Atlas vs Micro Trains 3 Bays

[Mark5]

Document provided states 33" wheels.

The proto is definitely 36" wheels. The Atlas model comes with 33" as it was tooled in the 1970s when there were no 36" wheelsets and all Atlas cars came with Bettendorfs.

[Mark5]

The early Atlas hoppers had the loads glued in, to the center sill ends, so one had to pry it out to see the weight. 

I bought these hoppers when they first came out, and none of mine were glued in.

Mark

[Ed Kapuscinski]

@Ed Kapuscinski , can you get me a large hi-res image straight on the side of the 2F-F5 truck (confirmed) from the CHRS folks?  Found some nicer images out there of the H43, but none straight on the truck. Still need a height from rail to bolster though.

If we had them I'd hook you up. Here's what we've got and I didn't see anything helpful there: https://thecrhs.org/catalog

[Lemosteam]

The proto is definitely 36" wheels. The Atlas model comes with 33" as it was tooled in the 1970s when there were no 36" wheelsets and all Atlas cars came with Bettendorfs.

Maybe thatis the difference between the 2F-F5 and the 2F-F7?

From your link:

2F-F5
Name of Truck:   Barrett-Whitehead
Frame:   Cast Sideframe
Wheel Base:   5'-8"
H:   26-3/4"
Springs:   Coil Semi-Elliptic
Brake:   Spreader through bolster and horizontal lever
Weight per truck:   10400
Class of Car:   G22b
Tracing:   D-42375
Bolster casting:   V-10947
Side Frame casting:   V-9611A
Elliptical spring:   E-541
Helical spring :   H-692, H-693

Notes:
H -- Height center plate from rail, empty car
Wheels are 33 dia. unless otherwise noted

and

Oops. No information available for 2F-F7!
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[thomasjmdavis]

I bought these hoppers when they first came out, and none of mine were glued in.

Mark

I took my genuine, first run, bought in 1977 or 78 "look what we just got in from Atlas", with $2.49 price tag, Atlas hopper out of the box.  Coal load comes right out if you roll the car over in your hand and "wobble" the coal load with your thumb. 

Geez, this thing actually is "vintage" (or in eBay-ese "vintage!!!")- still has original couplers and wheels since all of my subsequent layouts were era specific to a time before they were in use.  Somehow missed being auctioned off 15 years ago when I got rid of most of the "modern" stuff I had.

[Mark5]

Notes:
H -- Height center plate from rail, empty car
Wheels are 33 dia. unless otherwise noted

John,

I'm not sure how a 33" wheel could be used on a 100 ton hopper. Will try to take some time to look at Dow's N&W Hopper book this weekend.

Mark

[wcfn100]

Probably a misprint.

Both diagrams for that hopper class show 36" wheels with a 5"-10" wheelbase.

Jason

[Rich_S]

     I have improved the interior of several of the Atlas hoppers.  I used angled Evergreen styrene cut to fit the slope sheets with the angle facing up, glue them in, and paint them the appropriate color.  I prefer to paint the exposed part before gluing them but you can paint them after installation.  They are not prototypically perfect, but look a lot better than the exposed metal weight.  I believe the Evergreen part # is 194 but I am out of town for work and can't check for sure.  I have the Micro Trains and the Atlas hoppers.  When running both of them together empty in a unit train at shows, no one has ever commented on it until I pointed it out to them.
     If anyone wants to do this, let me know and I will verify the Evergreen part number when I get home this weekend.     

HI nsbob, That is a great idea and yes, can you please verify the Evergreen part number. Thank you in advance.

[nkalanaga]

Mark and Tom:  Interesting.  My early ones were definitely glued, as breaking the joints left scars on the center sill.  I only bought a couple back then, so maybe some of the loads were a little too loose, and the factory decided to "fix" them?

Later ones weren't glued, but that was in the 90s.

[thomasjmdavis]

Mark and Tom:  Interesting.  My early ones were definitely glued, as breaking the joints left scars on the center sill.  I only bought a couple back then, so maybe some of the loads were a little too loose, and the factory decided to "fix" them?

Later ones weren't glued, but that was in the 90s.

Might be that one particular run was glued as an experiment, or in response to complaints about the loads falling out.  Mine are stamped "USA" on the bottom.  Did they perhaps make some in Europe prior to those?  Most early Atlas N scale was from Rivarossi and other Euro manufacturers.  Then for some years in the late 70s-early 80s made mostly in New Jersey, and then moved to China.  As I noted in my earlier post, my recollection is that these were new releases at the time I bought them, but it was 40 years ago, and I couldn't tell you the name of my favorite restaurant of the time, so my memory is not all that sharp.

[Mark5]

Did they perhaps make some in Europe prior to those? 

No, the first run was made in USA.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I've definitely seen both glued and non-glued. I haven't discerned any rhyme or reason to them though.

[John]

There was also a LifeLike + Industrial Rail model that was similar ..

[nkalanaga]

Ed:  Thank you!  At least I don't have the only ones...

[nsbob]

Rich:
    I finally made it to the basement and checked on the Evergreen styrene strips.  The part number is 294; Angle 1/8th inch.  After I cut the part for length, I use a pair of straight blade nail clippers to trim the ends to conform to the slope sheets.   I recommend cutting the part a tad longer than needed and test fit it until it looks good.  I would also recommend that once you make the first part, you use it as a  template to make as many as you need.  I spray paint the part with satin black paint (NS) or reddish brown primer (Conrail) and glue it in position with CA. I have done about 20 Atlas cars and I think it is an easy fix for the results. 
NSBob