Not
all of the cars were in railroad service, as several paper manufacturers
owned  their
own cars.The models feature all of the appropriate end detail including
top hinges on both ends. The brake "wheel" on most releases is actually
a ratchet arm rather than the traditional wheel although in some instances
(such as our second Union Pacific run) a wheel is used. These cars
come with the appropriate 100 ton Roller Bearing trucks. The
immense size of these cars make them a real head turner when mixed
into a normal freight train. Most of these cars are still in use.
Some of them have been sold or repainted into new
owner schemes. The Northern Pacific cars are still working on the
BN- some in their original paint,
some
with the roadnumbers painted out and repainted for BN, some fully
repainted into Cascade
Green. Also, NP cars have been sold to several other roads, like the
D&NE who painted out the NP markings apparently with a roller!
These sturdy steel cars will be joining their more modern counterparts
serving the paper manufacturers and woodchip burners well into the
future. In the meantime, more uses for these large  cars
are coming up all the time. Out of Los Angeles, you regularly see
these cars carrying shredded aluminum up to a location in Montana,
for an as yet undetermined
use. They are also used in recycling service. One thing you will never
see is one of these cars
loaded for coal. While the proverbial "pound of feathers vs. pound
of lead weighs the same, they don't take up the same space. If one
were to fill one of these cars with coal, you would likely never be
able to move it! |
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