Right now on Ebay, there's a slide for sale of an FEC covered two bay hopper in MofW service; the slide was taken at Jacksonville in 2007. Is it possible that it was converted from an open top car?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-Slide-Freight-FEC-Florida-East-Coast-2-Pocket-Covered-Hopper-14057-/400813294645?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d52558435

Picture can be found here: http://www.bensonrailphotos.com/2014-08/201410120_299.jpg



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Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

RR -

I am 99.99% certain that FEC #14057 was built as a covered hopper and was never an open top car. Thanks for the post. Good to see that folks are still looking for these open top two bay hoppers.

Les

Gang -

It always amazes me of how certain questions brought up on RyPN are answered in amazing ways, sometimes quite a while after they are first brought up. Back on page 6 of this thread, and almost 3 years ago now, Ryan K. found a two bay hopper sitting in a string of cars near Cecil, Ohio and David M. Wilkins later submitted a photo of the car. There were some follow ups to David's photo, including whether the car was IHRC number 900, 930, 990 or exactly what the "smudged" middle number might have been. Recently I purchased the Francis H. Parker/Judy Clem book on the Whitewater Valley Railroad. There on page 74 is a photo of IHRC number 900 mixed in a string of leased hopper cars spreading ballast during a past rehab of WV trackage. This just HAS to be the same car. Still don't know for sure, who owned the car back in 2012 when Dave's photo was taken, nor if it's still in existence today. But at least we now know the cars road number!

Les

While I don't know how many hoppers the C&TS has, or the car numbers, here's 2 photos from Wednesday, July 27th, 2005. The first is of a hopper that is part of a work train parked in the siding between mileposts 291 and 292 (the loop where Lava Tank is located), seen with D&RGW side-dump gondolas #787 and #756. The second is of a hopper in the yard in Antonito. 2 digits of the number are visible: 27; is this the ex-BA&P car?

Hi Ted,

The C&TS supposedly has three ex-BA&P hoppers, numbered 1307, 1309, and 1311. (This is from the Friends of the C&TS online rolling stock database, which is not really up to date: http://www.cumbrestoltec.org/the-railroad/rollingstockassets.html) However, when I visited the railroad last summer none of these cars were in evidence so I don't know if they're still on the property.

I can confirm however that the C&TS has (or had as of 2014) five ex-EBT hoppers. I don't know their original numbers but they are listed in the database above as EBT-1 through EBT-5. When I visited in 2014 I saw four in Chama and one in Antonito, so all were apparently accounted for.

Their EBT lineage is confirmed by the truck castings, as shown in the photos below.

-Philip Marshall

Ted and Philip -

Thanks for the info and photos. I seem to recall that most EBT hoppers were three bay, not two bay, so would not be included in this listing. But the ex-BA&P standard gauge two bay hoppers certainly would be, if they still exist. Anyone know for sure?

Les

IRMs CNW 110509 is one of 77, 100 ton ore cars built to haul pellets from the Jackson County Iron Ore mine near Black River Falls Wis. The company operated from early 1970s to 1983 shipping ore to Inland Steel at Indiana Harbor. After the mine closed the cars were used for ballast, initially without any modifications. With the door control levers on the opposite side the doors were on, you couldn't see were the ballast was going. Clinton car shop then reconnected the controls for the same side of the corresponding door. They were the easiest cars to dump that the North Western had.

Not sure if this one has already made it to the list, but Exporail / Canadian Railway Museum has one of these in its collection. CN 44206 was built in June 1907 by Pressed Steel Car for the GTR as their 74320. It survived well into the late 1970s as a buffer car for ribbon rail trains.

Len

Len -

Thanks. Yes, this car was mentioned earlier in the thread, and a link to a photo of the car appeared on page 5. I questioned the 1907 built date of the car, although that may be the correct date. One thing we didn't have earlier was the original road number and perhaps one of our Canadian friends might be able to confirm that GTR 74320 was actually built in 1907.

Les

The two bay hoppers on Dakota Southern Rwy were cut up a couple of years ago, three ex-MILW which had extended sides, and five ex-Hallets in green paint. A total of twenty odd cars were cut up, two were longitudinal door ballast cars dating back to the 20's. A mix of CNW and M&StL 70-ton cement hoppers, some with roofs cut off for ballast service (and a one time move of corn from Reliance to Chamberlain) made up the rest of the scrap.
Alex Huff

Alex -

Sad to hear that. I wonder how many other two bay open top hoppers mentioned in this thread since it first started, have also met the scrappers torch?


Les

I don't have Canadian roster info, but just noticed tonight there is an almost identical B&O car, built by the Pressed Steel Car Co., pictured in the 1906 Car Builder's Dictionary.

One spotting feature on the CN car that would lead me to believe that it is indeed that old is the protruding end sills; that is a feature that disappeared from new designs before WWI.

On Edit:

Here you go. This page:

http://www.nakina.net/cdn/gtr.html

Says that GTR 73500-74499 were renumbered CN 115600-116599.

This page:

http://www.nakina.net/cn/cn1.html

Says that CN 115600-116599 were built by Pressed Steel Car Co. 3-6/07, which agrees with the date stenciled on the car. Here's the link to the photo again:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2575036

If I recall, the 1906 Car Builder's Dictionary also has a generic PSCCo. drawing for these cars.

Dennis -

Thanks very much for doing the research on this and confirming the 1907 built date and also finding out the car builder. Looks really good for a 108 year old!

Les

In other news, Reading two-bay hopper 78847 has just been transferred from the RR Museum of Pa. to the Allentown & Auburn RR in eastern Pa., according to a post on the latter's FB page showing it having arrived on the property. Stencils say class HTh, 55-ton capacity, built April 1916.

Can anybody provide details about the removal of the RDG hopper from the RR Museum of PA? There may be nothing wrong with this at all; on the other hand, it could be troubling. The Museum's only Climax (a type uniquely built in Pennsylvania) is also going to another Museum, the terms being unknown to me. Are these items on loan, or did the Museum deaccession them? Why does the Museum believe they are more properly displayed in these other locations? If they were deaccessioned, does that mean the Museum is trying to rationalize and thin its collection? If so, why? Does this mean other items could also be leaving Strasburg? If so, what are the guidelines being followed?

I hope I'm not being an alarmist. I only want to know. I am not trying to make accusations, and I hope satisfactory answers will emerge.

Tom