Hi,
What size wheels does an 86’ box car have? Also, what size wheels does an 72’ centerbeam flat car
have?
Prototypically they use 36", however some models that come w/ 33", won’t always take the larger wheel due to underframe clearance issues. Also the larger wheel may affect the couple height. I have modified the car to accept them and even added washer/ shim to clear underframe/ floor. The main reason was to raise coupler though, not to use the larger wheel.
The size of the wheels is determined my the weight of the freight car. If the capacity is over about 77 tons, it usually has the 36" wheels. Look at the CAPY information on the car side by the reporting marks. CAPY 140,000 would be a 70 ton capacity car. CAPY 200,000 would be a 100 ton capacity car.
I suspect your 86’ box car may have 33" wheels(check the CAPY). These are used in auto parts service and usually need cubic space, not load carrying ability. As mentioned, just check the CAPY number if unsure.
Jim
As noted, you want to match what they came with. Using different sized wheels will change the coupler height