Hopper cars

Hopper cars are some of the most common cars you see on trains today. They developed out of gondolas, when a chute was added to the bottom to make unloading easier. Real hopper cars carry everything from coal to gravel to wood chips. Wooden train hopper cars can carry marbles, plastic and wooden beads, or even aquarium gravel!

'97 Brown Hopper car	Hopper cars are actually the most complex car I've ever made. There are actually seventeen separate pieces of wood in them, not counting wheels! I'm working on an exploded-view drawing to show all the pieces and how they go together. To increase the marble-carrying capacity, I extended the hopper bay down into the frame. This design can haul five teaspoons of cargo!
In 1999, I pretty much kept the hopper car design the same. I switched to maple and left out the nails (the paint rubs off anyhow), but I drew rivets on in their place. I tried a new gray color scheme (the wheels match the interior), but it's a little bland. Lettering the sides would help.
'99 Brown Hopper car	'99 Gray Hopper car