Well, that would appear to be item 52 on the diagram: the "push pole pocket." That's not much help, is it, since some of them don't actually have the pockets on them. Maybe after poling was banned they were called "the items formerly known as push pole pockets." <G>

--
Richard Townsend
Lincoln City, Oregon


"leakinmywaders" <leakinmywaders@yahoo.com> wrote:

Rich: �Hmmm...maybe. I don't have access to that issue of PM, �so I'll
try again: �They are the pieces at the outermost point of the four
bottom corners of the car, on the cars that have them. They project
vertically downward from the corner posts, and like Tim suggests, they
look like they may be fabricated or possible cast pieces. Visually
they look like a continuation the side sills wrapping around the
corners, but they usually appear to project a little lower. �On many
cars the grabiron-style steps on the end sills do attach to them.
From the side view, they are immediately toward the ends from the side
stirrup attachment points--i.e., side stirrups usually do not appear
to attach to them. �They sometimes have poling pockets on the end
faces--and that indeed may be their functional origin, more
essentially than as step attachments. � They seem to be common on
1930s-1940s-era steel boxcars and less common on later builds or
rebuilds. Some examples from HO models: �they are part of the casting
on IMRC 12-panel boxcar shells and Red caboose AAR boxcar shells, but
not not IMRC or Kadee PS-1 boxcars.

Chris Frissell
Polson, MT

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