Container car question

[bobcat]

I picked up one of these cars because it was unusual and I had never seen one before.

After researching it on Spookshow, I now know what it was used for, but now I want to know how long these cars were in use for?

http://www.visi.com/~spookshow/freight/roco70container.html

Thanks

[nickelplate759]

Here's a better link: http://www.spookshow.net/freight/roco70container.html
Your post got me curious, so I picked one up on eBay. Looks like the prototypes were built by ACF in 1957, and there were only a few.
Now I need to find appropriate SHPX-DuPont decals.   Here's a poor photo of the prototype:

[peteski]

That decal would be rather easy to make (in my spare time).    BTW George, what made you bring back a 10-yaear-old thread?

Reading Mark's description, the LOADS might be related to super glue.  I also think Mark made an error describing the loading process.  It makes more sense that the containers were cubical in shape, loaded through the larger openings, then pushed towards the ends.  The photo shows one container loaded on the end of the car.,  There is no way a triangular container could have been loaded there (the grab irons/steps are in the way).

[nickelplate759]

That decal would be rather easy to make (in my spare time).    BTW George, what made you bring back a 10-yaear-old thread?

Reading Mark's description, the LOADS might be related to super glue.  I also think Mark made an error describing the loading process.  It makes more sense that the containers were cubical in shape, loaded through the larger openings, then pushed towards the ends.  The photo shows one container loaded on the end of the car.,  There is no way a triangular container could have been loaded there (the grab irons/steps are in the way).

Somehow I stumbled across it (don't recall why) and the car intrigued me.   The car was loaded through the area just to the right of the center with the isosceles triangular bracing.  I believe the triangle is hinged  - the containers are definitely rectangular boxes of some sort.

[GimpLizard]

Reading Mark's description, the LOADS might be related to super glue.

Acrylonitrile is used in a number of plastic and rubber compounds. It's a nasty chemical. Flammable, toxic and, in certain circumstances, can be explosive. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acrylonitrile

[peteski]

Somehow I stumbled across it (don't recall why) and the car intrigued me.   The car was loaded through the area just to the right of the center with the isosceles triangular bracing.  I believe the triangle is hinged  - the containers are definitely rectangular boxes of some sort.

It makes sense that the larger open area is how the containers get loaded.  Still, one wonders why such an elaborate gridwork is needed for transporting this substance, instead of either using fully enclosed car, or just a flat car with some sort of load fastening equipment on the floor.  But if not for anythign else, it makes for an interesting looking model.

Gimplizard: that sure is some nasty chemical, but without it there would be no ABS plastic (used for many N scale car shells).

[GimpLizard]

Gimplizard: that sure is some nasty chemical, but without it there would be no ABS plastic (used for many N scale car shells).

Which is why it's probably not a good idea to eat your N-scale shells. 

[Mark5]

It has also been suggested that these also were used to transport sodium cyanide.

Here's a builder's photo of SHPX 50011:

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[nickelplate759]

A vertical  brake wheel, cool!
Any chance you have a pointer to a higher resolution copy of that builder's photo online?

[samusi01]

@nickelplate759

The Barriger Library at Flickr would be a good spot to check, e.g.:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/barrigerlibrary/43773679611/in/album-72157649155982802/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/barrigerlibrary/42869564945/in/album-72157649155982802/

From this page:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/barrigerlibrary/albums/72157649155982802/page43

It's a tremendous resource that includes a few other DUPX cars:

https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=98718743%40N05&view_all=1&text=dupont

Sam

[nickelplate759]

Bingo!

Oddly enough, I DID check it before and missed this car.

[Mark5]

@nickelplate759

The Barriger Library at Flickr would be a good spot to check, e.g.:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/barrigerlibrary/43773679611/in/album-72157649155982802/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/barrigerlibrary/42869564945/in/album-72157649155982802/

Sam

Thanks so much - that's where I got the pic. I wasted half an hour trying to find the exact page before I decided to just post a smaller version. 

Mark

[peteski]

Wow!  That album is a treasure trove of so many possible models of tank cars! The images are high enough resolution to make designing decal artowrk possible. Yeah, when I retire and have lots of time. 

[Mark5]

Ok, it appears that this series was fairly quickly changed to DUPX reporting marks (‡ maybe ... see below).

January 1965  DUPX 50000-50099--5 cars (no SHPX that match)*
April 1970  DUPX 50000-50021--22 cars*
July 1974  DUPX 50000-50021, except 50008 and 50009 gone--20 cars† (all listed as 52'4" IL, and 57'2" outside length, AAR code L007)
April 1980  DUPX 50000-50021, 50008 and 50009 gone--20 cars*
July 1985  8 cars left*
October 1990  8 cars left*
April 1995  2 cars left*
July 2000  series gone*

* from "Ed", here: http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/13/p/254396/2852582.aspx
† DUPX from my copy of the July 1974 ORER (page 764) described as "Flat, Stl., Demountable Containers"
‡ my copy of the July 1974 ORER also lists these under SHPX (page 920) 20 cars but it shows 50000-50010, 50011-50012, 50014-50020 - same IL, etc - described as "Flat, 28 Containers". 

It gets more complicated ...

There's a photo of DUPX 50001 in Edward S. Kaminski's "American Car & Foundry Company 1899-1999". Anybody got a copy? 

50007 in the photo that George posted above looks like and ACF to me.

5008: Robert J Wayner's book "Freight Car Pictorial" has a photo of SHPX 50008, which is the same class as the 50007.  It is labled E I DuPont de Nemours & Co (Du Pont)
The caption says it was leased to Du Pont to carry  containers of sodium cyanide, used for electroplating and case hardening of materials.   New 4-57.  Blt 4-57. - Dave Nelson, here: http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/13/p/254396/2852582.aspx

Here's 50010 in 1985, but this is clearly not built to the ACF design (in my opinion) - I'm guessing it is Ortner built (see the sill):

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=5285486

50011 above is obviously ACF. 

Here's 5019 in 1979 (10/14/79 Paterson NJ) - this one does not look like the ACF design (sill) and has lost the framing (if it ever had it):
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/misc-d/dupx50019ckg.jpg
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/misc-d/dupx50019bkg.jpg
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/misc-d/dupx50019akg.jpg

50021 is clearly Ortner built (see Spookshow's link for a photo).

So, in this series, it looks like:

• 50000 unknown
• 50001 ACF (see Kaminski, above)
• 50002-5006, unknown
• 50007 ACF
• 50008 ACF (see above)
• 50009, unknown
• 50010 Ortner?
• 50011 ACF
• 50012-50018, unknown
• 50019 Ortner?
• 50020 unknown
• 50021 Ortner

I'm guessing they were all painted black, and if and when swapped from SHPX to DUPX, only the reporting marks changed.

Mark