Fox Valley Models - new 7 post boxcars

[Ngineer]

As much as I would like to buy a Fox Valley 7 post boxcar, I cannot figure out the time frame for the models they just announced.

They just say "paint schemes from the 70's to today".

Great Northern from the 70's? Huh? Did I miss something? Well, they have that dreaded wheel inspection dot and this is a no-go for me. 

Can somebody thell me the time frame for the Soo Line boxcars? One is in boxcar red (brown), one is in white with a red door. I remember seeing a white boxcar with a red door in the Pentrex DVD "CLASSIC TWIN CITIES RAILROADING" and I would love to buy one. My preffered time frame is '65 to '70.

Still, that GN model is very tempting...

Javier

[wcfn100]

As far as I can tell FVM hasn't released a SOO car to fit your time frame yet, but I might not have found all the numbers released.

Jason

[sirenwerks]

Does the GN car match a prototype?

[wcfn100]

Does the GN car match a prototype?

No.


Jason

[Missaberoad]

Ah the Fond du Lac boxcars,  They were built between 1964 and 1979 with the Red/black/white "Colormark" scheme starting in 1969.

As for the model, It really depends how accurate you want to be...  Was there only one version tooled?

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/soo/soo17788age.jpg
I have a brown Soo # 17848 with Stanray dreadnaught ends, a Stanray X panel roof and a Youngstown Plug door. This is accurate for this series (17500-17848 even numbers) My car has a two panel Consolidated stencil which would put it post 1974, however removing it would match the 1969 builders photo.

Earlier versions of this car had different Roofs (Pullman standard or Stanray diagonal panel, both offered by Exactrail) and different doors. Later versions were a mixture of different componants so it would be best to compare photos...

If paint scheme is your only concern basic rule is:
Brown with White Soo                - 1964+
Red/white/black Colormark          - 1969+
parallelogram                               - 1974+
Red/white ends no Colormark      - 1975+

Edit: see later posts
The GN car is a Stand in for a 1969 Pacific car and foundry built car... the door and rib pattern is a match, however the GN car has a slightly different sill and different ends. I'm unsure about the roof used on the GN car.

All in all it is pretty close...
http://freight.railfan.ca/cgi-bin/image.pl?i=gn319424_2&o=gn

[wcfn100]

The GN car is a Stand in for a 1969 Pacific car and foundry built car... the door and rib pattern is a match, however the GN car has a slightly different sill and different ends. I'm unsure about the roof used on the GN car.

All in all it is pretty close...
http://freight.railfan.ca/cgi-bin/image.pl?i=gn319424_2&o=gn

The prototype GN car also has a running board.

http://rrpicturearchives.net/rsPicture.aspx?id=634904

edit: It also can't be from 1969 because that number series in in my 1967 ORER and the roof was probably Diagonal Panel.

http://rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2571470


Jason

[Missaberoad]

Oops...

I had to look up the announcement... I assumed it was the Big sky blue car they did the first time around... 

The Glacier green car is a 1965 built PC&F car with a different door/ends/sill and what appears to be a Stanray diagonal roof and as Jason notes delivered with a roofwalk. (strangely after the ban commenced)

http://www.greatnorthernempire.net/GNEPreservedGNFreightCars_Boxcars.htm

It would have been nicer if they had chose the 1966 built 138100-138399 series... it is a little bit closer to the  Soo car.
http://freight.railfan.ca/cgi-bin/image.pl?i=gn138309&o=gn

One other note the red SOO lettering dates from 1977...

[jagged ben]

Well darn....  They are HO.

Nevermind, I see the duplicate N scale announcement now.

So, which are the foobs?   

[Mark5]

The roofwalk ban started in late '66 iirc

[Missaberoad]

Youre Correct... I remember seeing a reference to 1964 but it was in fact October '66 with the final deadline being the end of 1984...

https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&ei=s8dSVfzzD8O3yASdw4CgDg&url=http://www.pwrr.org/club/news/January2014.pdf&ved=0CCsQFjAC&usg=AFQjCNGkZWtzp_guFYONHBnslcKJkA4k9g

[nkalanaga]

Renumbering the GN car wouldn't be hard, as Micro-Scale makes decals for Glacier Green boxcars.

And, for the original post, a GN boxcar from the 1970s wouldn't be unlikely, as many lasted into the 80s in their GN paint.  The U-1 dot can easily be removed, although consolidated stencils may take some work.  I model 1974, so the dot has to go, but the lube plates could have been recently added.  Mask them off, weather the rest of the car, and they'll work for a recently serviced 1974 car.  I do wish, though, that companies would make their models in "as-painted" versions, not "as updated with stuff that wasn't on the original paint".  It would also help the company, as they wouldn't lose sales because modelers see a scheme they COULD use, then find that it has been modernized.

I'll make an exception for ESM, because they model a specific car, at a specific time, and provide the date with the announcement. 

[jmlaboda]

Some roads short-cutted this a bit by lowering ladders while keeping some running boards in place... but I remember tipping off a local police man about a couple youngin's on top of a Southern Pacific boxcar that had ladders and running boards in my home town in 1979, and thankfully the officer quickly got the kids down.

[nkalanaga]

As far as I know the BN never shortened a ladder while leaving the running boards.  It would seem dangerous for anybody to be on a car with a running board but no way to get down.

On the other hand, covered hoppers had to keep the running boards, but lost the side ladders.  The only access to the roof was from the ends.

That may also be why a lot of western 40 ft boxcars kept roofwalks until they were retired.  It made it easier for grain elevator workers to load the cars, and handier if the elevator had a mixed cut of boxcars and hoppers.