CIE bulk grain vans - a study of the variations

[Mol_PMB]

Just to clarify in this thread on bulk grain wagons, the GNR hopper shown by JB (2128N) is of a type built as cement hoppers, and I'm not aware that they were used to carry grain. The hose connection is similar to that on the CIE 'bubbles' which used low-pressure air to fluidise the cement powder and assist discharge. 

I haven't seen evidence of a CIE-built version of these (though CIE did acquire most/all of the GNR cement hoppers and cement vans when the GNR was split up).

My understanding is that the grain and milling economy in Ireland changed a great deal in the 1920s to 1970s period, broadly as follows:

• Smallish local flour mills, located by a water-power source, supplied with grain direct from local farms (in sacks, often by road)
• New, larger, more efficient mills built, steam-powered, with grain travelling longer distances to reach them (by rail, with more use of bulk transport)
• Economic changes meant imported grain became dominant. Initially carried by rail to the existing mills where they were not already at a port
• The obvious benefits of having the mill at a port meant that new mills were built there, cutting out the rail move for imported grain, but domestic grain may have been moved to them by rail.
• Inland mills became uncompetitive and many closed down. 

This process over the course of about 50 years led to a gradual rise in railborne bulk grain traffic, followed by a drop.

CIE probably did the right thing by re-purposing H vans at low cost to cater for the short-term boom.

In the 1970s they introduced bulk grain containers to cater for the residual grain traffic, which saw off the last of the unfitted grain hoppers.

 

You can see from the stock list in 1972 that the GSR (and Ranks) hoppers were 1930s, the GNR vans were 1940s, and the big batch of 50 CIE vans were 1954. Two further batches were built/converted in 1961 and 1964. All were withdrawn in the mid-1970s.