How long would ribbed wheels have been realistically found on older rolling stock after the mandatory change ('37?) to flat wheels on new rolling stock? Thanks.
Tom
According to the Model Railroader’s Guide to Freight Cars book, the cast iron or ribbed wheels started to fade away in the fifties. They were officially banned from new cars in 1975 and were later banned from interchange in 1970.
Will is correct in recognizing that the issue wasn’t the ribs or “brackets,” as the wheel makers called them, but with the cast iron the ribbed wheels were made from. Cast-iron wheels without brackets were prohibited from interchange after January 1, 1953. All types of cast-iron wheels were prohibted on cars built or rebuilt after January 1, 1958, and they were banned from all cars in interchange after January 1, 1970. This information comes from Coal Cars: The First 300 Years, by M.R. Karig, published by the University of Scranton Press. Even is you don’t care about coal cars, this book has the best history of freight car trucks and wheels published in any one place.
So long,
Andy
Will & Andy,
Thanks for the information! So, any pre-'53 rolling stock would be acceptable with ribbed or bracketed cast iron wheels.
Tom
That would seem the case but it really doesn’t matter since you can’t see the back end of the wheels anyhow unless you pick them up.