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Drop-End Gondolas are perhaps the busiest freight car in the railroad, carrying everything from minerals to lumber to steel. Gondolas are widely used because of their long-life durability and steel construction.
A standard 40 foot car that was covered for the protection of plated steel products and some dry goods. The top removed in one piece for loading and unloading and was provided with an AAR standard walkway.
These cars pioneered the use of all welded construction and made their debut in 1940. American Car and Foundry (ACF) made the first car as a demonstrator and the concept was rapidly adopted by railroads carrying bulk dry products (especially cement, where this car revolutionised its handling).
Coal is a lovely load. It doesn’t have to be kept warm or dry. It just needs a high capacity vehicle that is strong and durable. The 100 ton hopper dates from the late 1950s when it was first used on the Pocohontas coal haulers. These cars were in their legion on railroads such as the N&W and Virginian.
Freight Cars
The Aristo single dome tank car represents the 1940s state of the art for transportation of chemicals and petroleum. This steam-jacketed car of around 10,000 gallons arrived in time to support the massive oil movements of WW II, when America’s costal shipping was under threat from submarines.
A cousin of the single dome, these cars allowed for the compartmentalisation of loading, allowing for greater flexibility of car utilisation. When needed, these vehicles could also be used for single commodity traffic.
In the mid 1940s, the Pullman Standard carbuilding company ran a full page ad in the Railway Age that compared the 40 ft boxcar to a private in the army… Any task as ordered, when ordered. These versatile cars were the basis of the Less than Car Loading (LCL) traffic base of the railroads in their golden age.
The name says it all. This car was used throughout the US and Canada for the movement of livestock. Large fleets of these vehicles were not owned only by the railroads, but also by the large meat processing companies such as Swift and Armor Packaging.
The Aristo Refrigerator Car - "Reefer" - is a representation of the state of the art for cooled goods transport in the 1940s. This was an era when perishables transport required the support of a huge icing infrastructure on the railroads. This car was well insulated for its day and had mechanical fans for the maintenance of even temperature throughout the car.
Need to move some lumber? What about boxed machinery? Farm equipment? Well you need a flat car. Tough, versatile and adaptable, these cars have been part of the railroad scene since the mid 19th century.
A specialty cousin of the standard flat car, the bulkheads on this car allow for the secure transport of ladings such as drill pipe, steel tube or irrigation piping in the rough and tumble world of loose car railroading. Variations of this car have been adapted for the lumber and forest products industry.
Includes two working searchlights plus rear-end markers, detailed flat car underframe with sprung axles.
Aristo-Craft's new Evans 53' Boxcar is among the largest models of freight cars ever made. The 53' Evans box car is the first truly modern box car produced for the Large Scale market. It has no roof walks. It has short ladders and roller bearing trucks with rotating bearing caps.
Aristo-Craft makes trains that you can see on the rails today, and the new RoadRailer System is a perfect example.
RoadRailers are semi-trailers that can be lifted on and off the rails almost anywhere without using cranes, saving money and space.
One train can do the work of more than 100 trucks.
These trailers are often pulled by our modern style Dash-9's for a great looking train.
The biggest little range on rails.
Aristo-Craft's 20' Shorties represent the average freight cars of the past, compressed to fit on a smaller layout. All Shorties are available in a variety of road names.
Aristo-Craft's Log Car is based on the cars used by logging railroads throughout America. These cars were used to haul raw logs from the forest to the saw mills.
The caboose was a multi-purpose vehicle. Now long gone from the railway scene, the caboose was an office for the Conductor, a workstation for the Brakeman and a kitchen / home-away-from-home for the crew. The real purpose of the caboose though was a safety lookout at the rear of a long train.
Not seen on the mainline, the Bobber gained its name from its short length (i.e. a "bobtailed caboose"). Generally associated with shortlines, the Class 1 railroads used the four wheeled caboose for work train and transfer service. The caboose in general gained some interesting nicknames… hack, crummy, buggy and even widow maker.
The Wedge Snow Plough is designed to be shoved by your locomotive and push snow and debris out of the way. The large wedge-shaped shovel on the front of the Wedge Snow Plough is more then a match for most leaves, gumnuts and small stones, and can plough several inches of snow.
Clean your track while running your trains!
Uses a replaceable abrasive cleaning pad.
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDEN RAILWAY PEOPLE
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