Originally Posted by Bill Robb:
I don't think interurban freight cars had much of an underbody. There are several plans on the internet here, here and here. Typically a freight motor towed one or maybe two trailers and no more. The freight motor was really a modified interurban or trolley not intended to pull a long train. There were exceptions like the Pacific Electric, which was built to railway standards and was a citrus fruit feeder for Southern Pacific, but these were not common.
There should be truss rods, queen posts, etc. and a brake system under this car very much like those depicted in the links you posted. Some of these also had a another air tank on the one side. Prototype of this car and several more that I have are Illinois Terminal which ran considerable freight operations.
Here's one of the ITS reefers from an All-Nation (Zimmer) kit:
and this is under a MTH (Midwestern Train Hobbies) car
There actually were a lot of freight motors that were built specifically for freight operations - for a starting point, see --> Not Only Passengers: How the Electric Railways Carried Freight, Express, and Baggage (CERA Bulletin 129) -- boxcabs, steeple cabs, and all sorts of freight motors were motors were in use at one time.
For example, right now I'm building a B+B-B+B freight motor inspired by the Piedmont & Northern 5500 that was probably the 1st articulated freight motor built.