OwlMtModels is proud to introduce the new Blackburn Beet Rack kits which have never been available in HO before. Shipping Early March 2020.
The Owl Mountain Models rendition of the "Improved" 4-Board Version kit includes very finely detailed square nuts and other details resulting from several years of scrounging every available bit of data and drawings for these racks.
Blackburn Sugar Beet Rack - "Improved" 4-Board Version kits include the following:
Get the combined F-50-series car of your choice with the 1924 Improved Blackburn Beet Rack. Six-packs are also available in a bulk-package direct for OwlMtModels customers!
Combo Kit 2302 - F-50-5/8/9 with 4-Board Blackburn Beet Rack Combo Kit. $74.95 each
Combo Kit 2302-6 - Same as above, bulk-packaged for $399.95 for 6 Combo Kits.
Combo Kit 2303 - F-50-10/12 with 4-Board Blackburn Beet Rack Combo Kit. $74.95 each
-Combo Kit 2303-6 - Same as above, bulk-packaged for $399.95 for 6 Combo Kits.
SP 43745 with a clean Blackburn Rack (Gasp! They must have existed at one time).
Let's turn the way-back machine to 1924. The newest class of SP flatcars, the F-50-9s were just arriving for service. These 40'10" flatcars were the ninth class of that length and weight. Following the previous 30 years precidence, the SP engineers and draftsmen finialized a new 40ft long "Improved" Blackburn Patent Beet Rack to put on the newer 40ft larger design carsm which now numbered nearly 2000 cars! Blackburn's patent design appears to be in the mechanism of the doors and their locking/unlocking mechanics. The new rack design changed to full 4-bays and used a smaller height door and 4 or 5 board upper side boards over the doors. - The preceeding design of Blackburn Rack for the 34' racks used three full bays and then a half-length bay at one end.
Modifications to the designs came as ARA safety appliance changes in the mid-1920s required adding more grab irons. As the depression sets in in 1928, the Southern Pacific revision to the Blackburn Racks involved cutting down to reduce the capacities in 1928 and 1930 saw some changes to the beet racks reducing the overall height and changing some details on rebuilt 5-board racks, the early 1930's.
The OwlMtModels 4-Board Blackburn Racks are modeled as they appeared after the 1930/1931 changes and continued in use through WWII into 1948-1949 in large numbers. Modeling the 1924-1930 versions is as simple as changing the position of a couple of grab irons.
For a bit more background of the Blackburn Sugar Beet Racks, the SP was moving 'beets' in specialized racks starting in the 1890s. The SP always seemed to use whatever their 'standard' flatcar was at the time, which meant a class which was in widespread service, usually 10-15 years old. Most cars through the early part of the 20th century were 36ft cars with "3-bay" or "3-1/2-bay" racks on them and large doors in the sides.
Moving film footage was exposed to the sight of at least 100 Blackburn Racks in November 1929. Most of those racks were the 5-Board variety. However by 1939 or so, the balance had shifted to the cut-down 4-Board racks being dominate. The 5-Board Racks continued in diminishing numbers into the late 1940s, probably reducing to the 15-20% range by the end of service.
The SP is believed to have fielded a fleet of about 1325 beet racks as of 1935. These were used all over California for the sugar beet harvests, often in blocks of 20-30 or more cars with Blackburn Racks.
String of Blackburns ride the head end of an eastward freight at Caliente in 1949. (Click on photo for enlarged version).
The end for the Blackburns came in 1948-1949 seasons when they were replaced by the new G-50-20 and G-50-23 class drop bottom composite gondolas. The Blackburns were badly wornout by that time. We've not found any photos clearly stating 1950 yet, if you find one let us know!
There is some circumstantial evidence that the beet racks were used to ship 'beet pulp' from the sugar beet refineries to various locations in California and Carson City, NV to be used as livestock feed. A photograph exists of beet rack descending into Carson City on the V&T behind V&T No.5 with a load of material, which is hard to see, but it's certainly not a full load of sugar beets! The car could be hauling a partial load of onions. If either of these conclusions are true, then it would seem that these racks could be seen outside the normal 'sugar beet' growing to refinery routings. (We are working on getting permissions to reproduce this photo.)
Close-up details of A-end of Beet Rack. (Click on photo for enlarged version).
Close-up details of B-end of Beet Rack with levers to operate the door locking bars. (Click on photo for enlarged version).
The following projects are planned as next steps in our Blackburn Beet Rack series.
Link to OMM F-50-Series Flatcar Kits for more details and history about them.