Different types of intermodal car

[MariasRailfan]

Hi everybody and Happy New Year!

I am looking for information about different types of intermodal cars and their meanings, eg. TOFC COFC etc.

If anybody can help me out please make a post!:D

[SVTS]

Simple:
TOFC- Trailer on Flat Car

COFC- Container on flat car

Well Car- The most common flat car for hauling containers, just about everything in the intermodel section is a well car. Some can only haul containers, while some have 5th wheels at each end to haul trailers to.

Piggyback- Another term for a trailer riding on flat cars

Doublestack- 2 containers on top of each other in transit

Spine car- A special car designed to haul only trailers, 1 per car. Spine cars are often made as a set of 5, so if you have only 1 trailer, so still have to use 5 cars becasue they are all connected

Articulated- Similar to the spine cars, in that they are a set of 3 or 5 well cars.

[Andy J]

EDIT, Beat me by 1 min, Dag Nabit!!!

LMAO

[font color="black" size="4" face="face"] Andy J

[/font] [picture]http://www.trainsim.com/dcforum/User_files/41a9d1e21d626260.jpg

http://www.blueridgerails.com/

[andrewpickell]

Thomas,

I've had this site bookmarked for quite some time. It has lots of useful information.

[link:www.robl.w1.com/Transport/intermod.htm|The Intermodal Container FAQ]

I highly recommend it.

Andrew

[link:www3.telus.net/apickell/SquamishSub/bcrhome.htm|BC Rail Squamish Subdivision for MSTS]
http://www3.telus.net/apickell/SquamishSub/scroll2.jpg

[MariasRailfan]

Thank you very much guys for your time and help! All that was very useful!:7

[smallspy]

Just a couple of quick additions to your definitions Chris.

>Simple:
>TOFC- Trailer on Flat Car
>
>COFC- Container on flat car
>
>Well Car- The most common flat car for hauling containers,
>just about everything in the intermodel section is a well
>car. Some can only haul containers, while some have 5th
>wheels at each end to haul trailers to.

Well cars are not flat cars, but rather a specially designed car that has a centre dropped section (called the well) that allows the lower container to be carried about 12 inches off of the top of the rail, allowing for a lower centre of gravity and for a second container to be carried on top within the majority of the varying clearances on a railroad.

>Piggyback- Another term for a trailer riding on flat cars
>
>Doublestack- 2 containers on top of each other in transit
>
>Spine car- A special car designed to haul only trailers, 1
>per car. Spine cars are often made as a set of 5, so if you
>have only 1 trailer, so still have to use 5 cars becasue
>they are all connected

Spine cars are very minimally built, basically just a pair of I-beams welded together along the centre-line of the car (the spine), on to which the ends are connected to trucks and the next car. Many spine cars have also been built/modified to carry containers as well. They are generally articulated in 5- car sets.

>Articulated- Similar to the spine cars, in that they are a
>set of 3 or 5 well cars.

Just to elaborate, an articulated well car would be made up of several well sections, with the middle car(s) sharing a common truck with it(s) neighbour. The end cars would have a "standard" set up on their outer ends, with a coupler and a truck that isn't shared.

Some well cars are set up like standard freight cars using a pair of trucks, but are connected in 3- or 5-car sets with permanently connected drawbars rather than couplers.

Dan

[MariasRailfan]

Sorry once again guys, but for all the other cars like well cars etc., what would be their technical names(e.g. TOFC, COFC)or do they have a technical name?

[SVTS]

The tech. name used by railroads varies, usually it is just a symbol, which is often a one letter symbol following the destination city. But TOFC and COFC are normally referred to the most.

[SVTS]

Also, in regards to your signature, your banner is a bit to big, and if I recall, don't you live in Ireland or something like that, in which case that probally is not your photo, so you should at least give credit where credit is due.

[runaway_b_unit]

Most intermodal cars, auto racks, and many flat cars are owned by Trailer Train and some are leased to railroads. For each type of car they have, they use different reporting marks, such as cars with bulkheads or special tie downs equipped on the car. This was well explained in one of the Trains magazines. It looks like that FTTX car is equipped to carry auto frames (hence the "F" designation?).