Mystery
I picked up this mystery Box Car, probably a Weaver, with an usual heavy trap door in the floor. Presuming it is a Weaver, the original deck and trucks were replaced, and in their place is a metal plate (10’’ X 2 ¼”) that fits precisely into the Box Car shell as the floor. The black plastic flimsy trucks were smashed, no wheels or axles and unfortunately I discarded them a while ago. Importantly however is that they were fastened to the deck by tiny screws which were threaded (yes, threaded) into the metal deck (no washers or nuts). The truck mounting holes are indicated by the white pick's in the photos. The deck has a very heavy trap door that is hinged to the deck by welds ILO nuts and bolts and the welds are smooth, very professional. The thick and heavy trap door swings freely and is smaller than the opening in the deck with no evidence that there was a latch to hold it in place. Interestingly, it has a sticker suggesting that it was a product of the respected Consoli Family Train Company. I have read a small bit about the Consoli families contribution to model railroading which is a great story, but their focus was upon Passenger Cars, not Box Cars. And that leaves me with the big question…why is there a trap door? The fit of the deck to the shell is PERFECT, the workmanship is great, but why was it made? This is not a serious quest, but it is worthy of OGRR insights, recollections and a relaxing investigative endeavor. All of this came in a beat up orange Lionel Box, dirty and worn that I found in a store. I figured I could tape the door in place and add a set of trucks – but perhaps the knowledgeable historians and detectives of OGRR wanted to crack the case too. Sometimes the hunt is more fun than the find. BTW...I don't want it, for the cost of shipping I will send it to any OGRR Sherlock
Be safe, fly the flag...do good.
