Hello!
I know these hoppers tipically are used to haul grain or fertilizers but can I use them to carry limestone, kaolin or clay?
Do they have round hatches?
soller Do they have round hatches?
Some were delivered with round hatches. UP 77350-78149 and 78750-79149, for example. BN may also have had some--I saw a whole batch of new ACF covered hoppers with round hatches in Portland once, but I don't know if they were 4600's or 4650's.
I think the round hatch cars were meant for non-grain usage. Generally. From Eric Newbauer's "A History of the Center Flow", he states "CF4600's in mineral service often had six 30" hatches". Whether your list of three items would be included in that list I do not know. I think it would depend on the load density. If the load can pretty much fill the car without going over weight, and do so without prejudicing the car against future usage, I would expect it was done. The car can also be partially loaded, of course.
He also mentions other round hatched 4600's: LUCX 5001-5050 and ACFX 49362.
Ed
Has any company other than Accurail produced a model of the ACF CENTER FLOW 4600 Cubic Foot Capacity 3-bay covered hopper?
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Accurail is the only manufacturer of the 'Plate B' ACF 4600CF that I am aware of. Those UP and BN Center Flows are 4650CF's IIRC. Front Range, McKean, I-M, and Atlas have done the 'Plate C' 4650CF.
The 4650CF is taller and shorter. The Atlas ACF 3560CF is used in kaolin and bentonite clay service...
Jim
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
The Bachmann Spectrum Line or the Atlas Master Series would be the right product lines for factory produced, highly-detailed models of the ACF CENTER FLOW 4600 Cu. Ft. 3-bay covered hopper with actual interior compartment walls for strength.
They can produce them in 1:160th, 1:87th, and 1:48th scale.
They would have to make a 3D scan of all the interior and exterior surfaces of a real 4600 Cu. Ft. 3-bay covered hopper to make a model with the correct details and dimensions.