What types of freight trucks

I realize that this is probably a difficult question but please try and help.

I am going to, eventually, be building a NYC layout in the 1940 to 1950's era, and not to be a rivet counter but, what type of freight trucks would a rail watcher find on the equipment of the day? I just want to try and get most commonly used, for example: most boxcars had Andrews trucks with 33" ribbed back wheels, flat cars had the same.

Just trying to gather info. to make it as acurate as possible.

Thanks,

Scott

Freight car truck types varied widely by railroad owner and car series. Almost any type of truck frame could be found under any type of car. The gross weight of the car governed, not the car type.

Most cars of the 1940-1950 era were built for a gross weight of 177,000 lbs, and were typically called "50-ton" cars. They called for a journal size of 5-1/2 x 10 inches, and generally 33 inch wheels. Some cars were 220,000 lb gross on 6 x 11 inch journals, nominally 70-ton capacity, on 33 inch wheels.

The "ribbed-back" wheels were wrought iron, common then but outlawed after 1968 in interchange, replaced by steel wheels with plain backs.

Andrews trucks were not all that common. They were an accounting gimmick when a car already in service had its arch-bar trucks replaced. The cheapest way to do that was to replace the arch-bar side frames with Andrews, which retained the same removable journal boxes.

From my recollections of the 1955 era, the largest fleet of cars that I saw in the east with Andrews trucks was a large number of PRR four-pocket hoppers that had been built around 1904 and rebuilt several times. I remember seeing them on the Catskill Mountain Branch with anthracite coal coming via D&H Oneonta to E. T. Van Buren in Stamford.

Other than that, most freight cars of all types around that time had trucks with cast steel side frames and plain (friction, not roller) bearings.

Now, following my diatribe about Andrews trucks, I pick up a 1961 "Car Builders' Cyclopedia," and lo and behold, I find three new 220,000 lb cars of 1959-1961 on the PRR (only), a box car, a hopper and a gondola, built with Andrews trucks. So PRR reclaimed the truck sides as well as the journal boxes at Holidaysburg, PA and put them under new cars. The cars were all built at the PRR company shops. Even so, the most common truck sides of the era for most railroads were cast steel double truss type with journal boxes cast integral.

There were a number of different truck designs under NYC and NYC controlled freight cars coming inti the 1940's and on into the 1950's.

One could find Barber S-1. S-1-L, S-1-LP; ASF Ride Control, A3: National; Symington Gould; AAR Standard and others. The Andrews trucks you referred to were a PRR standard that carried on into Penn Central. The 4-pocket hopper cars Chief Troll mentions were most likely Class H39. There were some Andrews trucks under NYC equipment. All of these trucks were fitted with plain bearing journals. Roller bearings started to be installed in the late 1950'e, either by modifying plain bearing boxes or getting new narrow or wide pedestal truck sides

The ribbed wheels were cast iron although there may have been wrought iron wheels as well. Cast iron wheels continued under non-revenue cars into the Conrail era. These cast iron wheels were somewhat similar in construction to the Scullin disc drivers and trailer truck wheels on steam locomtives. Cast iron wheels were replaced with wrought steel wheels and later cast steel wheels were added such as the Griffin wheels. The cast steel wheels are easily recognizeable by the risers on the outer face of the wheel plate. The early three riser wheels were soon outlawed and replaced with 7-riser wheels which continue in service today.

During WW II Allied Full Cushion trucks were introduced. These were under troop sleepers. When these cars were converted to head end passenger service and non-revenue the trucks were outlawed and replaced with ASF A3 Ride Control trucks with plain bearings.

If you can find access to Car Cycolpedias of the 1940's you will find pictures of the variuos trucks for freight service.

If I came over to your layout, and you told me you built all your cars from kits, and used the trucks supplied... as long as there werent many rolling-bearing equipped trucks (or any archbar trucks on interchange equipment), I wouldn't criticise you!

-otto-

Otto you have hit the perverbial nail on the head. What you are saying is exactly why I am asking about the trucks, in a round-about-sort of way. I plan on buying either new trucks or wheels (depending on what I need) for all of my equip. and with ALL of the options that are available I needed to get some information on what was used.

The examples I mentioned I just picked at random and put them together, it was just to represent what I was looking for. I thank the people who have replied there is some good information here. If anybody else has something to add by all means please chime in.

Thank you,

Scott

As for as non-revenue equipment where old cars were used you would have found a few arch bar trucks still in use, usually assigned for use in shops in the 1940's. If you want to see arch bar trucks still in service today visit the Strasburg Railroad.