By the 1960s, railroads began to upgrade their freight rosters with larger cars of all types in response to demand from shippers. Among the many new cars to appear in this era were 70-ton gondolas, with an overall length around 53'. Thrall was one of the chief suppliers of these bigger gons, which were characterized by welded construction (some early cars were riveted), and fishbelly sides featuring 13 or 14 ribs. Working from the basic design, buyers could customize their cars, resulting in many variations in height, ends, floors, side panels and load restraints depending on the type of service for which the cars were intended. The design continued to evolve, and by the late 1960s, 100-ton capacity cars were in production. These later cars featured larger side ribs, which made them standout from earlier examples. Production continued on and off through the 1990s when a taller 115-ton capacity became standard. Based on the common 14-post design ordered by many roads, the prototypes of your new Walthers 53' gondolas are still hard at work moving scrap and steel products, but they also handle pulpwood, machinery, aggregates, track materials and any other load that requires an open-top car.

- All-New Tooling
- Steel & Scrap Industry Favorites