Re: [CBQ] Grain boxcar trains

["Jack Schroeder via groups.io" <jack=highlandwebworks.com@groups.io>]

    Not only did the cars need to be inspected, years ago they also
    needed to be weighed.  Grain shipments were priced by weight,
    ($/hundred lb) and so to invoice the shipper with the correct
    freight charges the cars needed to be weighed. This was extremely
    under productive. (I can remember hearing  "waiting for weights" in
    meetings)   We ended that in the 1990's i believe, when we went to
    per car rates. That meant that shippers always wanted to put as much
    grain into each car as possible.  Modern automatic gain loaders on
    loop tracks keep database as to how much grain by weight can be
    added to every individual covered hopper. It is not guessing! They
    load the max, but never more.  Gross-tare = Load .  Shippers that
    are found to over load grain cars are in big trouble.  That can
    cause car failure, derailment and loss of life. 
    
    One of the jobs I had was keeping a grain elevator directory which
    we published annually and later put on-line. One of the important
    things in the directory relative to this discussion was the number
    of cars the elevator's receiving tracks could hold. This was used by
    the Grain Ops group to avoid empty car abuse. Elevators sometimes
    felt that the RR would cut the number of cars by a percentage in
    times of peak demand. So they would order more cars than their
    facility could receive, assuming it would be cut.  They soon
    realized that trick was not working.  Another thing, train crews did
    not like to have 20 cars to be spotted at a facility that could only
    take 12. With the creation of the Grain Ops group about mid 80's,
    local rationing of cars ended.  The Marking -Ag Products and Grain
    Ops team at BNSF went to a bidding (COTS) system and a lottery
    system around year 2000.  A given number of covered hoppers where
    put out for forward bidding each month with the highest bidder
    awarded the cars for their elevator.  A supply of cars were always
    held for loading of the feed-mills. They always got cars as best as
    possible, even in peak demand periods as this was -just-in-time-
    vial food for livestock.   This bidding system was condemned at
    first by the grain industry and but later was embraced by the grain
    companies for its effectiveness in rationing for all. 
    
    Former System Admin - BNSF Ag Products.

Jack Schroeder
817 485-1922
jack@highlandwebworks.com
---------------------------------

On 4/5/2026 4:59 AM, Leo Phillipp via groups.io wrote:

We could probably write a couple Bulletins just on grain traffic and handling.

Please understand that grain moved from elevators to various destinations more or less all year. The big grain companies like ADM,Cargill,etc,etc would buy grain on an ongoing basis as did the companies like General Mills,Pillsbury,etc,etc. 

But the grain rushes in the west,.plains and Midwest were something different entirely.

While there were not unit trains there were lots of boxcars of grain. It was a simple function of capacity. Farms didn’t have the grain storage they do today nor did the country elevators. The grain had to go major consumers,traders or export or rot.

Besides cars going direct to a user there was another type of shipment.

Major yards had grain inspection tracks( my memory is Cicero was d-4 in D yard) where cars of grain coming from country elevators were inspected,checked for moisture,etc. They were then bought,traded and billed to destination.

So as grain harvest approached empty 40 foot box cars would be staged. Then as the rush of requests for cars came in empties would be released to elevators. During harvest there were never enough box cars for the business. That’s where those ICC orders to eastern roads to supply empty 40 footers to western roads came from.

One system that existed was for the yard to place a string of empties on to a wayfreight and the Conductor was the car distributor. He more or less decided how many cars an elevator received. It was explained to me that on some runs this resulted in a very simple ordering system. Each day as the local arrived in town and did its switching the Conductor was visiting with the agent and maybe the elevator guys and discussing business. As the train left town the rear brakeman would have to be careful climbing back aboard because the rear steps would have the unofficial cars orders for the next day on them. The number of bottles of the Conductors favorite booze or cartons of his favorite

Cigarettes represented the number of cars needed tomorrow.

Leo Phillipp

On Apr 4, 2026, at 10:21 PM, Steven Holding via groups.io <sholding=sbcglobal.net@groups.io> wrote:



No dedicated grain trains till more modern times.  Most cars would have been carloads alone.  Even multiple car loads out of the same elevator and headed to the same place had their own waybill.  

The Paper Trail is coming to the Zephyr or Bulletin someday

Steve in SC

On Saturday, April 4, 2026 at 09:12:31 PM EDT, SCOTT NESBIT via groups.io <drthud=msn.com@groups.io> wrote:

Back when boxcars were the primary grain haulers, how many of these cars would be in a typical CB&Q train? Also, were smaller amounts of filled grain boxcars mixed in with other cars on locals till they got to a yard to be picked up by a grain train?

Scott Nesbit

(605)360-0185

drthud@msn.com

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