Center stub still railway tank car construction

A cradle assembly for a railway car, the latter having an elongate body, a center stub sill at each end of the car, said cradle assembly being provided at each end of said body for reinforcement of the bottom end portions of said body and for securement of a respective center stub sill assembly to said body, said cradle assembly comprising a cradle extending upwardly from the bottom of said body proximate the outer end portion thereof, and a hat spaced cradle pad extending in inboard direction from said cradle, said hat shaped cradle pad having a horizontal center web spaced from said body and a pair of upwardly extending generally vertical side flanges secured to said body, said horizontal center web having a thickness, said hat shaped cradle pad being secured to the bottom center portion of said body on opposite sides of the bottom centerline thereof, said center stub sill comprising a pair of spaced vertical side flanges and a horizontal sill extending between the upper edges of said side flanges outboard of the mid-portion of said center stub sill assembly, with said side flanges extending inwardly toward the center of said body beyond the end of said horizontal center web, said center stub sill flanges being disposed on the outer faces of said hat shaped cradle pad vertical flanges so as to have a slip-fit therewith through a range of adjustment substantially greater than the thickness of said cradle pad horizontal center web and being welded thereto.

In a stub sill railway tank car having a generally cylindric, elongate tank with a tank end at each end thereof, a center stub sill secured to the lower portion of the tank at each end thereof for transferring longitudinal train loads and lading loads between the tank and the center stub sill assembly, each center stub sill carrying a coupler and a truck assembly which is pivotally connected to the center stub sill assembly for rollingly supporting said railway car on the rails, each said center stub sill extending inboard of the tank end but terminating short of the center of the tank and extending outboard beyond the end of the tank for carrying its respective said coupler, a bolster assembly secured to said center stub sill and extending transversely thereof proximate the connection of said truck assembly to said center stub sill assembly, and a cradle assembly secured to the lower end portions of said tank for reinforcing said tank bottom end portions and for transferring loads between said tank and said center stub sill and said bolster assembly, wherein the improvement comprises:

• an improved cradle assembly having an arcuate cradle extending circumferentially upwardly from the bottom centerline of the tank somewhat inboard of the intersection between said tank and said tank end generally at the longitudinal position of said bolster assembly, and an elongate cradle pad secured to the bottom of said tank and extending in inboard direction along the bottom centerline of the tank, said cradle pad having a lower center web spaced below the bottom centerline of the tank, said center web having a thickness, and said cradle pad further having a pair of vertical flanges extending upwardly from said center web and being secured to said tank on opposite sides of the bottom centerline thereof, said center stub sill extending inboard from the coupler and having a pair of vertical sill flanges with said sill flanges being disposed on the outer faces of said cradle pad flanges inboard of said bolster assembly with a sill fit therebetween for adjustment between said center stub sill and said hat section cradle pad through a range of adjustment substantially greater than the thickness of said cradle pad center web such that with said center stub sill flanges in desired adjusted position with respect to said cradle pad, said sill flanges and said cradle pad may be rigidly welded together.