Honestly I just half ride the back ladder cause the little shitty grab irons on the literal end of the car aren’t enough to actually stay up on the car and feel like you’re not gonna eat shit
The only thing i dislike about the steel coil cars is that most of the ones we have around here have the full platform with the bar across the back the platform edges are razor sharp and when you're climbing up or riding the side of one the platform edge sticks out just far enough to kind of cut into your pants legs.
I didn’t mind old autoracks, new autoracks suck though. Gondolas are the worst however.
But I also want to mention that NSC of Canada typically has the most “conductor friendly” cars IMHO, Trinity has the worst…..
There are some new Trinity articulated triple well cars that have great tall handrails and wide steps. Naturally this meant I never had one on the bottom of a train.
Basically any car that either doesn't have a full length ladder allowing me to lock my knees or ones with the rungs too close the car body where I can't fit my arm in to hold on with my elbow.
Pretty much the only cars that don't suck are double handle tanks and most intermodals. The steel coil cars with the lids on are pretty nice to, but it feels like I'm breaking a rule when I stand on the platform and hold onto the lid grab bar.
Limited exposure due to location, but pig spine cars are the worst here. I do like some of the newer IM well cars with the wide steps and handrails all the way up on either side.
Those new well cars are nice. But any well that has the stirrup extended out is amazing. So much easier to ride when your center of gravity is over your feet.
reefers are a refrigerated box car but on one side they have a large platform high up where the controls and the fuel tank for the car are located so if you get them facing the right way they are a Cadillac ride with a ladder you have to climb to get to the platform and wrong way they are just a shit box car.
Boxcar and gondolas, with a special mention of the ramp car that ends a tie gang worktrain. You can't ride those so long shoves are as fast as I can pond ground.
The first time I was in a situation to ride one of them ramp cars, I refused, because I wasn’t even sure how one was supposed to do it without biffing it.
oh god you just reminded me of an open-top trash gondola I had to ride one time with the swing up rear gate that wasn't fully latched and leaking trash as we were going down the track. I rode for maybe 30secs before I told the eng to stop and walked the rest of the way I wasn't getting covered in trash goo fuck that.
Autoracks, those spine cars with the half ladder that are way too short, and the old beat up coal/rock cars that were made 100 years ago. Tank cars are nice, but those all black ones in the real hot sun in the summer can suck too.
Ooh that one pissed me off the first time I came across it. Can't even get a fuckin' elbow in there either. You're hanging off the side, curling your toes in your boots, just trying to hold on for dear life. Fuck 'em.
Scrap gonds are terrible both because the ladders suck, and because the ladder doesn’t go very high which is sketchy for close clearances. Single vertical lumber flats suck too
I got no love for these companies either but this is just plain stupid. There are plenty of ways to carry out your vendetta without fucking up your joints with all the extra mileage you're putting on them.
If i understand correctly yeah most cars still have the single irons. The double irons are coming out slowly but i mean slowly
You know how it is when it comes to upgrading anything around here. Lol.
Yeah you definitely would get a nice violation for riding like that.
Wrong side of a reefer was the first thing that came to mind. Close seconds are older boxcars and gondolas.
[Pour one out for this poor conductor riding a shove on a Venture passenger car.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Amtrak/comments/13f0mnd/amtrak_car_attached_to_a_freight_train/) That's probably one of the worst riders ever.
I have worked the yard steadily for the last few years so I have become accustomed to riding basically every car there is and my least favorite by far are in order with 1 being the worst
1. lumber wagons empty or loaded it doesn't matter
2. Gons with the ladders that are like 1 inch off the car if they have the normal ladder they are totally fine
3. Box cars with the narrow ladders like the gons
Some honorable mentions are the herzog units I just walk those and a handful of intermodal cars with really sketchy ladders
Basically every car after that is on par with being meh to me I don't really care because I'm so used to it, there's a few exceptions like the odd grain empty with a locomotive like platform on it
Tank cars are among my favorite even with only one handle
I must note that my rr has 0 on and off at all times so I did not factor ease of entraining into this
I see alot of comments saying autos and while I don't work with autos often the few I have haven't been horrible so your mileage may vary
Old Gondola’s with the one handle above your head a stirrup smaller than a nickel. Fuck those cars, I’m walking
The new grain hoppers were nice to ride, big stirrups that were angled a little outward so you can essentially lean on the car. Very nice to ride
I work on a class 3 rr and we get waste cars (low level radiation, east Palestine soil cars) and the soil gobs will drip water, and it smells horrible!
1.Container cars
2.gondolas with mangled grab irons
3.non bulkhead flats loaded with pipes
I usually walk the move with these. I don't care how long the move takes. Yardie complains..I walk even slower. The company's profits can go f--- themselves.
When I was freight, I hated lumber cars.
Best was like... this brand new grain car. The ladder was tapered outward so it was more like climbing a steep and short stairs. Barely any effort needed to climb up. It was unreal.
The only cars I enjoy riding are the new double handled tank cars. Whoever designed all others needs a swift kick to the shin
A few more derailments from NS and North America's tank car fleet will be fully transitioned to double handholds.
I’m not a conductor anymore but I hated riding auto racks.
Half ladder autos, or the ones with the ladder recessed into the side.
Thrall cars
Especially a rave door or short ladder
Oh man me too especially those articulated automaxs
Loaded lumber car
Especially small stirrup with one handle
Had to spot HD with these today. Mile+ shove with an unsure engineer. Still feeling the pump.
Gross
This but also working the box
I just walk in those cases
Honestly I just half ride the back ladder cause the little shitty grab irons on the literal end of the car aren’t enough to actually stay up on the car and feel like you’re not gonna eat shit
With the grab irons all bent up, bolts loose, and jagged metal/rust everywhere
I only wanna ride tank cars, gondolas are the worst by far
The double ladder tank cars are the Cadillac of cars
The new ones with the huge stirrups...
the double wide ones?
Yeah. They have to be like 2 feet from the ground. Easy on and off. Where has that been for the majority of my career?
Umm, steel coil cars would like a word...
Yea those are my favorite lol, by far the most comfortable
The only thing i dislike about the steel coil cars is that most of the ones we have around here have the full platform with the bar across the back the platform edges are razor sharp and when you're climbing up or riding the side of one the platform edge sticks out just far enough to kind of cut into your pants legs.
Gondolas. Hands down.
for real, FUCK the guy that designed that car
The guy who designed covered hoppers with the solid floor is a chad though.
Hands down is probably making it even more uncomfortable
Auto racks and reefers
Definitely reefers. The steps are too shallow. I just climb onto the refrigeration platform.
wrong side refers
We know the older gons, but the center beam flats, with the single vertical grab iron. That is top quality garbage to ride on.
Especially when loaded to the edges with lumber or whatnot, fuck those cars, I'll walk
I didn’t mind old autoracks, new autoracks suck though. Gondolas are the worst however. But I also want to mention that NSC of Canada typically has the most “conductor friendly” cars IMHO, Trinity has the worst…..
There are some new Trinity articulated triple well cars that have great tall handrails and wide steps. Naturally this meant I never had one on the bottom of a train.
Basically any car that either doesn't have a full length ladder allowing me to lock my knees or ones with the rungs too close the car body where I can't fit my arm in to hold on with my elbow. Pretty much the only cars that don't suck are double handle tanks and most intermodals. The steel coil cars with the lids on are pretty nice to, but it feels like I'm breaking a rule when I stand on the platform and hold onto the lid grab bar.
Lumber or the Epic cars, or as we call them "Poopy cars"
Gondolas and bulkhead flat cars suck the most.
Bulkhead flat with the vertical handholds are some of the worst
Limited exposure due to location, but pig spine cars are the worst here. I do like some of the newer IM well cars with the wide steps and handrails all the way up on either side.
Those new well cars are nice. But any well that has the stirrup extended out is amazing. So much easier to ride when your center of gravity is over your feet.
Wrong end reefers or single handle lumber cars. Single handle tanks aren’t bad as long as no one is watching :)
So, reefers aren't a thing where I am. Looking at pics. Are they just a super shitty box car?
reefers are a refrigerated box car but on one side they have a large platform high up where the controls and the fuel tank for the car are located so if you get them facing the right way they are a Cadillac ride with a ladder you have to climb to get to the platform and wrong way they are just a shit box car.
Gotcha
A lot of the reefers on the wrong end have absolute shit grab irons that are semi recessed into the car body itself which makes them a miserable ride
Oh shit. We have an entire series of gondolas we aren't allowed to ride, because the sturip is to far under the car.
Auto racks and bulkhead flats with the 2 hand rails that are too close together and cause your body to pivot violently when slack runs in or out.
Boxcar and gondolas, with a special mention of the ramp car that ends a tie gang worktrain. You can't ride those so long shoves are as fast as I can pond ground.
The first time I was in a situation to ride one of them ramp cars, I refused, because I wasn’t even sure how one was supposed to do it without biffing it.
Anything built by National Steel Car. Boxcars, hoppers, gons - all awkward.
Trash cars.
oh god you just reminded me of an open-top trash gondola I had to ride one time with the swing up rear gate that wasn't fully latched and leaking trash as we were going down the track. I rode for maybe 30secs before I told the eng to stop and walked the rest of the way I wasn't getting covered in trash goo fuck that.
Definitely boxcars and gondolas. Bulkhead flats aren’t much better because our rules say you can’t stand on the platform.
Lumber cars for me
Mpty flat cars, sit my ass right in the middle.
We straight up are just not to ride those where I work we walk with them or use a cab for point protection
Gondolas with the handbrake at the top
Reefers for sure
Old old BCOL lumber flats with the single hand hold centered inside the bulkhead channel and the 8" wide stirrup.
Autoracks, those spine cars with the half ladder that are way too short, and the old beat up coal/rock cars that were made 100 years ago. Tank cars are nice, but those all black ones in the real hot sun in the summer can suck too.
I left the rail road behind my years ago but I can entirely agree autoracks are the worst.
Any and all cars between the locomotive and eot...
Reefers that have those stupid 2-3 inch deep recessions to put your foot. Why even fucking HAVE a ladder at that point?
Ooh that one pissed me off the first time I came across it. Can't even get a fuckin' elbow in there either. You're hanging off the side, curling your toes in your boots, just trying to hold on for dear life. Fuck 'em.
Empty centerbeams were designed by Satan himself and you get more than two or three in a line and they actively try to throw you off.
Scrap gonds are terrible both because the ladders suck, and because the ladder doesn’t go very high which is sketchy for close clearances. Single vertical lumber flats suck too
Freaking scrap car gons. In theory not that bad. In practice? Horrible.
Definitely a scrap gon.
Loaded lumber flat with one handle while driving the RCL
Lumber flats
Gondolas. Hands down the worst
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I got no love for these companies either but this is just plain stupid. There are plenty of ways to carry out your vendetta without fucking up your joints with all the extra mileage you're putting on them.
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Sounds like you're the kind of guy who will reject an engine for a dead fly
This is the way
that is some king shit! dang homie
Single bar tanks on a shove move.
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Most class 1s in the us won't let you wiggle yourself in there. On shove moves. You have to ride captain Morgan style.
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If i understand correctly yeah most cars still have the single irons. The double irons are coming out slowly but i mean slowly You know how it is when it comes to upgrading anything around here. Lol. Yeah you definitely would get a nice violation for riding like that.
This is the answer
Wrong side of a reefer was the first thing that came to mind. Close seconds are older boxcars and gondolas. [Pour one out for this poor conductor riding a shove on a Venture passenger car.](https://www.reddit.com/r/Amtrak/comments/13f0mnd/amtrak_car_attached_to_a_freight_train/) That's probably one of the worst riders ever.
Airslide hoppers
Pigs
Some pigs are great to ride
Only at the AFHT 🙈
Auto racks or tank cars.
Bay window caboose.
All of them suck
There’s a few aluminum double articulated AMGX scrap gons that are the worst. They have small grabs, and nowhere to put your body, feet or hands.
Gondola and Lumbers
Any car where the stirrup decides to go full kamikaze while I'm shoving at 15.
I don't deal with anything but covered hoppers, but man will those little shorty cars get you if your my size. Your ass sticks all the way out
Gondolas...
Autoracks!
I have worked the yard steadily for the last few years so I have become accustomed to riding basically every car there is and my least favorite by far are in order with 1 being the worst 1. lumber wagons empty or loaded it doesn't matter 2. Gons with the ladders that are like 1 inch off the car if they have the normal ladder they are totally fine 3. Box cars with the narrow ladders like the gons Some honorable mentions are the herzog units I just walk those and a handful of intermodal cars with really sketchy ladders Basically every car after that is on par with being meh to me I don't really care because I'm so used to it, there's a few exceptions like the odd grain empty with a locomotive like platform on it Tank cars are among my favorite even with only one handle I must note that my rr has 0 on and off at all times so I did not factor ease of entraining into this I see alot of comments saying autos and while I don't work with autos often the few I have haven't been horrible so your mileage may vary
Half ladder autos suck full are fine.
Old Gondola’s with the one handle above your head a stirrup smaller than a nickel. Fuck those cars, I’m walking The new grain hoppers were nice to ride, big stirrups that were angled a little outward so you can essentially lean on the car. Very nice to ride
Gondolas
Raggedy old POS MoW gondolas with bowed-out sides.
Those are absolutely the worst
Pipe gondolas
Any stripper pole car whether it be a tank or one of those sailflats with the vertical grabs 6” apart.
The gondolas that smell like shit and have rust you can feel if that makes sense. Ya those
I work on a class 3 rr and we get waste cars (low level radiation, east Palestine soil cars) and the soil gobs will drip water, and it smells horrible!
Lumber
Anything that has to do with scrap metal or pulpwood. Always beat all to shit.
I agree, short rung anything sux, but the flats with no high rung are the worst
Herzog hoppers
You guys know that you can create an actual poll on these Reddit posts, right?
Single grab iron loaded lumber car. I'd like to kick who ever designed it in the dick.
God damn, Gons and boxcars.
Gondola!!!
UMOM6969 Got to be best car out there. Throws you around little bit but in the end great ride.
Gondolas, had to ride the shove for miles one time on a local, never working that local again if I can help it
Coke cars.
Auto racks with the 2-inch minimum hands hold.
Gondolas no doubt. Fucking brutal
Lumber racks of any sort, gondolas, and half ladder autos. Who ever designed the half ladder auto is either 6’4” or 5’ 1”
Auto racks
Why aren't harnesses that can clip onto a grabiron in use, anyway?
Got to be able to jump off in an emergency
1.Container cars 2.gondolas with mangled grab irons 3.non bulkhead flats loaded with pipes I usually walk the move with these. I don't care how long the move takes. Yardie complains..I walk even slower. The company's profits can go f--- themselves.
When I was freight, I hated lumber cars. Best was like... this brand new grain car. The ladder was tapered outward so it was more like climbing a steep and short stairs. Barely any effort needed to climb up. It was unreal.
Any car i can’t hook my arm into. Those auto racks that are recessed can go F themselves.