VARR - Weathering Challenge summaries

[bsoplinger]

I've been watching the weathering challenges and getting cars for months just never managed to get around to doing any car in the month's it was supposed to get done in   

But I thought I'd post what I managed to gather up here, so folks can fill in the blanks where applicable in case anyone else wants to go back and do the different challenge cars themselves also.

The format is basically:
Month of challenge
Description of car
Model(s) available
Decals used, in month's where there wasn't a need to redo the decals I've noted it as such. (In ones where folks mention decals but don't supply the info and I can't guess from the MicroScale site [since so many pictures aren't online] I just used ??)

March 2005
Willamette Industries Evans Boxcar
Atlas 31321, 31322
Microscale 353 Box Car - Double Plug Door - 50'

April 2005
MEC Berwick boxcar
Athearn 10937, 10938 MT 31011
Decals not needed

May 2005
Railbox FBOX
MDC 50' Combo Door 8231, 8239, Athearn Berwick boxcar 140-10951, 140-10952
Decals ??

June 2005
(No photos, no description in the text of the thread)

July 2005
Soo Line ACF 4600 Cubic Foot 3-Bay Hopper
Intermountain 85-67056 ACF 4650 Cubic Foot 3-Bay Hopper
Decals not needed

August 2005
CNW-era bankruptcy blue Rock boxcar
50' or 60'
MDC PS w/ Waffle Side 50' box 8182, BFF / Youngstown Door 8311, Atlas Autoparts 60' box 150-37322
Microscale 218 Box Car - Single Door - 50'

September 2005
PRR X54 40' insulated boxcar
Atlas 150-33210, 150-33212, 150-33213, 150-33214 40' Plug Door Box Car
Decals ??

October 2005
Chessie (CSX Paintout optional) 2 bay Center Flow
Intermountain 85-66520 ACF Center Flow 2-Bay Hopper - Chessie (B&O)
Intermountain 85-66521 ACF Center Flow 2-Bay Hopper - Chessie (C&O)
Intermountain PWRSN1067 2 Bay ACF Hopper - Chessie System
Decals ??

November 2005
MT&W 50' PS Box
Athearn 140-11185, 140-11186
No Decals

December 2005
C&NW 50’ Precision Design Rib Side Box Car
Atlas 45071, 45072
Microscale 845 Freight Car - Assorted - Large Block Lettering

January 2006
CSX Coil Car
Best Choice:
Red Caboose RTR 17613, Kit 17713 CSX Blue w/ yellow stripes Coil Car
Alternates:
Red Caboose 629-17760 100-Ton Evans Coil Car - Kit 3-Pack CSX Spring Hill Express
Red Caboose RTR 17669, Kit 17769 CSX Evans Coil Car "Steel Pro" Round Covers
Microscale 988 CSX Freight Car Data

February 2006
2 Bay PS CR stencil over Pennsy
Atlas 31931
Microscale 856 Hopper - Grey Scheme - Includes Conrail Quality Logos

[tom mann]

The June car was a NIHX hopper that Alex posted.  I must have linked to his railimages account, as it's gone.

Thanks for the summary.  Lotsa good memories.

[Allentown Hump]

Actually, February will be a 2 Bay PS CR stencil over Penn Central stencil over Pennsy...  ;D

[bsoplinger]

The June car was a NIHX hopper that Alex posted.  I must have linked to his railimages account, as it's gone.

Thanks for the summary.  Lotsa good memories.

Does that mean those pics are gone?

Unrelated note:
I was planning on putting photos of the cars as I do them in this thread and would encourage others do to the same. I just saw the comment on this month's voting and like the idea of others showing off cars they've done, just not in time or that they didn't think looked 'good enough.' Without it being a challenge, maybe it'd feel safer to post to this thread.

[mellow-mike]

(A) How can you do a belated challenge car without the original proto photograph(s) - which was the crux of the whole idea...?

(B) You only list N Scale versions of each car. Perpetuating the allegations of Railwire scale bias yet again.

So, what I'm seeing here, is: "Hey N Scale guys... if you missed the official challenges... you can still buy the core car and practice weathering it up however you want. No guidelines... nothing to match... no judging... and best of all.... no stressfull constrictive deadlines!"

[fulltritty]

So, what I'm seeing here, is: "Hey N Scale guys... if you missed the official challenges... you can still buy the core car and practice weathering it up however you want. No guidelines... nothing to match... no judging... and best of all.... no stressfull constrictive deadlines!"

Mike, I don't understand the beef here. Maybe someone just joining the forum would see some of the past challenges and how they came out and say, "Hey, I want to try and do that too." What is wrong with that? Or are the only people allowed to improve their skills those who actually took part during that month? Maybe the car was sold out and someone couldn't get in on the challenge that month. Perhaps they had to work a lot during the month and want to go back and do it now. I don't see the problem.

I believe bsoplinger is an N Scaler, so he listed the available N Scale cars that he knows are out there. Maybe he doesn't research available HO Scale cars. Maybe one of the HO people on the forum could send him a PM with the appropriate HO available cars so he could add that to his post. Maybe someone could also add the prototype pictures from the past posts as well.

[tom mann]

Does that mean those pics are gone?

Unrelated note:
I was planning on putting photos of the cars as I do them in this thread and would encourage others do to the same. I just saw the comment on this month's voting and like the idea of others showing off cars they've done, just not in time or that they didn't think looked 'good enough.' Without it being a challenge, maybe it'd feel safer to post to this thread.

Yeah, they're gone unless one of us who entered the challenge saved them or Alex reposts them.  I've checked already, I don't have it.

You may be right about folks feeling safer to show their work in a non-challenge environment.  Some of the cars should still be easily obtainable, too.

[bsoplinger]

Yes, since I'm a N-scaler I only took the time to look for the info on the N-scale cars that were available.

I'd happily add in the HO info if someone wants to dig it up, I just skipped through it as it was being talked about. I don't know enough about them to tell when folks were guessing if a particular car would work what actually was right or wrong. N I do know HO I don't, sorry about that.

I grabbed all the photos of protoypes that were still on the server (for older challenges, got them as they were announced for later ones). June was the worst with no pics at all still around and I do hope someone who had them would forward them to me.

Once a bit of time has passed to see if I can get the missing bits of info (decals mostly where I noted I needed Microscale product numbers) and the HO cars if I'm given them, I'd be quite willing to posting up the whole thing as 1 big summary, including all the prototype pics given into a new thread where folks can go and see the past challenges without needing to hunt through the threads and find the info.

I know I've seen in past challange month (although I don't think Jan of this year) comments along the line of 'wow that car is good I won't bother' once someone has posted either a work in progress or completed car.

For me, its often a combination of things, time available, days where I'm healthy enough to actually work on something and wanting to do a 'cool' model I've gotten over a challenge car that's interesting but not in my era or that I wouldn't run on my road, forgetting to get decals or not wanting to deal with the hastle of making graffiti (which I generally don't like but know that without it I couldn't win a challenge) not wanting to hunt high and low for a set of decals or not pay more for shipping than a single set of decals would cost, etc...

Which all comes down to me having a set of cars for all months from June on (excepting the November car) and none done yet, but I do plan to do them and I was hoping in having a thread along the lines of "here's what I would have done had I the time back then" would encourage others to add in their attempts also.

And get constructive criticism to improve my skills as well.

[bsoplinger]

To give the topic a bump...

Doesn't anyone have the June challenge pictures saved?

Isn't there anyone who wants to chime in with HO info?

Or the missing decal info?