Time and the elements--and hard service--affect all freight cars but are especially hard on hopper cars used primarily for hauling coal. In the case of the Southern, it is mostly bituminous coal, a commodity which bulks large in the System's total tonnage figures and earnings. Coal is, of course, a mainstay of industry and still holds an important place in the home-heating-fuels field.

Naturally, the Southern must keep its fleet of hopper cars ready for service at all times and this requires shop scheduling of repairs whereby worn portions of the car bodies are replaced and repairs or replacements made on other parts of the car. Generally, a repair program involves replacing a major part of the car body itself; other parts are less vulnerable to time and weather damage, or wear from the abrasive and corrosive action of loads.

Coal hopper cars get new sides, floors and wheels in a heavy repair program at the Southern's Coster shop at Knoxville, Tenn.

The men at Coster shop, Knoxville, are now working on a repair program which involves 1,448 coal cars. If steel is obtainable in the quantities needed for the requirements of the Southern-and other American railroads--the program will be complete by the end of 1951.

After being stripped down and sand blasted, a coal car gets a primer coat of paint applied by C. W. Russell, painter, on tracks outside the shops.

Uninterrupted production in railroad repair shops is as vital in maintaining an adequate inventory of freight cars as is the great new car building program on which the railr8ads are currently working. Everyone hopes that the fact will be recognized and that we can get the steel to keep things going at Coster and in other shops on our System.

Although most of the work on the coal hopper car program at Coster shop goes on inside the car shop ( it used to be the steam locomotive erecting shop) , the repair assembly line begins on "stripping" tracks outside of the shop building where worn and no longer serviceable parts of cars are removed.

R. D. Harkleroad, car repairer, and W. E. Phillips (in foreground), car repairer apprentice, prepare the floor beams for placing steel floor sheets.

Before cars enter the shop they are next moved to a location beneath a tall sand tower. Using hoses through which the power of compressed air fires a stream of fine sand, two operators remove old paint and rust in preparation for a primer coat of red paint applied with a spray gun at a location a couple of hundred feet further down the track. Afterwards, a switch engine moves the cars to join a line of similar dull.red skeletons of coal cars on a track leading into the car shop to await their turn on the assembly line inside. Cars are moved from spot to spot inside the shop by the use of the regular overhead shop crane.

On the track inside the shop, the first step. in the renewal process sees the installation of the new steel floors--two sheets of steel 7 feet 8 inches by 9 feet 9 inches in dimensions, lowered into place by the overhead crane. With the metal floor sheets bolted and clamped tightly into place, the outside edges of each are welded to the car.

Eight new steel side sheets are fitted to the car at the next track location-two large sheets and two small ones on each side. It is no exaggeration to describe these as "tailor-made." Although the large sheets of steel are usually 5 feet by 12 feet in dimensions and the smaller ones 2 feet 10 inches by 3 feet 10 inches, individual measurements are taken in each car to ensure a correct fit before the individual side sheets are cut to the required size with an automatically-guided acetylene torch.

Lowered in to place and clamped tightly, the steel floor sheet is securely and permanently fastened to the car by welding around the outside edges.

One by one, the crane operator lowers the eight side sheets into the car where car men guide them into place and welders secure each' sheet at the top with "tack welds." Then turn-buckle jacks are placed inside the car and adjusted to press the lower ends of the side sheets tightly against the car frame while a car man with an acetylene torch burns the lower ends of the side sheets to make sure there is a 1,/8th-inch opening between the bottom 0, the side sheet and the strip of metal at the side sill of the car, This opening allows for a deep and penetrating weld between the two pieces of metal when the welds made from each side meet in the center.

Clarence Steel, layout man (he made the necessary measurements), and 0. S. Davis (right), car repairer, cut out a steel side sheet for the car.

Welds of the required strength can be made more easily and more quickly if the edges to be welded together are in a horizontal position rather than in a vertical one. Consequently, the car bodies are removed from the trucks and turned first on one side, then the other, to give the welders this advantage of position. The turning requires the use of special coupler knuckles (made by welding a section of steel car axle 5 inches in diameter and 9 inches long onto an ordinary 9-inch coupler knuckle) and strongly braced welding jigs. (These are sometimes referred to as "turn over stands.")

Lowering a side sheet into the car with the overhead crane: E. L. Mashburn (left), car repairer, guides it into place; H. E. Flynn (right), electric welder, will tack weld it to the frame.

When a car is to be turned on its side, shop men replace the regular coupler knuckles with the special devices just described and clamp steel rings on the ends of the car to furnish the crane hooks a secure hold as the overhead cranes lift the car body from its trucks and lower it carefully until the journal ends rest in the bearings on top of the welding jigs. A lock is fastened over each of the bearings before the car is eased over on its side. Welders go to work first on the top outside welds, then the bottom inside welds, after which the car is turned over on its other side for a repeat performance of this welding process. When this is complete, each side sheet has been welded on both the inside and outside surfaces of the car. The "double welding" strengthens the car for the heavy loads it will carry.

Tack welding the new side sheet to the car frame. The next step is to use turn-buckle jacks to press the lower ends of the sheets against the car.

Welding represents a large enough share of the work in the coal hopper car program (every car requires 402 feet 1 inch of welding) that the shop works a second shift on welding alone to keep the over-all program moving along at the 3 cars a-day rate. The practice is to turn several cars just before the first-trick crane operators go off duty in order to have work ready for the second-shift welders. Wherever extensive welding operations are in progress, with other shop men nearby, heavy canvas shields are erected to protect other shop men from the flare of the electric arcs. (The welders, of course, have the protection of heavy gloves and their "man from Mars" helmets.)

While the welding progresses, the car trucks are being completely dismantled for a thorough inspection of all parts and the replacement of any that appear to be worn. In the reassembly, new "one-wear" wrought-steel wheels replace the original cast-iron wheels. After the car body has been replaced on the trucks, the air brake valves are removed to the air brake shop for cleaning, testing and any repairs that may be necessary. Valves that have already been cleaned and tested are applied in their place. Steps, grab irons and other safety appliances are inspected and straightened if necessary. With the regular coupler knuckles replaced in the car, coupler heights are adjusted and the coupler cross-key safeties are welded to the end sills.

C. F. Poe, car repairer, uses an acetylene torch to burn a 1/8 th-inch opening between the pieces of metal to be welded.

After two coats of black paint have been sprayed on and allowed to dry, and the Southern's name and the car number have been stenciled in white, the finished car goes to the track scale for weighing. With the figures indicating weight and capacity and information about the date of original building, repair date and other required facts stenciled on for all railroaders to read, the reconditioned coal car is ready to leave the shop.

By February 23, 1951, the car shop at Coster shop in Knoxville, Tenn., had completed work on 798 cars more than half the number assigned for the repair and renewal program. The rest were rolling out at the rate of three cars every working day .

Locked into the welding jigs, the coal car is lowered onto its side by the over head crane so that the sides may be welded in the easier horizontal position.

They lost little time in getting back to the job for which they had been overhauled. Just about as fast as the new paint dried the cars headed straight for the mines to pick up a payload of coal and rejoin the Southern's hard-working freight car fleet.

Welding the floor sheet to the end sheet. This represents part of the 402 feet 1 inch of welding that goes into each car.

Spraying the car with the second of two coats of black paint: S. T. Emmitt (in foreground), painter, and Floyd Brandon, painter helper. After the paint dries, .the Southern's name and the car number will be stenciled in white.

W. B. Wiser {left} and H. E. Rivers, electric welders, work on the inside of a side sheet. Welding each sheet on both inside and outside makes for a strong car.

The finished product: these cars have been weighed and the light weight stenciled on them (that's the track scale house at right}. They're ready to head for the mines to pick up a payload and rejoin the coal car fleet.

Dismantling the car trucks, replacing parts where there is evidence of wear and installing new wheels: (left to right) E. H. Hickle, G. W. Hartsock and T. F. Anthony, car repairers.

Spraying the car with the second of two coats of black paint: S. T. Emmitt (in forground), painter, and Floyd Branson, painter helper. After the paint dries, 'the Southern's name and the car number will be stenciled in white.

The finished product: these cars have been weighed and the light weight stenciled on them (that's the track scale house at right). They're ready to head for the mines to pick up a payload and rejoin the coal car fleet.