PC 750598 Rack car.. (Anyone know what this was used for?)

[learmoia]

I assume some form of auto parts.. but... not sure..

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Penn-Central-PC-750598-Tri-level-Frame-11-70-Rack-Orig-Kodachrome-Slide-1053-/192470738240?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=9DZz%252BG56MCZt1CHVTyKHQnXDjao%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

A Unique car.. Looking up the ORER data now.. (Assuming it was around in April 1976)

.... So it's a surprizing large group of cars..
PC 750570-750616 Flat - Cushion Underframe, Platform area 759sqft "F48" Overall Length 95'8"
47 cars in the group as of 04/1976


~Ian

[nkalanaga]

I don't know what it is.  The PRR had an F48, 47 cars, 95'8" coupled length, but the diagram for it doesn't look anything like that:
http://prr.railfan.net/freight/classpage.html?class=F48
http://prr.railfan.net/freight/PRRdiagrams.html?diag=F48.gif&fr=cl

My first thought was an adjustable auto rack, with the middle deck able to be raised for hauling tall vehicles, or lowered for standard autos.  But it doesn't look like there's a normal deck in the middle, just lots of bracing.

[C855B]

It appears to me that the lighter-color frame pieces within the exoskeleton are some manner of pallet system that are unloadable units containerizing something. I'm not completely certain, but studying the silhouettes the contents might be auto body panels, specifically fenders.

[learmoia]

I don't know what it is.  The PRR had an F48, 47 cars, 95'8" coupled length, but the diagram for it doesn't look anything like that:
http://prr.railfan.net/freight/classpage.html?class=F48
http://prr.railfan.net/freight/PRRdiagrams.html?diag=F48.gif&fr=cl

My first thought was an adjustable auto rack, with the middle deck able to be raised for hauling tall vehicles, or lowered for standard autos.  But it doesn't look like there's a normal deck in the middle, just lots of bracing.

I found the F48 listing on CRHS and that's a totally different number series of cars..

And I thought maybe this is a special rack riding on an F48 flat.. but, no.. this flat is a different design and it appears the rack is part of the car.. (a thought also supported by the fact that the initial, number, dim data are posted on the car body not the flat.

~ian

[nkalanaga]

It's not surprising that the two F48s are different series, as I imagine that PC renumbered them.  I suspect they reused the cars themselves for a different purpose.  It just seems odd that both PRR and PC would have F48s, the same length, the same number of cars, without them being related.

The original PRR diagram is odd enough.  A bulkhead flatcar with bulkheads only 4 feet wide?

I suspect that Mike has the right idea, as those do look like removable frames of some type, especially since they're a different color than the car.

[sirenwerks]

My money is on truck caps or boat trailers.

[wcfn100]

Looks like it's carrying some sort of frames.  Trying to read the assignment,  I'm guessing it says "Detroit Terminal RR" which served a bunch of plants.

Jason

[wcfn100]

I suspect that Mike has the right idea, as those do look like removable frames of some type, especially since they're a different color than the car.

Looks like the center of the car has removable beams where you could unload the frames.

Jason

[Hornwrecker]

Dunnage racks for a specific type of auto part (racks are painted different colors to denote which type of part). Could be something like hoods, fenders, pickup trucks beds, or something like that.  There's a few acre lot full of them not too far from my house for the Ram truck/Chrysler stamping plant.

[jagged ben]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Penn-Central-PC-750598-Tri-level-Frame-11-70-Rack-Orig-Kodachrome-Slide-1053-/192470738240?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&nma=true&si=9DZz%252BG56MCZt1CHVTyKHQnXDjao%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

Holy !#$%, look what that slide went for! 

[learmoia]

Holy !#$%, look what that slide went for!

Yeah that's not the highest I've seen, but pretty good for a Penn Central freight car..

~Ian

[Iain]

Automobile frames.  NS used to take them in off the PRR interchange at Little Creek.  This method of lading started showing up at the end of that particular service.  Previously, they'd been stacked on flatcars.

[chessie system fan]

It's a terrible photograph, but here's an empty one.

  https://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-1975-Kodachrome-Photo-Slide-PC-Penn-Central-Ribbed-Flatcar-750615-1Q12/372250109578?hash=item56abd5e68a:g:9vgAAOSwC2Jaq~6i

[learmoia]

It's a terrible photograph, but here's an empty one.

  https://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-1975-Kodachrome-Photo-Slide-PC-Penn-Central-Ribbed-Flatcar-750615-1Q12/372250109578?hash=item56abd5e68a:g:9vgAAOSwC2Jaq~6i

Cool, great picture. Did anyone else have cars like this?

[peteski]

Since eBay listings photos are far from being permanent, I saved them to TRW gallery. That way if someone 2 years from now looks at this thread they will have a clue as to what it is about.