Abstract: A railroad gondola car having improved side sills, internal horizontal tension braces and diagonal braces with cast metal connectors at the ends of the braces and doubler plates on the side wall post flanges for reinforcement purposes where posts are connected to the ends of the body bolsters and where the braces are connected to the car side walls opposite a side wall post.

Abstract: A new and useful top chord, and a new and useful container wall construction incorporating the top chord. The top chord has a tubular chord section and a special stepped stem integral with the tubular chord section. The stem has a relatively thick proximal portion connected with the tubular chord section and a relatively thinner distal portion extending from the thick portion. The thick proximal portion and the thinner distal portion co-operate to define a rectangular step having a predetermined thickness. The thickness of the step is designed so that the side wall can be closely sandwiched between the post and the thinner portion of the stem and the thick portion of the stem extends above the side wall and into facing relation with a portion of the post which extends above the side wall. The stem is bolted to the post and to the side wall with the thick portion bolted directly to the post and the thinner portion bolted to the post with the side wall sandwiched therebetween.

Abstract: A center sill-less type gondola railroad car having an aluminum car body which includes an extra large load carrying compartment or container supported on a surrounding horizontal rectangular framework that consists essentially of a pair of transversely oriented shear plates at opposing ends of the car body, and a pair of parallel side sills which extend longitudinally between the shear plates and which are attached to the shear plates by special load transfer members, each of which members consists of two pairs of legs which extend radially from a common central juncture and which are designed to withstand the high stresses that peak at the spots where the members first contact the shear plates. The car body has a pair of oppositely disposed, upwardly curving side walls and a U-shaped, downwardly curving bottom portion which coact with a pair of stepped end walls to form the container which has an open top in spaced vertical relation above a closed bottom.