Class RB Steel bodied open wagons

RB11193 in a WAGR official builders photo(RHWA collection)

In 1930 a new design of all steel bogie open wagon appeared. Construction continued until 1937 by which time a total of 177 had been built as follows:
1930 11179-11303
1935 18, 226, 284, 334, 492, 680, 715, 835, 840, 1054, 1521, 1901, 2066, 2490, 2560, 2601, 2645, 2735, 3094, 3234, 3734/7, 3786, 3855, 3876, 4050, 4288, 4293, 5003, 5004, 7094, 9689
1936 749, 755, 759, 761, 762, 768, 770, 775, 776, 779, 782, 784
1937 791, 804, 815, 821, 828, 844, 942, 947

The WAGR outline diagram is shown below.

However, during this period, forty of the first batch of these wagons were fitted with wooden side extensions and a ridge pole and reclassified RBW for bulk wheat traffic. These conversions occurred as follows:
1931 11185, 11192, 11208, 11213, 11216, 11217, 11218, 11219, 11228, 11229, 11243, 11263, 11269, 11275, 11276, 11277, 11291, 11296, 11299
1932 11186, 11189, 11190, 11193, 11195, 11198, 11211, 11212, 11221, 11224, 11226, 11227, 11231, 11250, 11255, 11257, 11260, 11262, 11270, 11282

From 1937 further RB construction had wooden bodies. In 1942 a batch of 15 wagons (226, 284, 334, 492, 840, 1054, 2066, 2061, 2645, 3734, 3786, 3876, 4293, 5003, 7094) were sold to the Commonwealth government. Ten of these were converted to JU class oil tankers.

The next conversion was thirty wagons rebuilt as flat wagons in 1953 and reclassified QRB (749, 779, 784, 828, 1901, 2735, 3094, 3234, 4050, 4288, 11179, 11182, 11184, 11203, 11205, 11206, 11220, 11225, 11232, 11236, 11239, 11244, 11245, 11272, 11278, 11281, 11292, 11301, 11303).

In 1955 number 844 was written off (whether due to an accident or poor condition of the bodywork I do not know). That the body condition was becoming poor is know as in 1959/60 a group of 49 wagons were rebuilt with new timber bodies and reclassified RBT:

1959 715, 761, 775, 776, 815, 2490, 3855, 5004, 9689, 11187, 1191, 1194, 1196, 1197, 11202, 11204, 11214, 11215, 11222, 11230, 11233, 11234, 11235, 11237, 11238, 11241, 11246, 11251, 11253, 11259, 11264, 11273, 11279, 11283-5, 11287, 11288, 11293, 11295, 11297, 11298 to RBT
1960 755, 11181, 11183, 11199, 11209, 11266, 11280 to RBT

The next conversions were to bulk cement wagons of class RBC during the 1960's:
1961 11252 to RBC
1962 11271 to RBC
1964 768, 11294 to RBC
1965 1521 to RBC
1967 18 to RBC
In 1967 number 680 was reclassified to class QRT and fitted with a ballast sled. Number 11210 was written off in 1970 but in that same year the final group of conversions started when class QRC was created by rebuilding RB's as flat wagons. These conversions accounted for all of the remaining steel bodied RB's as follows:
1970 759, 782, 791, 804, 947, 2560, 11201, 11247, 11261, 11265, 11289
1971 762, 770, 821, 942, 3737, 11180, 11188, 11200, 111207, 11223, 11240, 11242, 11248, 11249, 11254, 11256, 11258, 11267, 11268, 11274, 11286, 11290, 11302

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