The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-03-08
Santa Fe Using New Style of
Box Car.
Built ON Designs Furnished by
Superintendent Henderson.
A STEEL UNDERTAKE..
First Time Steel Has Been Used
For Box Cars.
Will Carry a Maximum Load of
10000 Pounds.

Eastern railroad publication have de-
voted much space recently to the new
steel boxcar which has been designed
by Geo. r. Henderson, superintendent
of motive power, and built in Topeka
shops For two months or more the
car has been in trial service. For sew
eral-yearS the Santa Fse has been at
tempting to get a design of a steel
car but until now their efforts seem to
have been futile 1t is generally con-
coded that steel shapes may be sue
cessfully used in car construction but
so far it has never been applied to box
cars.
Mr.. Henderson has taken pains to in
vestigate similar kinds of railroad
equipment thoroughly and the car
which he has constructed is according
to his belief a product@of the best fea
lures of all these. The must noticeable
part about it is the underframe con-
struction, four steel channel stills being
used giving the car the appearance of
being low built and of. exceptional
strength. The sillS used in the center
are 12-inch with the flanges facing out
ward; and those on outside are of 10
inch steel channels, flangeS turned in
and faced on the outside with a wood
sill to which the sheataing and flooring
are nailed. The two central sills are
about four inches below the level of
those on the outer ones to permit wood
filters being used for securing the floor.
In the arrangement of holsters truss
the construction is integral each of
these parts forming a special brace and
all being riveted together. The bolster
is built around the two inside sills and
is in the form of a plate girder truss,
the plate being 3s-inch , thick and
strengthened at the top by two angles
extending the width of the car passing
over the two central channels thus pro-
viding a continuous tension member.
The bottom side of the girder is sloped
to meet the bottom of the side sill On
the underside of the girder is a large
reinforcing plate 20 inches wide.
Two diagonals extend from this to
corners of the frame. On both sides of
the frame the girder is the same except
that on one it terminates at the sill
while in the other a little below. This
framework takes the place of the usual
truss rods
1t is thus arranged that the weight of
the load will rest on the structure al
ready described as the carrying capac-
1ty of the SuperStructure has not been
considered in the calculation of load
stress. The maximum load for the car
is rated al $4,000 pounds. The remainder
it will provide a piece of equipment of
extraordinary rigidity, besides fulfilling
the requirement of durability and at
the same time being light. The usual
wooden box car SurmountS the frame
of the trucks already described. The
dimensions are: inside length, sc feet
inches; width, feet inches.
The service of the car so far has been
in every way satisfactory. Before 1eaV-
ing Topeka shops a large quantity of
metal was loaded on the fiat frame to
give its lower structure a preliminary
test, and then the remainder of it was
completed Its weight is $3.50 pounds.