Many Kitbashing Questions...

[Dough]

Sorry all, but this is my first shot at something other than preped kits...

Here is the car that I am going to attempt to build in the coming month. Sorry about the size...

http://www.woodworkersweb.com/modules/gallery/albums/album63/Wheel_Car.jpg

http://www.woodworkersweb.com/modules/gallery/albums/album63/Wheel_Car_01.jpg

1. Can anybody tell me the specific car that they used? It carries NYC 759 831 reporting marks and was built in 1964. Its also classified MW I'm thinking that it is one of those piggy back cars. TOFC or something like that...Or is it something else.

2. What should I use for the steel dividers?

3. What color is MW orange?

4. Where can I get 38 wheels for a reasonable price?

5. Where would I get decals? Could I model the unique number?

Thanks so much for any help![;)]

[Anonymous]

You could ask around and find someone who's switching to metal wheels from plastic. The wheels on the car could be weathered nicely. Probably get them for free if you ask on the forum.

Can't help on the other questions

[Jetrock]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Dough

Sorry all, but this is my first shot at something other than preped kits...

Here is the car that I am going to attempt to build in the coming month. Sorry about the size...

[snip]
Neat car! Should make an impact--bright color, repetitive shapes, unique profile. I'm fond of MW stuff myself--it's typically unique, grimy and utilitarian.

2. What should I use for the steel dividers?

Styrene structural shapes--a few "I" pieces should work just fine.

3. What color is MW orange?

Maintenance of Way Orange. I think it's a standard Polly S paint color.

4. Where can I get 38 wheels for a reasonable price?

Personally, I could find 19 wheelsets scrounging around the bottoms of my parts boxes. DT1967 has a good idea there--you could buy a couple packs of Proto 2000 metal wheels to replace your plastic ones. Walthers has them on sale right now--most hobby shops will honor Walthers sale prices if you have a copy of the latest sale catalog. 24 metal wheelsets will set you back $11.96 plus tax, just replace the wheelsets on six cars and you've got your 19 sets of wheels to put on the car, plus some extra, and those six cars will run better as a result.

5. Where would I get decals? Could I model the unique number?

You could probably just use Railroad Gothic black letters and numbers--you could use the unique number if you want to model that car exactly, or just make something up. Many such cars are shop-built modifications rather than cars pre-built by the manufacturer, so if you're free-lancing you can pretty much do what you want with it. Sounds like an interesting little project.

[Hudsonmike]

I scratch build most of my cars this is what I would do.
Use bass wood for chassie.
Use stryene chanel for the deviders.
Maintance of way cars were really dark yellow almost like floquil reefer yellow I always mix my own. Its almost like Chrome yellow like on a school bus.
For Decals , microscale
nyc black and make up numbers from the decal set. I don't know the numbers for the set
because I usually throw the outside package away.
If you use brass wheels you will not need ballast weight,if you use Plastic wheel sets
you will have to add weight like some lead pounded out flat and added to the bed of the car under the Wheel sets.

[Jetrock]

It wouldn't be a hard car to scratchbuild--but a plain-Jane inexpensive flatcar would be an okay starting point for a kitbash. And indeed, metal wheelsets underneath would be a good way to add weight--if one wanted to spend the money on it, picking up a bunch of old inexpensive metal wheelsets at a train show would be a good way to provide the needed weight--but a flat lead weight under the body would work just as well.

MoW cars varied by line--the ones I see most often in the old SP yards around here are a light blue-green color, while older ones I've seen photos of were even Pullman green...bright orange and yellow are also common, of course.

[nfmisso]

I would like to suggest that you purchase as many issue of Mainline Modeler magzine as you can find. Nearly everyone has a scratch building article, or part of a series in it. Also the recent MR with article on scratch building an O scale passenger car.

The car has a cushion underframe, so it probably started out as a TOFC, there weren't COFC as we know then now in '64. It is over 80' long, starting with an Athearn or Accurail flat, you could get a very nice representation of this prototype.

You should be able to work out dimensions by scaling from the wheel guage, and the wheel diameter; looks like 36" to me, but might be 33" or 38".

If you going to build it from scratch, definitely go all styrene.

Have fun.

[Dough]

Thanks for the replys, I'll have to give this sucker a shot. I'm still very new at this and don't know that I have the skills to go completly from scratch...I actually don't even know what styrene is.[8)]

I guess that I should scan up a better pictures of the wheels. I didn't even think about the different sizes, but if I get it close then I'll be happy.

[Anonymous]

styrene is a type of styrofoam. you can find sheets of styrene in the local hobby shops and sometimes they have molded shapes. if you are going to buy larger sheets (i used a 1inch thick 2x8ft sheet as a foundation for my town and yard) look for the stuff called "expaned polystyrene" vs "extruded polystyrene". the expanded stuff will not release the highly toxic chemicals that extuded does when cut with a hotwire.
TMI im sure, but i hope this helps

[areibel]

I think you're a little messed up on your plastics, Jake!
Styrene and styrofoam are different, the styrene they are referring to is the plastic like cars and loco shells are made of. You can buy it in sheets of different thicknesses, different shapes of all sizes, etc.. It's really easy to work with, once you get the hang of it. and best of all it's relatively cheap, $20 will give you quite a bit of raw material.

[dharmon]

I can't really tell the length but from the reporting marks you could look it up. depending on the actual length I'd probably start with a Walthers 89' channel side TOFC flat or if you can find one a Walthers 75' TOFC. Those are OOP but you might find one on Ebay or swap meet. For the rails I'd go with Plastruct styrene I beams and strip stock. Jetrock's idea is probably best on the wheels...though I might flatten the ends a little to make them more proto and less model....The orange...modelflex reefer orange is pretty good and i use that on my MW equip. If you give it a shot of dullcoat after you decal it, it will lighten it up some. Good luck. MW models are fun because you can generally find a use for any of your older cars and if you look hard enough you'll usually find a real RR has done something similiar.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Dough

Sorry all, but this is my first shot at something other than preped kits...

Here is the car that I am going to attempt to build in the coming month. Sorry about the size...

http://www.woodworkersweb.com/modules/gallery/albums/album63/Wheel_Car.jpg

http://www.woodworkersweb.com/modules/gallery/albums/album63/Wheel_Car_01.jpg

1. Can anybody tell me the specific car that they used? It carries NYC 759 831 reporting marks and was built in 1964. Its also classified MW I'm thinking that it is one of those piggy back cars. TOFC or something like that...Or is it something else.

2. What should I use for the steel dividers?

3. What color is MW orange?

4. Where can I get 38 wheels for a reasonable price?

5. Where would I get decals? Could I model the unique number?

Thanks so much for any help![;)]

There is already alot of exellent advice on this thread regarding your proposed kitbash, However since you are also asking alot of questions on my scratchbuild compitition thread, I figured I would add my two cents about this topic here for your consideration as well.

I agree with dharmon's statement about the prototype being an old channel side TOFC Piggy Back car as the basis for the wheel flat. I also agree that the Walthers model of the car would be a good starting point as well. Looking at the 2004 Walthers catalog it shows it listed as a retrired model. Meaining that at the time of publication it was still in stock but limited to stock on hand.

I feel the rack that is holding the wheels can be made using Plastruct I beam material with the I beam being of a narrow dimension. I also feel that 1/16" wide .025" thick plastic strip can also make a convicing rack of you do not want to hassle with cutting I beam materail. The same .025" thick styrene can be used to make the "H" braces at each end of the car.

As for the wheels themselves, I agree with the statements about buying some Intermountain or Proto-2000 wheels and upgrading some of your present plastic wheeled rollingstock. Then paint the plastic wheels an appropriet shade of rust and use them as your load.

I also feel that the color "Reefer Orange" or "D&RGW Orange" would be a close aproximation of the color in the picture.

For Decals, I would pick up a sans-serif alphabet-number jungle decal sheet. Microscale makes these in several fonts and looking quickly at what they offer, I think "UP Style lettering" in the color black will get you very close to what you want.

As you go off to try this project out, I just want you to keep in mind, that an exact model of this car is not what your after, But something that captures the feeling of it. It doesn't have to be perfect or super exacting. But just something that comes out looking close and something you have fun building in the process. Model Railroading is not a science, its an art form. And the more you can catch feel of a railroad in minature, the better the artist you are.