Here is a picture of a very different box car. It is used by the Departmetn of Defense to move classified cargoes. I saw them on a daily basis at the navy depot in Mechanicsburg, Pa. They were used to highly classified cargo to various naval bases. I am not at liberty to disscribe the cargos furthur, but they were next to one of the warehouses with a chain link fense and derail blocking the track.
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3862/14428815042_fc8f723696_b.jpg
Ira
Double plug can stock.
No, it is not a can stock car. Notice the placement of the doors at one end NOT in the middel and the small end door for access. These were very special cars only used by DOD. I have never seen any cars of this design at any other military facility that I worked at except at the Naval Depot in Mechanicsburg, Pa.
Ira
UMLER indicates door opening of 27 feet. Max gross weight of 198K and empty weight of 98K
That means that the capacity is about 50 tons–not so much for a big car (much like an auto rack’s capacity, maybe a bit more). I would expect the trucks to have some springs missing to enforce that lighter gross rail load.
My first impression when I saw the picture was an LU car (you know, the ones with doors all along the side). Of course, this one has only half of the side covered but the rest of the side doesn’t look like a typical heavy single-sheathed box car side. So I’m wondering whether the structure is similar…a bulkhead flat car (with doors in one bulkhead!), with longitudinal trusses to hold a roof and rails for the side doors.
What does the other side look like? Are the doors all concentrated on one end, or are they to the left on that side as well?
Both sides look the same. Both tha A & B ends have the two large doors at one end.
Ira
I figured that…they’re at the left end on the side we were looking at. Are they at the left end or the right end of the opposite side?
Have seen one in CT working one day…Naval related… The CG of this type of car is a lot lower than a conventional car.
Carl:
The doors sit diagonal to each other. That is ithe doors in the picture are at the opposite end of the car from those of the other end , not accross from them.
Ira