60' PS Bulkhead Flat Car

Prototype Information

Pullman-Standard introduced its 60-foot bulkhead flat car in the mid-1960s. Shippers needed a rugged car to handle heavy building materials without the shifting hazards of standard flat cars. The manufacturer built these cars at its Butler, Pennsylvania plant, adding structural steel bulkheads to both ends. By placing these bulkheads on the 60-foot frame, Pullman-Standard created a precise 48-foot inside length of usable deck space. This clear loading platform perfectly fit uniform shipments, like four 12-foot lumber bundles or six 8-foot plywood stacks, without leaving dangerous gaps.

Production continued into the 1970s as Pullman-Standard refined the design with various tie-down systems and bulkhead heights. Major railroads like the Santa Fe, Southern Pacific, and Burlington Northern bought large fleets. Leasing giants like Trailer Train (TTX) distributed thousands more nationwide. Thanks to a robust fish-belly underframe and a 100-ton capacity, these workhorses outlasted many contemporaries. Thousands still serve today in active maintenance-of-way or secondary revenue service, moving utility poles, structural steel, and heavy machinery.