Best Of Scratchbuild Project - Van Iron Woodchip Cars

[u18b]

Tim...

This may be heresy....

But on the Delrin not sticking... I think there's a good chance they will break off.

What about gluing a small styrene block on the other side of the stirrup to lock it more in place?

[BCR 570]

I hope they don't; we'll see.

Adding a small styrene block is not a bad idea, but not possible for two corners due to mounting of the cut levers.


Tim

[BCR 570]

Detailing (Part 7)
With all of the couplers and sill steps now installed, I can now proceed to the cut levers and air hoses.  I haven't been in the habit of installing cut levers on freight cars unless they are part of a kit, but I thought that they might be a nice addition for these cars.  The cut levers are obtained from BLMA #404 Freight/Passenger Cut Levers:




The kit includes several different styles of mounting brackets and levers.  The mounting brackets fold up into the desired configuration.  Photographs indicated that on the cars I am building, the tab was on the right side rather than the left but I was able to reverse some of the folds to get the correct arrangement:




The mounting brackets were glued next to the sill step in the left corner at each end, and a #80 hole was drilled into the bottom of the coupler box:




The cut lever is threaded through the hole in the mounting bracket, plugged into the hole in the coupler box, and glued in place:




The Series 2 cars required a different mounting system at the 'A' end as the cut lever is surface mounted on the end rather than suspended below the end.  I opted to use BLMA #90 Lift Rings:




The lift ring is inserted into a hole drilled trough the end on the left side, and another hole is drilled into the coupler box as before.  I lost one of the cut levers for these cars when it flew out of the tweezers, so I fashioned two replacements from .010" brass wire.  Here is the installation on the 'A' end of a Series 2 car:




The air hoses are obtained from the Precision Scale Co. brake detail set, which is available in plastic (#6712) or brass (#6713):




The air hoses come on a sprue, and are removed easily with cutters:




A #77 hole is drilled through the end sill to the right of each coupler:




The brass air hose is inserted into the hole for a test fit.  I think I will leave these off until after painting and decaling to avoid damage:




This completes all of the underside details.  At this point I installed the brake wheels which had been left off the models until now.

Just the topside details to go now, and then it will be time to get the cars set up on trucks and wheels.  There is a major hurdle to overcome in terms of acquiring suitable parts for those.


All for now,

Tim

[BCR 570]

Detailing (Part 8 )
My attention now turns to the topside details, which are the last mile in the construction of these cars. First up are the 'L' shaped grab irons at the top of the 'BL' corner of the car.  These were fitted from new on the Series 2 cars, and was refitted to BCOL 9590 at the time of repainting, so I have three cars to fit these to.

The first step is to drill a hole in the corner for the corner leg.  Drilling end on into a .020" styrene sheet is a little daunting, and care needs to be taken to get the drill bit centered exactly.  I begin with using a sharp pin to prick a pre-drill, and then go to work with the #80 drill bit:




I then use the Gold Medal Models grab iron jig to locate the holes for the other legs, which should be 18" from the corner leg:




These other holes are then drilled out with the #80 drill bit:




A piece of .012" brass wire is used for the corner leg.  The extra thickness will help to support the grab iron.  it is inserted into the hole and glued with ACC:




The corner leg is then cut down with a pair of side cutters:




It is then filed down to the desired height with a file.  This flattens the top of the leg and provides a surface for the grab iron to sit on:




The corner grab irons are bent from .010" wire using tweezers, and the GMM jig for spacing:




The grab irons are inserted into the holes and tested for fit.  The corner bend should rest on top of the corner leg, and the 'L' shape should match the corner of the car:




This is one occasion where I apply the adhesive with the part already in place.  I use thin CA which will wick down into the holes and secure the part.  After gluing each end leg in place, I then apply adhesive at the corner leg.  When all is done these are very secure in place:




And here are BCOL 9590, PGE 9696 and PGE 9702 with the 'BL' corner grab irons installed.  It is somewhat curious that these were installed on the Series 2 cars given that they were not fitted with high side ladders.  At any rate, it is an interesting detail which is readily visible from above.

Corner gussets are next.


Tim

[BCR 570]

Detailing (Part 9)
Two posts in one day!  I have met my goal of finishing the detail work on these cars by the end of the Labour Day Weekend.  This instalment covers the remaining topside details.

The door headers have to be installed at the top of the inside of the 'A' end.  For the two Series 2 cars I will use the door header piece from the CS Models kit (same kit as where I sourced the 'A' end from).  For the Series 1 cars I cut the door headers from lengths of .010" x .100" strip styrene:




These were then installed inside the 'A' ends at the top.  On the left is a Series 1 car; on the right is a Series 2 car:




Next up are the corner gussets.  This photograph of a Series 1 car on its side shows the corner gussets as triangular plates welded on top of the top chords and ends:




This photograph of a Series 2 car shows that these cars had slightly smaller corner gussets and they were level with the top chords and ends of the cars:




The gussets were cut from .010" x .100" and .010" x .125" strip styrene.  I cut the styrene into squares using a second piece as a guide, and then cut the squares diagonally to get two triangles.  All of this was done with a #17 blade for nice crisp edges:




This photograph shows the corner gussets installed in a Series 1 car (bottom) and in a Series 2 car (top):




The very last parts to be fabricated are the internal braces at the top of the cars.  On the prototype, these serve to hold the sides in and prevent them from bulging outward when the cars are loaded with chips; on the models they actually help to prevent the sides from bowing inward.  Anything larger than .020" x .020" looks chunky, so I went with two strips of .010" x .020" glued together for some additional strength:




The braces interfere with painting the interior of the cars if installed prior, so thy will be installed after painting.  They have been cut long and will be trimmed to length prior to installation, and the additional gussets will then be added where they join the sides.


So that completes the detailing of these cars for now!  All that is left to do is to install the trucks and undertake some testing on the layout, record some finished shots, and they can then head off to the paint shop.  The trucks and wheels are presenting a challenge but I will perhaps detail that in a subsequent post.

Thank you all for following along and providing encouragement; hopefully it has been of interest and possibly of help with your projects.


Tim

[BCR 570]

Trucks and Wheels (Part 1)
It is time to get the cars mounted on trucks and wheels and take them for a test run.  There was an intersting discussion on suitable trucks on the first page of this thread,  These cars appear to have been delivered with something like a Bettendorf truck with three springs.  Thanks to Ryan in Alberta, I learned that something like these trucks are produced by BLI for their hoppers, and by Atlas for their 70-Ton Hart ballast cars.  The correct style of truck may be what is referred to as a National C-1 truck.

Unfortunately, BLI does not "provide parts for projects" so that was out.  I contacted Atlas and they do not have any truck parts on hand for the Hart ballast car.  The gentleman I spoke with on the phone did undertake a search for me, and did offer to mention to his colleagues the idea of making these available as a separate part, as no one else offers them.  If not, it would be nice to see Micro-Trains add this style of truck to their line-up at some point.

It occurred to me that someone might have acquired the Atlas cars and decided to re-truck them.  An appeal on the Railwire's Trading Post appears to have succeeded in making that connection (thank you Randy!).  After all the work on these cars, it will be nice to have them on the correct trucks.  I noticed that my two cars from the subsequent Hawker Siddeley-built series PGE 9766-9785 should also have these trucks, so they must have been in vogue for a period during the 1960s.

Another challenge is the wheels.  I have used Fox Valley #3301 wheels whenever possible but the Atlas trucks require a longer axle length, so the Fox Valley #3302s are needed.  I have found some in my parts box and am currently hunting for more.  (Will these Fox Valley wheels ever be available again?)

So I am in a bit of a holding pattern until parts materialize, which is okay as I can work on the Railwest chip cars during the interim.  One car that can be fitted with trucks and wheels now is BCOL 9590.  This car was re-equipped with roller bearing trucks, most likely when repainted for the British Columbia Railway, so I can use the Micro-Trains Barber roller bearing trucks and equip them with 3301 wheels borrowed from another project box.


All for now,

Tim

[bbussey]

Atlas plastic wheels can’t be used as a stand-in to finish the project until .553” axles are available?

[BCR 570]

Hopefully not; I am hoping I can track down enough 3302s to do the job.  I have several other packages here but they are reserved for my wide vision cabooses which will run on Atlas caboose trucks.

Tim

[bbussey]

Hopefully not; I am hoping I can track down enough 3302s to do the job.  I have several other packages here but they are reserved for my wide vision cabooses which will run on Atlas caboose trucks.

If your wide vision cabooses are running on friction-bearing trucks — another option is to procure FVM #49002 leafspring caboose trucks (from the B&O Wagontop), which are closer to scale width and better looking than the Atlas caboose trucks and utilize .540" axles.  That would free up the .553" axles for the Nat C-1 trucks.  The FVM website is showing the trucks as available direct if they aren't to be found at the dealers.

[BCR 570]

Hi Bryan:

Thank you for the suggestion; I was not aware of the FVM caboose trucks.  I will have to check photos of the BCR cabooses but suspect they are riding on roller bearing trucks.  I should also check to make sure I have the correct Atlas caboose trucks!

Tim

[bbussey]

I've thought of two additional options if roller bearings are required for your wide-vision caboose models.  Bluford has roller-bearing leafspring trucks on some of their numerous caboose models, and they utilize .540" axles.  You should be able to get a few sets direct from Craig.  The generator on the bay-window style is a separate detail part so that isn't a factor. 

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

Micro-Trains also makes a roller-bearing leafspring truck for its bay window caboose.  The downside is that one of the truck frames has the generator molded in.  However, you should be able to call direct and purchase a handful of the non-generator truck frames once they are back online.

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

I think the Bluford truck frame is closer to scale width, but the MTL truck appears to be the better detailed version.

[BCR 570]

Hi Bryan:

Thank you very much for these suggestions; I was unaware of either.  Your knowledge of the N Scale product range is impressive!

I am currently waiting on some Atlas Nat C-1 trucks and a few more packages of FV 3302s, but there are now more options to consider.


Tim

[mmagliaro]

Tim,
First let me say that this project continues to show impressive, fantastic work.  The cars are beautiful!

I also have an "opinion" on the Delrin stirrups.  I think that even if they appear to adhere well, they won't
stand up to any shear or shock, as in, the sharp flick of a finger.  If they could withstand that, I guess
I'd leave them be.  But over time, the brittleness of a CA joint will cause them to crack off, in my opinion.

My suggestion is something I have used in similar situations... a "cocktail" of Walthers Goo and CA.  Goo is thick and messy, but in this application, I think you can get a good sized little blob on there without the Goo showing unless one really looks for it, especially after it is painted.  Glue the parts on with CA, as you have, but then add a little Walthers Goo.  After the Goo sets in about 24 hours, it really holds well, but will always provide some flexibility.  With Goo alone,  a good push on the stirrup would lean it over, but it won't break off.  The CA will keep the part from moving too easily while handling.  It's a strong "semi flexible" joint.
Anyway, that's my $.02 on this.  Carry on with  your magnificent project!

[bbussey]

Thank you very much for these suggestions; I was unaware of either.  Your knowledge of the N Scale product range is impressive!

I scratchbuild too!  But your completion ratio is much higher than mine! 

[Mark5]

I didn't realize that Precision Scale was still in business (I still have parts I bought decades ago!) - the local pusher doesn't carry their line anymore.

https://www.precisionscaleco.com

And of course, great work Tim!

Mark