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Consolidated Stencils no longer required on NA interchange rolling stock?

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  • Member since
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Consolidated Stencils no longer required on NA interchange rolling stock?
Posted by chutton01 on Saturday, May 12, 2018 10:20 AM

I came across a statement "in passing" on a different site which stated that consolidated stencils are no longer required on rolling stock ("in passing" means the author drops a nuclear bomb of a concept in a sentance and then keeps on writing in a different direction).
Searching around simply proves that lots of stuff is NOT searchable on the internet, being simply unindexed or hidden on unreachable servers - there's a "No Robots" directive for a reason - but I was able to come up with the following:

C-12978
Implementation of Revisions to MSRP Section L - LETTERING AND MARKING OF CARS, Standard S-910 Lettering and Marking of Cars.  Removal of Consolidated Stencil and max height for reporting marks and car number

Issued: October 27, 2017
Effective: October 27, 2017

The revised Standard S-910, attached to the circular, is now implemented and effective immediately.

(From Greenbrier)

That circular number C-12978 brings me to AAR Technical services, but unfortunately: 
"Circulars are a fee-based service provided by Transportation Technology Center Inc. (TTCI) in Pueblo, Colorado."
Yeah, that ain't gonna happen.

Was there a massive debate about this topic on this forum at the time and i simply missed it (very possible) even though searching brought up nothing about it?

As an aside, what is the technical name of the relatively new (and fairly prominent) data grid stencil on modern tank cars?

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  • From: Canada
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Posted by cv_acr on Sunday, May 13, 2018 5:57 PM

chutton01

I came across a statement "in passing" on a different site which stated that consolidated stencils are no longer required on rolling stock ("in passing" means the author drops a nuclear bomb of a concept in a sentance and then keeps on writing in a different direction).

Yep, I've been photographing new/repainted cars without them for about a year now.

chutton01
As an aside, what is the technical name of the relatively new (and fairly prominent) data grid stencil on modern tank cars?

Qualification tables.

  • Member since
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  • From: Mpls/St.Paul
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Posted by wjstix on Sunday, May 13, 2018 10:27 PM

My understanding is that the COTS has been considered obsolete for quite some time, so I don't think this is anything new. The directive might just be saying that if a railroad still has some cars with the stencils, it should remove them? 

Stix
  • Member since
    January 2009
  • From: Maryland
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Posted by ATLANTIC CENTRAL on Monday, May 14, 2018 11:10 AM

chutton01

I came across a statement "in passing" on a different site which stated that consolidated stencils are no longer required on rolling stock ("in passing" means the author drops a nuclear bomb of a concept in a sentance and then keeps on writing in a different direction).
Searching around simply proves that lots of stuff is NOT searchable on the internet, being simply unindexed or hidden on unreachable servers - there's a "No Robots" directive for a reason - but I was able to come up with the following:

 
C-12978
Implementation of Revisions to MSRP Section L - LETTERING AND MARKING OF CARS, Standard S-910 Lettering and Marking of Cars.  Removal of Consolidated Stencil and max height for reporting marks and car number

Issued: October 27, 2017
Effective: October 27, 2017

The revised Standard S-910, attached to the circular, is now implemented and effective immediately.

(From Greenbrier)

That circular number C-12978 brings me to AAR Technical services, but unfortunately: 
"Circulars are a fee-based service provided by Transportation Technology Center Inc. (TTCI) in Pueblo, Colorado."
Yeah, that ain't gonna happen.

 

Was there a massive debate about this topic on this forum at the time and i simply missed it (very possible) even though searching brought up nothing about it?

As an aside, what is the technical name of the relatively new (and fairly prominent) data grid stencil on modern tank cars?

 

Maybe that guy said it "in passing" because he assumed everyone got the memo?

No big conversation on here that I remember, but then again, I model the blissful time of 1954, before any such "directive"........

Sheldon

    

  • Member since
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  • From: Near Boston MA
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Posted by NellsChoo on Wednesday, November 23, 2022 2:08 PM

I've been noticing newer 1:1 railcars no longer have "consolidated stencils" (data plate, etc) anymore!  What gives??  I love those things... especially the build date info!

  • Member since
    October 2008
  • From: Canada
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Posted by cv_acr on Wednesday, November 23, 2022 2:28 PM

NellsChoo

I've been noticing newer 1:1 railcars no longer have "consolidated stencils" (data plate, etc) anymore!  What gives??  I love those things... especially the build date info!

As per this whole thread you replied to, they haven't been required anymore since 2016-17.

TTX still seems to like to apply them to new boxes though.

  • Member since
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  • From: Collinwood, Ohio, USA
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Posted by gmpullman on Wednesday, November 23, 2022 3:53 PM

NellsChoo
What gives??

I believe all the data is stored on a accessed through a type of RFID device attached to the car. Linked to UMLER:

https://public.railinc.com/products-services/umler-system

This eliminated any need for stenciling which any more seems to get covered in "field-painting" by non-railroad personnel. It has its roots in the old ACI label (Kar-Trak) which didn't quite perform as the developers had hoped being a visual system.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_equipment_identification

 

Regards, Ed

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  • From: Omaha, NE
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Posted by dehusman on Wednesday, November 23, 2022 6:37 PM

I believe UMLER is a computer database and is not stored on the RFID tag attached to the car.  All the RFID tag does is provide the equipment ID, the UMLER database has all the other info.

Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com

  • Member since
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  • From: Collinwood, Ohio, USA
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Posted by gmpullman on Wednesday, November 23, 2022 7:50 PM

dehusman
I believe UMLER is a computer database and is not stored on the RFID tag

Yes, you're correct. I didn't phrase that part properly and made an edit.

There are handheld scanners that can read the tag and access the database so that any car shop or clerk can get the necessary ownership, billing or repair history of the car.

Thanks, Ed

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