I’m not even sure what they’re called. Maybe I shouldn’t be in this hobby. But I’m looking for information on those wood–I guess they’re stakes, because I see references to stake pockets in descriptions of flatcars. Are there rules about when to use them (in the prototype, that is)? Are they of standard dimension and thus transferable from one make of car to another? Do they have height limits? What kind of wood was used? I assume that gondolas, chains-and-chocks, and bulkheads took over for them, but is that true? Were they turned out in a central shop like other parts and distributed through the railroad, or were they just cobbled together as needed by a yard crew? Could I have a waybill with a load of stakes going to a yard, for instance? Thanks for any information you have.
Stakes and other load-related packing and securing items that are not part of the installed car equipment are typically the responsibility of the shipper. There are standards originally published as guidebooks for securing open loads that can be found online or purchased used.
Stake pockets varied, but many were set up to use 4"x4" lumber. On models, the stake pockets are often undersize inside in order to get the proper outside dimensions to scale. Since plastic needs to be thicker than metal, the model stake pocket does not have as much space inside in many cases. You can usually whittle down the end of the stake to get it to seat properly.
If you consign packing materials, they would go from the industry that produces them as blocking to the industry that uses them for their loads.
Just the sort of thing I was hoping to find out! Thanks, Mike.
Hi,
I can’t speak for today, but “back when”, the staves/stakes were used as needed - depending on the load and the expertise of the rigger. For RRs pre say 1970, I would place them as to what looks good, keeping the height commensurate with the height of the load, etc.