It was my understanding (Dan can correct me if I'm wrong) that a waybill wasn't complete unless it had a destination. Typical practice was for the broker to consign the load to himself at the most dis

I have a nit to pick... since the defining feature of a PS-1 boxcar is its welded construction, can there be a riveted PS-1? Or, is it simply an AAR boxcar with Pullman-Standard proprietary ends and r

You can add ceramic tile to that list, which was typically shipped boxed to prevent damage, and the boxes were small enough (it's heavy!) to easily hand truck out through the narrow door. There was a

Correct. It's the "strut cylinder" that senses the loaded condition of the car for the AB system modified as an "empty-load" brake equipment. A piping diagram is illustrated on page 991 of the 1946 CB

Unless... The stamped side panels also included the stakes, saving the fabrication of separate parts. I haven't had any occasion to research replacement gondola sides, but as far as hopper sides are c

Because FUBAR is an acronym... and it would have worked just as well as a noun. Stands to reason that since the F and U are important to the message being conveyed, that they would be retained in the

How 'bout a week at -20 deg. F? Guaranteed to freeze the contents and burst the cans. There is a reason for modern RBL's. Dennis Storzek

I read it as NX 8884. NX was National Car Co., a subsidiary of Fruit Growers Express. Dennis Storzek

You'll notice twin hopper 50645 is stenciled for seventy tons; very unusual for a steam era twin hopper, because 70 tons of coal won't fit in a twin. However, the B&LE was a conveyor belt that took co

Best to not get too picky with the dimensional accuracy of AHM products. Long ago I realized that product development at AHM consisted of finding a bunch of photos, not necessarily all of the same pro

No. The Accurail PS-1 is the old McKean Models car, tooled by Front Range for Bill McKean to make use of the same floor as used on McKean's 40' double door boxcar. As to the AHM PS-1, which one" There

I was giving some thought to these trucks, wondering why high capacity cars (85 and 90 tons capacity) of the pre-war period all seemed to use clasp brakes while our modern 100 and 125 ton cars don't,

As someone had already said, ALL the AAR cars built by P-S for the Soo before and during WWII came with FCR roofs, black ends, and black backgrounds in the heralds. The Soo eliminated the black backgr

Yes. Although when running with ice they use a standard hatch plug to seal the bunker. The idea behind the big boxy ventilator was to make a place for that plug to be raised while still providing secu

Well, we try. The real problem, as I see it, is the disappearance of $40 locomotives to pull those cars. Dennis Storzek Accurail, Inc.

The same problem existed on the Colorado narrow gauge, where a normal hand brake rod would run just behind the backs of the wheels, and the solution was the same, chain and rollers to route it out aro

Some of the early UTLX three compartment cars were built with three separate tanks, lined up like little sausages on the frame. The later cars were the same except the tank shell was made continuous,

These are both technically passenger cars, same as express reefers are. Note the photo of the second car shows the end, which has a buffer and steam and signal lines, and marker brackets on the corner

Richard, Can we assume that "RD" in the three character initial column is short for SFRD? Dennis Storzek

Keep in mind that William J. Clouser was not exactly a prototype modeler as we understand the term today. True, he built very exacting models, both for himself, and for paid commissions. His personal