Thrall Car Manufacturing Company

William R Baker

James C Robertson

James E Black, Jr

Walter J Marulic

James O Lett

A rail car having an end closure provided by a pair of sliding doors. Each side wall of the rail car has a main side wall portion which terminates adjacent one end of the rail car, and an upright ladder panel spaced from the main side wall portion to provide a vertical slot. The doors are guided for movement from a closed position across the end of the rail car to an open position in which the doors project through the slots. An upper ladder brace assembly mounted on the main side wall portion of each side wall is provided to support the upper end of the ladder panel. This upper ladder brace assembly has an elongated brace member which is rigidly connected to the upper ladder panel. The brace member is bowed outwardly to be entirely outside the path of the door so as not to interfere with the movement of the door to open position.

End door for rail car

A chock block for a vehicle transported on a deck to secure the vehicle against longitudinal movement; the chock block having a first member and a longitudinal second member lateral to the first member; the first member nesting with a track on the deck and removable from such nesting by upward displacement; the second member extending along and terminating beyond the tread face of a vehicle tire; a pin on the chock block for removably securing the first member to the track to prevent the chock block from horizontal and upward movement; the second member having a longitudinal center when viewed from the top; the chock block being essentially symmetrical about the second member longitudinal center; and the pin having a handle observable and manually operable from both sides of the second member longitudinal center to withdraw the pin forward end from a track hole to remove the chock block from the track and to help position the pin forward end in a track hole.

Vehicle wheel chock for securing vehicles during transport

A railroad car for transporting vehicles comprising a car underframe having side sills and supported at each end by a railroad truck; a plurality of spaced apart vertical columns having lower ends rigidly connected to each of the side sills; a first deck supported by the car underframe; a second deck horizontally located above the first deck and rigidly connected to the columns; a brace bay between two adjoining first and second columns near each end of each side of the car; the brace bay having a horizontal member with opposing ends extending between the adjoining columns at the location of the second deck; the brace bay having a first diagonal brace having upper and lower ends extending from the first column downwardly to the second column and a second diagonal brace having upper and lower ends extending from the second column downwardly to the first column, with the upper ends of the two braces being located about at the horizontal member and the lower ends of the two braces being located about at the first deck; a plate connected to the first diagonal brace; the second diagonal brace including 2 sections, each having ends joined to the plate and to the column; a strip overlying and connecting the second diagonal brace ends joined to the plate, and the first diagonal brace; and the horizontal member and the two diagonal braces being largely longitudinal metal tubes which are rectangular in cross-section.

Vehicle transporting railroad car with brace bays

A railroad car for transporting vehicles such as automobiles and trucks has a pair of door assemblies which close each end of the railroad car. The lower end of the door assemblies are guided in a track and the track has vertically retractable sections located where the vehicle tires roll so as to provide added load height when the car ends are open and vehicles are being loaded or unloaded. An embodiment with a pivotal, counterweighted Z-shaped member upon which the retractable track section is mounted is disclosed along with an embodiment utilizing a vertically displaceable tubular member and a coil spring.

Railroad car with retractable closure track held down by bridge plate

A railroad car for transporting vehicles such as automobiles and trucks, comprising a floor and two side walls defining an interior space and terminating in an opening at each end; at least one elevated deck spaced above the floor and extending the length of the railroad car and terminating in an end at each of the openings; an end enclosure at each end of the car adapted to be displaced between a closed position overlying the end opening and an opened position which provides access to the entire end of the car; an elongated closure support member at each end of the car disposed within the car interior in a horizontal plane and joined to the end of the deck with the deck elevation being at least as high as that of the closure support; and bridge plate supports, for a pair of bridge plates, located at the front of the closure support member such that bridge plates removably attached thereto are at essentially the same level as the deck.

Autorack railroad car improved bridge plate support structure

A freight carrying railroad car comprising a body supported at each end by wheel-containing trucks; the body having a vertical center beam extending longitudinally the length of the car between bulkheads at each end of the car; the center beam comprising a center sill, a top sill parallel to and spaced above the center sill, and a plurality of vertical spaced apart columns rigidly connected at their lower ends to the center sill and at their upper ends to the top sill; and at each end of the car, a vertical plate extending from the center sill to the top sill, and from the bulkhead at that end inwardly along the center sill; the vertical plate being joined to the center sill, top sill, bulkhead and a plurality of said columns and having a width no more than about one-fifth of the distance between the bulkheads.

Growing community of inventors

Lawrenceville, GA, United States of America

William R Baker