This open top hopper car ran at the end of a train of copper ore cars like a caboose, with a rider cab added.

It was built by MAGOR in August 1955 for the San Manuel Arizona Railroad, as part of a large order of hopper cars to bring ore to its processing facility in San Manuel, Arizona. The enclosed end was added later, with headlights and a horn so a brakeman could watch for automobile traffic when the train was backing up, and warn motorists at road crossings that a train was coming.

The San Manuel mine was the largest underground copper mine in the world in the 1980s. It closed in 2003 and became the largest mining reclamation project in Arizona history. Capstone Mining donated this car to the museum in 2017.

The San Manuel Arizona Railroad Company (SMARRCO) ran 6.5 miles from the San Manuel mine to a mill and smelter in the town of San Manuel. These rider cars were placed at the end of the ore trains traveling between mine and town, so the conductor/brakeman could operate the horn at grade crossings. The car was in the lead on the empty shove to the mine, and trailed when bringing loads back to San Manuel. This car could be loaded like any of the other hopper cars, but was usually left empty when a person was on board.

In 1955 the company placed an order for 185 of these 100-ton hoppers. The interiors have slanted sides and ends leading to bottom dump doors which can drop material onto conveyor belts under the rails. Three of these were later modified as "rider cars" — this one is the sole survivor. The added compartments were equipped with radio, emergency brake valve, headlights, and a horn.

In the history of mines, the San Manuel mine is fairly recent. The Magma Copper Corporation began producing copper from the underground mine in 1955. In 1985 it transitioned to an open pit operation. In 1996 the mine and the SMARRCO railroad became the property of BHP Billiton. The railroad closed in 1999, but the mine continued using trucks until it closed in 2003. A large reclamation project followed which restored much of the landscape by the time it was completed in 2006.

In 2013 the railroad was purchased by Capstone Mining, who briefly re-opened it to haul concentrates from its Pinto Valley mine via a truck transload facility in San Manuel. The train hauled cars to Hayden Junction for interchange with the Copper Basin Railroad, with eventual destination to Guaymas, Mexico, for transport to China.

When the property closed, Ron Lewallen of Capstone thought this car should be preserved, and arranged for it to be transported to Chandler. It was lifted by Marco Crane from dirt onto active rails, then after a little mechanical work, it moved on its own wheels from San Manuel to Hayden Junction on September 12, 2017 with no issues. The car was given a thorough inspection by Union Pacific mechanical foreman Aaron Sassaman in preparation for the move to the museum. The Copper Basin moved it to Magma Junction on September 20, and the Union Pacific moved it to McQueen Junction on September 22, finally moving it from there to the museum′s Tumbleweed Park location on September 25, 2017.

	9/28/2017 - Car as delivered. A tarp was placed over the cab to prevent unwanted vandalism.
	9/25/2017 - Tarp has been removed. View of the rider end of the car. During empty return trips to the mine, the Conductor would ride in this car to observe and operate the horn for grade crossings.
	9/25/2017 - View of the non-rider end of the car. The car was modified from a normal ore car, but the hopper was not filled during normal operation.
	12/21/1991 - View of car #184 in service at San Mannuel, AZ.  Sporting a black paint scheme, the car is carrying a full load of ore.

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