This car, like the 33548 crane car and the 33115 Ballast car, was manufactured for Gilbert by Tru-Scale.  Most of the Gilbert items made by outside contractors had slight differences from the items marketed by the manufacturer.  In this case, it was the Bay window and the car numbering.  Tru-Scale crane tender cars had a shed with a flat side with outside bracing.  The number on Tru-Scale crane tender cars was "642," rather than "651" as appears on Gilbert cars.  Catalog illustrations show the number as "516," but models were not produced with that number.  Click here to read notes about collecting Gilbert Tru-Scale cars.

33549 in Kleer Pak - Photo Courtesy of Bill Cucchi