1937 A.A.R. vs. PS-1

The PS-1 is taller. The designs are very similar, but a quick visual cue is to look at the foot stirrup on the right-hand side as you face the car. On the AAR car it is a simple rectangle; on a PS-1 it is more trapezoidal. There are other differences, but that's the quickest one to spot. 

Thanks

Southwest Hiawatha,

I'm sorry to have to correct you.

The stirrup step on the left, as you look at the car's side, is trapezoid on the AAR and the stirrup step on the PS-1 is rectangular.

I have been knocking my brains out looking at the different details, before spending my bucks, when buying box cars.

Then, again, it's up to the buying RR's specifications.

RJL 

Was the ARR car the base for the PRR X29 Boxcar?

OK, here are some pictures. 

First, an Atlas model of a 1937 AAR boxcar. Yes, the steps are slightly out of square, you could call them trapezoidal.

But now check out a photo of a prototype PS-1 car. Note the shape of the stirrup on the right. That's what I'm talking about, the radical difference between that shape and a typical stirrup. 

In the process of finding these photos, I was frustrated by Google Images, which provided hundreds of images of models and hardly any decent pictures of the real 1937 car. I did see a couple of shots identified as AAR cars that had the PS-1 type stirrup on the right. I don't know if those were modified cars, or just customized as built for a particular road, or maybe misidentified in the captions. 

Southwest Hiawatha,

I see what you are talking about, but most cars I've seen in photos, as well as models, have, as you face the car's side: a 'Rectangular' stirrup step on the left of a PS-1 car and a 'Trapezoid' stirrup step on the left of an AAR car.  Then again, it depends on the customer RR.

RJL

Dom,

The 1923 American Railroad Association's steel box car design, led to the X-29 style of which P.RR. built roughly 30,000 X-29 box cars.

The style allowed for more loading capacity, with a low profile to traverse tunnels on the East Coast.

P.RR's. Merchandise Service LCL box cars, were mostly an X-29 style, with trucks to handle speed, for the East Coast customers where tunnels were in use, especially in the 'Merchandise Mecca' New York City. 

RJL

The major differences between 1937 AAR and PS-1, in addition to those already mentioned, are the roofs: AAR has rectangular panels vs PS-1 with narrow ribs; and the ends: AAR has dreadnaught ends with tapered ribs, PS-1 has equally sized ribs, also six small bumps just under the roofwalk.

Allan

Tons of killer info here -- surf to your heart's content:

http://www.steamerafreightcars.com/index.html

(I'd post more about pre-1960's boxcar history, but it's a beautiful day out and I have a date with my kids)

Brian

Thanks, that looks like a great site