Freelance 2014-2

[FCIN]

How is sugar unloaded from the hoppers - by air, gravity? Guess your sugar must be granular. Could airslide hoppers be used for powdered sugar? Fisher Flour on the LAJ Lower Alley received airslides at their tank spots.

Sugar would indeed be hauled in Airslide hoppers, but if you're modeling the contemporary scene, then most of the Airslides have been replaced with Pressure Differential covered hoppers. Both types of covered hoppers work on the same principal, where air pressure (5psi) is introduced to help the contents flow out of the car or in some cases to unload the commodity by vacuum.

I still see quite a few Airslides on trains in my area, transporting flour and sugar, but they are getting fewer all the time. In my modeled era (1978-1984) the Airslides would predominate. Sugar and/or flour would not be shipped in gravity discharge covered hoppers such as those designed to handle grain.

Here are a couple of images showing an Airslide being loaded with flour (note that the roof hatches seal airtight)
   
and a detail view of an Airslide being unloaded (the hose is pumping the air into the car to allow the contents to flow more easily from the hopper discharges)
   
Hope this helps.