Empty Cars....

[Anonymous]

Ok before I start this model railroad thing I was wondering.. where do you get the empty cars to put the raw materials or products in? I mean they do not just HAPPEN to be there. Any insight would be nice [:)]

Thanks,

Greg [8D]

[Anonymous]

If you're asking about the prototype, it varies. Some cars run on dedicated services (coal hoppers, for example) - these will usually run loaded from the mine to whatever industry they serve, then return empty - over here we call these MGR (Merry Go Round...) trains. Intermodals tend to run loaded most of the time, as empty cars aren't earning money for the RR, though you'll often see some empty space in a train. Most industries work on a basis of empties in, loaded out. Empty cars are often coupled at the end of a train - they tend to derail in much the same way as underweight model train cars if placed at the front! This is a rather sparse explanation, hoping someone else with more knowledge than myself can help out here!

[leighant]

How do you get the empty cars? A shipper contacts his railroad service representatives and says he wants to ship something, say widgits. The service rep, or salesman, or station agent orders a car for the industry. That order may go to a yardmaster who checks what empty cars are on hand, and waybills an empty to be sent to the shippeer by a local freight.

[Anonymous]

The last two answers were good but I'm going to add a little. Most trains start and end their runs in classification yards. When a train enters the yard the cars are sorted to where they are going next. This is where empty cars are added onto trains to go off to the shippers.

Cars can also be stored in the off seeason. An example is produce trains during the off growing season for the crop. Cars can also be stored at yards until they are needed but railroads tend not to like this because it's a car taking up yard space ethat isn't making them money.I hope this helps some.
Andrew Miller

[ClinchValleySD40]

Get yourself a copy of Allen McClellands book The V&O Story. He explains very well the concept of beyond the basement and how your layout (transportation system) fits into the rest of the world.

[ndbprr]

Sometimes yard masters would keep MTs (empties in PRR speak) knowing they had customers that had seasonal needs like crops or shipped at certain times of the month. That is why in the 60's and 70's you would often see things on cars like, " return to agent of XYZ railroad at ABC junction when empty" to insure the owning railroad could maximize car usage for them selves.

[Anonymous]

So an empty car will be added to any old train and that train will drop it off and continue on its run with its full cars? Then the empties that are left behind get filled and a train comes and takes them? ... Errr I think this is right but I am not sure lol

[skir4d]

The gig goes like this.

The shipper calls the railroad and the railroad finds an empty, hopefully locally. That empty car is placed somewhere in the cars being handled by a local freight. A local frieght is called many things, such as a drag, a milk run, etc depnding on railroad and location, but its job is to serve the industries on the railroad that are close to it (say 1 days travel time). When the local gets to where it needs to drop the car it switches into the siding. and takes off to do the same at other sidings.

When the cars full the shipper again calls the RR, which tells the local on its next run to pick up the car. Once picked up, the car is taken to a classification yard where it is put in a train to its final destination.

The thing to note that its the local train that does the switching of industries. Once that car is full and classified to its location, its put on a through train that takes it directly to another classification yard, and on and on until it gets to the classification yard that originates the local that will drop it off at its destination.

Jack W