So I’m a self-inducted train fan. I’ve come on my own with no prior prototype knowledge. So, as I strive to be at least reasonably faithful with my models, I need some help identifying the various types of covered hoppers. Here’s the main question:
-How do I know which covered hoppers are used for things like grain, and which are used for, say, chemicals (other than the obvious like when one is listed for the Saskatchewan Grain Pool)?
Andy
www.csxnscale.com
That can be difficult at times. Generally speaking the 3 bay centerflows tend to be used for grain and non toxic commodities if they are general purpose like salt, sugar, flour, gypsum, clay, etc. The 4 bay centerflows tend to be for plastic pellets and resins. The airside hoppers are generally used for food commodities like flour and sugar but some of the chemical companies like Degussa ships various chemicals like arosil in them. The cylindrical hoppers 3 or more bays tend to be used for non-toxic commodities if they are railroad owned. Some reporting marks like NCHX would suggest some chemicals are used. Some chemical/plastic industries have used them like Ashland Chemical for their resins. The 54 foot PS hopper is used by any industry but again the best way to tell if it is grain or something is the reporting mark and what other cars are accompaning the hopper in question. At least for certain the 2 bay PS and centerflow hoppers are for cement and other heavy bulk materials. Although I question what is in thease 2 bay centerflows with the reporting marks “hokx”. Then we get into some of the more exotic ones. The Procor pressure-flow hoppers are and interesting group. The only ones presently that own thease guys that I know of is CN and Procor. CN uses them usually for flour or grain. Procor uses a set of them stenciled for calcium carbide and the other set for general purpose-grain likely. The preasure differential hoppers come in three sizes-2 bay which I see mostly at cement plants, 3 bay which is usually for chemical and 4 bay which is for anything. There may also be 5 bay ones? The 3 bays and 4 bays are usually leased with the reporting marks nahx, gacx and gplx. I have seen clay industries like Penford Products and KT Clays lease thease as well as chemical industries like National Starch-nslx. Reporting marks again is the best way to find out commodity.
I hope I was able to help; this is about everything I know. I hope M.W Hemphill or someone can help you out further.
great explanation junctionfan. On my NS LakeDivision I keep it a little simplier, 4 bay for plastic pellets, 3 bay for grain/wheat/corn, 2 bay for heavy bulk products such as Kaolin Clay, Soda ash, Cement and Silica Sand and what I call single bay or airslides for flour shipments. that makes it much easier to keep track of when I’m searching for empties in Bellevue Yard. Randy
I would also add that trough-style loading hatches and slide gates for rapid loading and unloading, respectively, indicate a car that carries granular, free-flowing lading (product) and which lading is not as sensitive as others to potential contamination from foreign matter; grain and abrasives come to mind as examples. Cars with multiple circular loading hatches and pneumatic-tube unloading gates would indicate a car in plastic resin service or powdered chemical / food service where contamination of the lading would definitely be a big issue! Also, in general, the more dense the lading, the fewer the bays on a car; thus, cement and other earth products in two bays, and commodities like plastic resins in 4-bays (still the maximum, I believe, for ACF and Trinity Industries’ (successor to P-S) covered hopper designs). I hope these observations help you, and, above all - Have Fun! [:D]
Round tube like Hoppers are Grain…Gray or White hoppper with slated sides are Plastic Hoppers for pellets
As a general rule of thumb- Big hopper with circular hatches-Plastic pellets.
Big hopper with full length hatches-Grain. Short hopper with full length hatches-Heavy commodities.
A similar question: When did covered hoppers for grain come into use? What was used for shipping grain in the 1950s? Is it true that at one time modified box car carried grain?
The C.P.R. used standard boxcars earlier on, these had wooden inserts inside the boxcar (we called them grain doors)with @ 2 or 4 feet open at the top, when you open the actual boxcar door you saw a wall of wood with the grain behind, you will have to talk to a grain elevator operator to find out how you emptied them, later on the C.P.R. had steel boxcars with lettering indicating “grain service” not sure what they used to keep the grain inside,someone must know.
That’s a good question. I wonder why they used boxcars instead of hoppers.
The CPR initially used boxcars for grains service because there were no covered hoppers until their first experimental car built, tested and put into service in 1920.
Prior to this boxcars with “grain doors” of wood planking (later heavy cardboard with steel band reinforcements) were used. As noted an opening was left at the top of the door opening to allow for loading and for the agent to get out of the car after installing the grain doors. These doors were broken in at the terminal elevators, and the cars were tipped onto their sides to allow the graain to flow out. After being returned to their upright position, men cleaned out the emaining grain that had not been dumped. Boxcars were assigned to grain service after carrying higher priority commodities. Many had the stencil “grain service only” added low on the car side, to the left of the door opening. Single sheath cars (Fowler boxcars, also called Dominion boxcars) were still in gain service into the 1950s, but were being replaced by steel cars.
I personally would have prefered open top hoppers with a coil car like cover on it instead