Open top cars, such as gondolas, have been a mainstay on railroads for decades, as they are ideal for carrying large or bulk loads, such as coal steel or scrap metal that is loaded by crane. By the middle of the 1970's, the large fleet of gondolas on North America's railroads had gotten quite old, and order for replacement cars were placed with a number of builders including Berwick, Bethlehem, Greenville, SIECO, Pullman-Standard and Thrall. Overall, cars from these builders were remarkably similar. By 1980, the need for these cars became so great that Railbox, a freight car leasing company, ordered gondolas to be leased among the various railroads under the new name Railgon Era: 1980's to present, Fully assembled and ready to operate, Magnetically operated knuckle couplers, Machined metal wheels, Tooling upgraded with separately applied grabirons and stirrup steps, Cast coil load or scrap load, Razor-sharp printing and painting