The Maine Central RR (MEC), like most New England railroads in the late 1940s, was primarily a boxcar railroad. That means the vast majority of the MEC's traffic, including its paper business, moved in 40-foot boxcars. As the photo shows, many of the war-weary older freight cars remained in regular service while their replacements were under construction. In 1947, the Maine Central's car roster in the Official Railway Equipment Register lists 4,619 cars, including 3,584 boxcars, which made up 77 percent of its fleet. The rest of the MEC's roster included 418 gondolas, 250 hoppers, 172 stock cars, 30 covered hoppers (for cement), 25 flatcars, and a handful of other types. Note that some cars were modified for special jobs like hauling pulpwood and wood chips. To represent a typical cross-section of this MEC car fleet, about half of the models should be 40-foot boxcars. Judging from the capacities listed in the car register, most of these were older single-sheathed composite boxcars (with visible steel side bracing), as only a few of the new all-steel boxcars had been delivered. You'll also need some flatcars and gondolas fitted with end racks to haul pulpwood; twin hoppers for coal, sand, and gravel; and one or more two-bay covered hoppers for cement.
No comments:
Post a Comment