--- In STMFC@..., "pullmanboss" <tcmadden@...> wrote:

Notice that there is no end tack board on the MILW wood boxcar on the right, nor any lateral roof walks.

Tom Madden

That's because you can tack a card anywhere on a wood end :-)

The ARA at one time recommended a tack-board sized rectangle to be painted black, in an attempt to minimize damage to the siding, or at least confine the damage to one place, but not all roads did this, either. This recommendation dates back to 1914; I haven't bothered to try to determine when it was dropped.

The purpose of lateral running boards was to give a man climbing to the roof something other than metal to stand on, the theory being that smooth metal was more slippery than wood. Since either double board roofs or "inside" metal roofs already had a wooden outer surface, most roads didn't bother adding the laterals.

Dennis