THE BLUE TRAIN PT2

More on the solid blue train rolling through Hillsdale...

The first car is actually two; GATX 46794 is a drawbar connected "paired" car. Both cars are single-bay Airslides. During unloading, the piping on the sides of the unloading bays are connected to air lines, which then send air into the car through a special fabric which, in turn, aerates the load, allowing it to more easily slide out of the car. Hence, the name: Airslide. These cars were developed in the 60's for powdery loads that have a tendency to cake up -such as flour, talc and sugar. In the late 80's, GATX began semi-permanently connecting pairs of these smaller cars to meet a demand for higher-capacity cars by shippers. Italgrani is the company that is leasing this set.

The next two cars are the larger, two-bay versions of the Airslide hopper.

Like the "paired" car set, the two bigger cars have the "GATX AIRSLIDE" on the end.

Another pair of two-bay Airslide hoppers.

These two cars, however, have the minimal lettering of the mid-80's. Interestingly enough, the previous cars were painted in the mid-90's -colorful editions after these "plain-Janes" were done!