What is available for 35' trailers?

[bbussey]

If you have the patience, you can build the sides from Evergreen styrene strip rib by rib. I started to do that decades ago but there were no suitable Fruehauf donor models (MTL was too modern). There might be a suitable Trainworx model now that can be used for the nose, roof and rear.

[Kentuckian]

I would experiment with Evergreen board and batten and corrugated sidings. The board and batten probably has the profile you are looking for but the spacing of the closest batts are over twice too wide. The corrugated siding has the spacing but the profile is not quite right.

[Angus Shops]

I’d do as Bryan suggests - build your own ‘board and batten’ with Evergreen styrene. Using a piece of .010 sheet styrene at least 35 wide and twice the height of the trailer body, lay out alternating strips of .020 x .030 or .020 x.040 (or whatever is appropriate to achieve the appropriate spacing between the ribs) LAID FLAT and .010 x .030 laid ON EDGE. This won’t take as long as you might think. I’d use Testors liquid cement so you don’t get any glue ‘squeeze out’. This will give you enough material for the two sides — combine with the appropriate roof, front end, doors, wheels, landing gear scavenged from elsewhere, and add the sign boards (cut from .005 sheet styrene (go easy on the Testors or you’ll melt the .005))…

If you want a bunch of them, this would be a great project to mess around with resin casting - once you’ve created your ‘master’ you’re 75% of the way to building a whole fleet.

[peteski]

Yes, building one out of styrene seems like a good idea. Maybe even build one master pattern, then cast resin copies.
Or in today's world, how about having it 3D desingend and printed?  Seeing all the 3D work on the forum, that seems feasible too.

[bbussey]

So -- NKP had a lot of 32' and 35' ribbed-sided Freuhauf (I think) trailers.   Similar to the New Haven trailer that @bbussey offers a shell for through Shapeways, but of course with different lettering boards.   I'm not going use his trailer shell, because after the print and the Trainworx parts it's just too expensive for more than one or two, but I'd like to approximate the ribbed-sided look.  I thought about making new sides for something inexpensive (Con-Cor?  Atlas?), but am not sure what to make them out of.  I haven't been able to locate any appropriately ribbed plastic sheet material - any ideas?
 
Here's what a real one (32')  looked like.  I'm estimating the ribs are about 5" apart.

Are you certain that's a 32-footer?  Looks 35 feet to me.  If my NH-variation is suitable to you dimensions-wise, and if you have the dimensions and placements of your NKP placards ... it's a simple alteration to my model to make the new variation and pop it up on Shapeways.  If you decide not to go the Evergreen route.  But as stated, it doesn't take long to fabricate the sides from styrene strips.

[nickelplate759]

Are you certain that's a 32-footer?  Looks 35 feet to me.  If my NH-variation is suitable to you dimensions-wise, and if you have the dimensions and placements of your NKP placards ... it's a simple alteration to my model to make the new variation and pop it up on Shapeways.  If you decide not to go the Evergreen route.  But as stated, it doesn't take long to fabricate the sides from styrene strips.

I thought it looked like 35' as well.  I was going by the trailer number and a roster of NKP trailers that I found, that listed George Drake and Mark Vaughan as authors.   It cited the 1964 Official Railway Equipment Register as a source.    Of course, there's no guarantee the roster is correct.

In any event there were quite a few 35' trailers that were similar in appearance.

[edit] I think I've figured it out. I compared the photo here with a similar photo a known 35' Freuhauf  NKP trailer (from the NKPHTS site).   Assuming the lettering is the same sized, the 35' is bigger.   Based on the height labeling on the end, the 35' is also slightly taller (an even 12') - so the overall proportions end up being roughly similar.

[nickelplate759]

I was able to reach Ultimate-N-Scale / Panzerschiffe.  They had a few (very few) trailer kits in stock and I've ordered three to see what they are like.  Fingers crossed!

[nickelplate759]

I got three trailers in from Ultimate-N-Scale/Panzerschiffe today:



They look pretty good.  The left trailer is a 32', the two on the right are 35'.  I measured with a scale ruler and the lengths are spot on.
They're solid blocks of resin except for the wheels, bumpers and landing gear.

[peteski]

I've contemplated making simple RTV mold and casting duplicates of my Ultimate-N-Scale trailers.  It is not like they will ever make more.

[nickelplate759]

So, none of these trailers are right for the NKP.   The 32' with the long letterboard does resemble a 32' trailer used bye NKP, but that letterboard is WAY too long - it looks like they had a specfic roadname in mind , but I don't know what.

Any suggestions on late 1950's schemes for these (preferably with available decals)?

[nickelplate759]

Well, the 32' ribbed trailer with letterboard is reasonably close to a P&WV trailer:



This picture is supposedly from 1960.  I don't trust the photo colors though.  I know the lettering is red, and the herald is black on a red background, but that cream-color trailer body is suspicious.  I found a comment on a black & white photo that claims the trailers where white, but this could also be a faded yellow.  It also occurs to me that it might be a colorized photo.    Does anyone know for sure what color this should be?

[peteski]

George, if you look at the side end of the flat car at what looks like a piece of paper (or some label) stuck at an angle, it is white.  So the photo is at least not yellowed.

The wheels seem to have the same cream color as the trailer. Not sure if that detail would have been done if the photo was colorized.  Those are just guesses of course.  Hopefully someone will have some concrete info.

[nickelplate759]

George, if you look at the side end of the flat car at what looks like a piece of paper (or some label) stuck at an angle, it is white.  So the photo is at least not yellowed.

The wheels seem to have the same cream color as the trailer. Not sure if that detail would have been done if the photo was colorized.  Those are just guesses of course.  Hopefully someone will have some concrete info.

Good hint - if it's not colorized.   Other known colors - the NKP flat car is black with white lettering, but in a lot of photos I see the white NKP lettering taking on a yellowish tint as it aged.

Also, the P&WV painted its diesels Black with chrome yellow, and in some pictures the yellow seems to fade to something similar to this "cream".  Here's an example:
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[nickelplate759]

Are you certain that's a 32-footer?  Looks 35 feet to me.  If my NH-variation is suitable to you dimensions-wise, and if you have the dimensions and placements of your NKP placards ... it's a simple alteration to my model to make the new variation and pop it up on Shapeways.  If you decide not to go the Evergreen route.  But as stated, it doesn't take long to fabricate the sides from styrene strips.

Bryan - the letterboards are pretty easy to lay out, but the vertical placement seems to vary with the height the trailer.    How tall is your NH trailer body?

The letterboard for the roadname is 2' tall and about 11'6" long  (the lettering itself is 11' long).

The letterboard for the slogan (High Speed Freight Service) is 1' tall and 16'6" long (the lettering is 16' long)

Both letterboards are centered horizontally on the trailer side. 

There's a bit of variation in vertical placement of the letterboards, depending on the trailer height.
The slogan board is at least 2' from the bottom the the trailer, and there is usually 1' between the two letterboards.  The space above the roadname seems to vary the most.   On really short-sided (open top) trailers the empty spaces get compressed.

Not sure when the hazard diamond started being used (it's pretty common on new 35' trailers, and on older 32' trailers) , but when it is applied it seems to be spaced about 1' above the trailer bottom and 5' or 6' from the front.