Re: Restoration progress on D&RGW stock car 5672

The hardware on these cars is very well documented, and there are plans to at least consider back dating the brake equipment from the original detached (with "w" triple) from more modern KC type.

These cars, built in 1903, and in full compliance with the then newly enforced railway equipment safety act... They were rebuilt about 1911 when that act was revised, on that occasion with new grabs, and with the couplers remounted to provide more room between cars.

All cars were rebuilt in the mid 1920's... unlike the box cars which were rebuilt over several years, and as a result some differ, the stock cars were rebuilt over about 3 months, and all seem to have come out of that program nearly identical. That rebuilding resulted in un-sheathed ends, the brake system changes and iron car lines (the 5800 class stock cars, built a couple of years before used wood carlines... possibly why they were scrapped earlier)

For people interested, you need Vic Stone's "Taking Stock"... It includes most of the D&RG(W) associated with these cars... All of the drawings in Vic's book, and a few extra are at DPL... I got the drawing for the end beam/draft casting from the Grandt's... I think Maxwell had it available many years ago...

There is one area of uncertainty... the paint changes of the early 1920's... The cars were known to have been painted in Prince's Mineral Paint when built, and through about 1920... this was a very brown mineral red (aka boxcar red)... About 1920 D&RG changed to a new box car red... The cars are known to have been painted black later... we believe by 1930, but maybe painted black at the time they were rebuilt. The larger 5800 cars seem to have red under black, suggesting that they were painted the new red color before being painted black... and paint evidence on this car suggested it might have been red after being rebuilt in 1926, but that evidence was not conclusive... It would help is someone had a D&RG(W) document calling out this change.

Randy Hees