I'm having issues with adding weight to the old Front Range/McKean centerbeam cars.
I orignally had an idea of buying some 3/8" square steel bar and trimming it to fit into the center of the car's underframe:
However the cross bracing and the lip near the bolsters made it so that with the rod in place, the floor wouldn't sit on the underframe right. So I cut notches and beveled the ends so it'd clear them:
It works, but it takes a few hours to do just one. I had gotten a few different ideas on how to go about this, but I don't know which way would be the best way to go about this.
My ideas:
1. See above
2. Cut the ribs from the center of the underframe, then use the same steel bars without notching them. Cutting the bar so it is snug into the underframe, and then cementing it (barge cement?) in place
3. Grind one side of the bars down so they fit between the the ribs. Then they can just rest in place with no cement.
4. Cut out the raised portion on the bottom of the floor. This raised postion is the back of the notch where the center partition is supposed to go. I may have to file down part of the partition to fit.
3 was my orignal idea, but I don't know how feasible it is (I have access to a machine shop). 1 was something I though of on how to keep the ribs; but 2 would probably be easier and be heavier however it poses the risk that the weight would fall out. I don't know if 4 would allow the floor to sit on the underframe right.
Which way would you guys recommend?