--- In STMFC@..., Richard Hendrickson <rhendrickson@...> wrote:
What the purpose of the T wrench is, I am not sure. Seems an odd way to get at the unloading mechanism.
On the contrary, a worm and gear mechanism operated from the roof of the car would have been an efficient and reliable way to open and close the drop bottom doors.
Richard Hendrickson
Apparently soda ash made by the Solvay process is a fine granulated powder, the kind of material that railroads didn't have much experience with in 1909. The small size of the laoding hatches confirms that this was a very free flowing material. Outlet gates based on a standard coal car weren't going to work, so it looks like they took their inspiration from tank car outlets, which at that time typically had their operating mechanism inside the tank, accessible through the dome.
