# Real rolling stock related question



## ScaleModelAddiction (Sep 2, 2010)

Okay so about a month ago I drove by some train track in front of the SuperValu distribution center in Golden Valley for those of you who know/ live in Minnesota. What made it special was I got a glimpse of a massive gondola and didn't get to see details. Then last weekend we were going out that way and we drove by it, the gondola was bright yellow and had 10, yes 10 trucks on it. I've never seen it before or ever even heard of anything this big, does anyone have a clue what it might be? I didn't see any reporting marks but it was bright yellow, and definitely one continuous car.


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## Boston&Maine (Dec 19, 2007)

By trucks, do you mean trucks that drive on the road, or trucks for rolling stock?


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

ScaleModelAddiction said:


> Okay so about a month ago I drove by some train track in front of the SuperValu distribution center in Golden Valley for those of you who know/ live in Minnesota. What made it special was I got a glimpse of a massive gondola and didn't get to see details. Then last weekend we were going out that way and we drove by it, the gondola was bright yellow and had 10, yes 10 trucks on it. I've never seen it before or ever even heard of anything this big, does anyone have a clue what it might be? I didn't see any reporting marks but it was bright yellow, and definitely one continuous car.


So it had 40 wheels?

It would have been nice when you saw it again......to take a picture of it.

Sorry you get awarded a,

:ttiwwop:

I did a search and could not find one.

10 truck trailers at 53' = a 530' long car at least. Add on 2' between trailers and it's longer yet.


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## ScaleModelAddiction (Sep 2, 2010)

Boston&Maine said:


> By trucks, do you mean trucks that drive on the road, or trucks for rolling stock?


I mean trucks for rolling stock it didn't literally hold trucks on it, in fact it was empty as far as I could tell. It had 10 trucks spaced about 40 feet apart roughly. 

Big Ed, I'll try to go down that way soon to get a picture, I make no promises.


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## Boston&Maine (Dec 19, 2007)

Maybe it has something to do with a rail-laying train? IDK...


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## Reckers (Oct 11, 2009)

What's your best guess as to it's total length? It was obviously designed to carry considerable weight: the number of trucks and axles is all about weight distribution. You don't want too much weight on a single truck, and you don't want too much weight transferred to the rails by a single truck or axle. That thing was designed to carry some major weight.


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## Reckers (Oct 11, 2009)

ScaleModelAddiction said:


> I mean trucks for rolling stock it didn't literally hold trucks on it, in fact it was empty as far as I could tell. It had 10 trucks spaced about 40 feet apart roughly.
> 
> Big Ed, I'll try to go down that way soon to get a picture, I make no promises.


If you can also note down the car # and the owner (both should be painted on the side), it might be possible to run down some info on it.


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## Littlefoot14 (Sep 3, 2010)

You sure it wasnt an articulated well car set?
They arent designed to carry trucks, but theres been some wierd stuff in them before.


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## ScaleModelAddiction (Sep 2, 2010)

Reckers said:


> If you can also note down the car # and the owner (both should be painted on the side), it might be possible to run down some info on it.


 That's the problem, it literally had no reporting marks on it from my vantage point. It was just yellow, not TTX yellow, not the yellow of all the MOW equipment I've seen it was just yellow. 
Reckers, the total length is probably 300 to 400 feet with what appears to be 100 ton trucks.


@B&M: I don't think it was for track laying, I've only seen flat cars for that.

@littlefoot14: it definitely wasn't well cars, the gondola had absolutely no depression in it.

I couldn't catch the details to confirm or deny this when I saw it but would a railroad company or even a private company ever connect old gondolas together for hauling extra long loads? That would seem to make quite a bit of sense.


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## Southern (Nov 17, 2008)

I want one for my layout what ever it might be.


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## Boston&Maine (Dec 19, 2007)

Did it have any articulation at all


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## gc53dfgc (Apr 13, 2010)

it might be a specialy designed car for an aircraft manufacturer like boeing or airbus to haul plane wings or even plane bodeis on. then again it could just be a sort of world record kind of car that can't move at all. 
Record: most trucks on a sinlge train car.


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## ScaleModelAddiction (Sep 2, 2010)

Boston&Maine said:


> Did it have any articulation at all


I'm thinking it did, but I can't verify it. At a car of this size I don't know how it would make it through a turn without articulation. I know for sure it was fairly new, the paint had absolutely no fading and their was no dents, no bulging, no graffiti (yet, if it hasn't moved)


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## ScaleModelAddiction (Sep 2, 2010)

*I figured it out!*

Okay this is worth the bump!!! After seeing a very similar looking car near where I live I asked my friend's dad about it as he's the engineer for CPR that always operates those tracks. And as it turns out it is indeed an articulated gondola that's made for laying continuously welded rails! They're pretty much old gondolas and flat cars that are taken and have the couplers in between the cars replaced with draw bars and they have racks installed in the middle to hold the rail with a mechanism at the end that pulls the rail out. I would assume that since I saw the original car on the TC&W in brand new paint and no racks that they probably made one, hadn't put a rack on it yet, and re-painted the old dirty gondolas as I know of no company that produces these things.


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## FightingDrag (Jan 11, 2011)

still wanting pic


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## Reckers (Oct 11, 2009)

I've seen these guys with racks for MOW....they have tiers of racks full of replacement rails on them, tagging along at the end of cars that cut out the old rails, feed the new rails in place and weld as they move forward replacing the lines rails
...


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