PM Small covered hoppers were built in the 1930's. By 1950 my employer had a fleet of two bay covered hoppers.These cars were similar to the Bowser model. Reply n2mopac Member sinceFebruary 2001 From: El Dorado Springs, MO 1,519 posts Posted by n2mopac on Wednesday, December 15, 2004 10:36 AM I grew up on a farm in West-Central Missouri in the 1970's and we purchased feed, both bulk and sacked, from a company that shipped by rail. These were both shipped at that time in boxcars. I can remember as a kid going to town and unloading feed directly from the boxcar on a team track by the feed mill onto our trucks. This was quite a thrill of course for a 6 or 7 year old railfan. Ron Owner and superintendant of the N scale Texas Colorado & Western Railway, a protolanced representaion of the BNSF from Fort Worth, TX through Wichita Falls TX and into Colorado. Check out the TC&WRy on at https://www.facebook.com/TCWRy Check out my MRR How-To YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/RonsTrainsNThings Reply Anonymous Member sinceApril 2003 305,205 posts Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, December 15, 2004 10:32 AM Thanks for that info. It does indeed look like grain hoppers will be well beyond the period I will be modelling, so boxcars it is. Reply Edit orsonroy Member sinceMarch 2002 From: Elgin, IL 3,677 posts Posted by orsonroy on Wednesday, December 15, 2004 8:34 AM Covered hoppers for grain service didn't start showing up on American rails until the late 1960s, and didn't really take off until the early 1970s. Even as late as 1980 or so, some grain still moved by 40' box. And ALL class one's (and every other road) moved grain by 40' box up through the mid-1970s. Some covered hoppers were buily fairly early on (1940s) to carry flour, but they were in dedicated service, and wouldn't have been used for any old grain shipment. Probably the best single source, either online or off, for general freight car history, design, photos, rosters, etc., is the NEB&W website: http://railroad.union.rpi.edu For $5 a month, you'll get access to a great resource on freight cars, from about 1900-1970 (and in certain cases, later). While not all-inclusive (it's a work in progress), it's still a VAST amount of information. Go to the section on covered hoppers, and you'll find about what you're looking for. Ray Breyer Modeling the NKP's Peoria Division, circa 1943 Reply Anonymous Member sinceApril 2003 305,205 posts Early grain hoppers Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, December 15, 2004 8:14 AM Can anybody direct me to any details on the web about the earliest purpose built grain hopper cars to run in the US? The reason for my request is that I am building a freelance New England narrow gauge layout, set in a later period than any of the actual lines survived (as per Dave Frary's Carabasset & Dead River). Whilst the actual New England lines carried grain in boxcars (as did many of the standard gauge lines of the time) it is not inconceivable that had they survived and expanded then they would have developed purpose built cars to handle Canadian grain traffic. Neil Reply Edit Subscriber & Member Login Login, or register today to interact in our online community, comment on articles, receive our newsletter, manage your account online and more! Login Register Users Online There are no community member online Search the Community ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Model Railroader Newsletter See all Sign up for our FREE e-newsletter and get model railroad news in your inbox! Sign up
Owner and superintendant of the N scale Texas Colorado & Western Railway, a protolanced representaion of the BNSF from Fort Worth, TX through Wichita Falls TX and into Colorado.
Check out the TC&WRy on at https://www.facebook.com/TCWRy
Check out my MRR How-To YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/RonsTrainsNThings
Ray Breyer
Modeling the NKP's Peoria Division, circa 1943