Northern Central Boxcar from Bachmann

[Maletrain]

I'm not a great modeler...

Well, you are apparently "greater" than many.  Nice work, there.

[tom mann]

Ed, save your money.

[nkalanaga]

CJM413 and Maletrain:  Thank you!  Up close, they're more basic than they look, but then, RTR Nn3 isn't all that detailed, either.  I tried to make mine comparable to the Microtrains Nn3 cars, and think they turned out well.  They certainly show that Bachmann could do better!

As small as they are, I went for "impression" more than "superdetailed", partly because I didn't want to spend a long time on one car.  Someone who wants a single special car could take the time to install free-standing grabs, bolts on the corner braces, etc, etc.  I did that on a couple cars, but at normal viewing distances, the work doesn't show anyway...

[Maletrain]

In N scale, "at nominal viewing distances", it is usually more obvious when a detail like a grab iron is broken than it is that the grab is cast-on, assuming that neither is grossly over-sized.  However, when photography is used to make the objects seem real in size, all those imperfections are magnified into view.  So, ops people and model-building contestants are going to have different preferences.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Ed, you'd probably come to regret buying this. 

I think you're right. I'll just wait to find one for $5.

[nkalanaga]

Maletrain:  Agreed.  My grabs are just pieces of styrene rod, glued to the side of the car, but from a distance they look like grabs.