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Conrail Cyclopedia X73 Boxcars: Prototype Info You need to ship a product that does not need refrigeration but does need protection from extreme temperatures. You cannot use a standard boxcar, since they are like ovens in the summer and freezers in the winter. So you ask your local Conrail freight agent to send you one of their 50-foot insulated boxcars. A few days later an empty X73 appears on your siding. The X73 was one of the most common sights in Conrail general merchandise trains. They hauled products such as fruits, vegetables, canned or bottled foods and drinks, paint, floor wax, liquid detergents, and many other water-based or chemical products needing protection from temperature extremes. Since they hauled such a variety of products, X73's could be found nearly everywhere. During late 1974, Fruit Growers Express built a total of 319 RBL insulated boxcars for the Penn Central and 75 cars for the Erie Lackawanna, all of which eventually became Conrail X73's in 1976. Unlike some similar cars that the PC/CR owned, the X73 was a Plate C boxcar with two-part r4/4 late Improved Dreadnaught ends with a beveled, rectangular top rib. The class also had doors that were 10' high by 10'6" wide at the opening, with a slightly wider door. They had cushioned underframes, low ladders, and an overhanging, diagonal panel roof with no roofwalks. Their construction included what Jim Eager calls a "double rivet pattern at the side sheet seams," a key spotting feature of these cars. Some cars also have additional, small reinforcement plates along the roofline. These plates extend down to about the second rivet from the top and are located within the rivet lines. But not all Conrail X73's are not alike. Those originally owned by the Penn Central contained Dual Air Paks, though some also had pallets for assigned service. Cars originally owned by the Erie Lackawanna contained two air-activated Duo Pak Load Dividers plus pallets. The El cars were also equipped with a Hennessey power door opener on each side; this is the wheel on a track to the right of the door. Most people assume that Conrail owned these cars outright, like they did with their other boxcars. But that is not true. FGE actually built then leased the cars out to various railroads. Usually these cars were given RBNX reporting marks and numbered in the 94000's to 99000's. Penn Central, Erie Lackawanna, and then Conrail, like several other railroads, chose to apply their own reporting marks and assign the cars to other number series so the RBLs fit into their existing rosters better. Copyright (c) 1998-2008 Robert S. Waller. All rights reserved. Photos for personal use only. All rights reserved by original owner of image. Reproduction or redistribution in any form without express written permission is prohibited.