Real Train Database

The pressurized or pneumatic covered hopper, designated LP under the Association of American Railroads car classification system, emerged as a specialized response to the handling requirements of fin…

The LP covered hopper is typically built with an interior volume ranging from approximately 1,500 to 3,000 cubic feet and is rated to 100 tons of load capacity…

The four-bay open hopper, designated under the AAR classification code HA, represents one of the most significant freight car designs in North American railroad history. The development of the quad h…

The quad hopper in its modern form typically offers an interior volume of between 4,000 and 5,000 cubic feet, with the precise figure varying according to the …

Models by: ScaleTrains

The refrigerator car, universally known in the railroad industry as a "reefer," emerged as a transformative piece of rolling stock in the decades following the American Civil War. The earliest practi…

Under the Association of American Railroads classification system, refrigerator cars carrying the RA designation were purpose-built insulated freight cars equi…

The rotary dump ballast car, designated under the AAR classification code RB, represents a specialized category of maintenance-of-way equipment developed to meet the demands of efficient track upkeep…

Rotary dump ballast cars built to the RB classification were typically constructed in lengths ranging from approximately 34 to 46 feet over the coupler pulling…

The rotary-dump hopper car, designated HR under the Association of American Railroads classification system, emerged as a specialized solution to the challenge of rapidly unloading bulk commodities a…

Rotary-dump hopper cars in the HR classification are built to handle very large payloads, with capacity ratings generally exceeding 100 tons and cubic volumetr…

The side-dump and bottom-dump railroad car, designated under the AAR code DX, emerged as a specialized solution to the demanding material-handling needs of American railroads and the industries they …

The AAR DX classification encompasses cars built in both side-dump and bottom-dump configurations, reflecting the two principal mechanical approaches to rapid …

The small covered hopper, designated under the AAR classification code LO, emerged from the broader evolution of covered hopper car design that began in earnest during the early twentieth century. Ea…

Small covered hoppers in the LO classification typically fall within a capacity range of approximately 2,000 to 3,000 cubic feet and are rated at around 70 ton…

Models by: Atlas · Bowser · Intermountain · MTH · Rapido Trains · ScaleTrains · Tangent · Walthers

The spine car emerged as a direct response to the explosive growth of intermodal freight traffic in North America during the 1970s and 1980s. As railroads sought more efficient ways to handle ISO shi…

The defining engineering characteristic of the spine car is its skeletal structure, consisting of a robust center sill running the full length of the car with …

Models by: Bowser

The standard non-insulated boxcar, designated XM under the Association of American Railroads classification system, represents one of the most fundamental and enduring freight car types in North Amer…

The XM designation encompasses a broad range of non-insulated, general-service boxcars sharing certain fundamental characteristics. Cars in this category typic…

Models by: Athearn · Atlas · Bowser · Intermountain · MTH · Rapido Trains · ScaleTrains · Tangent · Walthers

The standard flatcar represents one of the oldest and most enduring forms of railroad freight equipment in North America. In its most basic form, the flatcar predates even the boxcar, as early railro…

Standard flatcars in the FM classification are typically constructed around a heavy steel center sill running the full length of the car, with cross-members an…

Models by: Atlas · ScaleTrains

The low-side gondola, designated under the AAR classification system as GB, represents one of the most versatile and widely used freight car types in North American railroad history. Open-top gondola…

Standard low-side gondolas built to AAR GB specifications are typically constructed with interior lengths ranging from approximately 52 to 65 feet and are rate…

Models by: Athearn · Atlas · Bowser · MTH · ScaleTrains · Tangent · Walthers

The covered steel coil car, designated by the AAR as class CS, emerged from a broader mid-twentieth century effort by American railroads to develop purpose-built equipment for transporting sheet meta…

Covered coil cars in the CS class are typically built on car bodies ranging from approximately 42 to 52 feet in length and are rated at 100 tons capacity, refl…

The practice of moving wheeled vehicles aboard railroad flatcars has roots stretching back to the earliest decades of American railroading. In 1843, canal boats were transported over a portage railwa…

TOFC flatcars built to the FT designation are purpose-designed to carry one or two standard highway semi-trailers, which in North American service are typicall…

The tri-level enclosed autorack represented the culmination of roughly two decades of experimentation and refinement in automobile transportation by rail. Early autoracks, introduced in the late 1950…

The tri-level enclosed autorack classified under AAR code VB is built around an 89-foot structural frame capable of carrying loads up to 70 tons, with the thre…

The three-bay open hopper, designated under the AAR classification code HM, emerged as a direct response to the expanding demands of bulk commodity transportation in North America during the mid-twen…

The AAR HM classification encompasses three-bay open hopper cars with a capacity range typically falling between approximately 3,200 and 4,000 cubic feet, rate…

The twin hopper, designated under the AAR classification code HT, emerged as one of the most practical and widely used freight car types in North American railroad history. Designed specifically for …

The standard HT twin hopper was built to carry approximately 70 tons of lading, with interior cubic capacities generally ranging from around 2,000 to 2,500 cub…

Models by: MTH