CIE 20' half-height containers

[Mol_PMB]

Here are some detail photos of these unusual half-height open top ISO containers, mostly dumped late in life.

They include a selection of legible serial numbers.

Using a selection of Jonathan Allen photos from Flickr, we can see them in service.

This one has a CIE sheet cover lashed over it, it looks like the sheet is specially made for this container type. Just teasing us on the edge of the photo is another one of a slightly different type:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/52050027229

Look closely, and there's one of these containers at Adelaide with a Guinness tank inside it:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/51749282528

Here's a couple of them in a short liner at Claremorris:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/50706358862

The one in this train at Moira is also sheeted:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/52899057237

 

[Mol_PMB]

Now, the first post dealt with the half-height 20' containers with ISO fittings, but they were preceded by a non-ISO type, during the transition from the old wooden containers to the standardised ones.

ISO standards for dimensions, strength and corner fittings were only developed in the mid 1960s and several organisations (including BR Freightliner) initially used non-standard fittings. CIE did too, they were different again. Here are a couple of images of the first type of 20' half-height container. Note the lack of ISO corner fittings, and an internal numbering system rather than the ISO international standard.

From Brian Flannigan, the Y-shaped protrusions on this would enable stacking:

From Ernie, this one's lacking the Ys:

The 25436-25982 series wagons were built in 1966 to carry these containers, and other pre-ISO 20' boxes. They mostly had plain bearings, and had a solid floor with non-ISO corner restraints. The solebars looked very 'busy' because there were trays for storing chains, and protruding chain eyes. These were used to secure a variety of non-standard containers.

 

There's one more hiding behind a corrugated wagon in this photo from Pete Robins. Like the adjacent cages, it's loaded with kegs. It might be worth considering these early keg cages in a subsequent post.

 

[Mol_PMB]

This photo also from Ernie shows a rake of 3 with the Y-shaped protrusions (plus a 4th in the shed), and a taller container of some sort too:

From Jonathan Allen, 3 of the early non-ISO 20' keg cages. Only the middle one is on a 25436 series flat, I have yet to positively identify the other flat wagons here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/49750786666

Again from Jonathan Allen, an overhead view of the non-ISO 20' keg cages:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/152343870@N07/44785081805

 

[Mayner]

There is an excellent IRRS Journal article (Circa 1969) on the early stages of CIEs freight modernisation written by one of the CIE managers implementing the programme

The IRRS Library may be able to assist with a copy, I donated my collection of Journals to the Model Railway Society of Ireland about 20 years ago!

The article is headed by a photo of a B121 approaching Island Bridge Junction with a B&I Liner from Cork.

The writer goes into detail on the introduction of different designs of Half Height/Swap Body for Keg and Fertiliser traffic and the adaption of ISO standards in the late 1960s. 

Sometimes Half Heights and Side Door Containers were treated as Opens and Vans (usually mounted on 14' wb flats) during the final years of loose coupled operation, I remember seeing Half Heights and Side Door Containers being loaded/unloaded in the goods yard at Athy scheduled for closure under Railplan 80 during a trip from Heuston-Waterford in 77-78. 

There are photos in one of Jonathan Allen's collections of containers being loaded/unloaded in the Goods Yard at Youghal during the mid-late 70s