Bowser cars ???

[Anonymous]

Who has any Bowser rolling stock ?

What do you think of them ??

They make some RI rolling stock series that no one else does, but are they any good ???

I know they come with "hornhook" couplers - can they easily be converted to Kadees ????

Thanks !

- George

[Anonymous]

I liked assembling the 100 ton hopper I did from them. The level of detail was better than a Bluebox kit.

I used the shim included in the kit drop in Kadees. I really liked that feature of their once I figured it out.

Instructions are bit incomplete.

Overall I think they are fine and worth the discount price I paid.

[lyctus]

I have constructed a number of Bowser freight cars and they are very good. I just drop Kadees in place of the horn hook couplers no prpoblems. They are at least as good as Blue Box kits and i like the fact that they make models of prototypes un-available from other kit makers. I am not a rivet counter, but I do like well crafted models and and the range of Bowser prototypes suits my north eastern modelling theme. Love the round roof Pensy box cars. Also order their coal loads for your hopper kits...terrifc ! and window kits for cabeese.

[nslakediv]

good quality, I have thier covered hoppers, coal hoppers and a ton of the road railers. They also make a detail kit for the front and rear platforms for the roadrailers.

[cacole]

I have about 10 of their covered hoppers, and found them easy to assemble. The best part is, they are made in the USA, and so few things are today.

I did run into one minor glitch with them, however, and that is that the wheels tend to rub on the bottom of the car if you replace the plastic wheels with 33-inch Kadee or Proto 2000 metal wheelsets.

A Kadee washer can be placed between the car body and the truck to raise it slightly and prevent this rubbing, but then the couplers begin to get too high. Smaller diameter wheelsets would stop the wheels from rubbing on the bottom of the car, but few companies make metal wheelsets smaller than 33 inch. I think 28 inch wheels are the next smallest size made, and these would be too small.

Smaller wheels would also lower the coupler, and make more washers, or the use of an underset shank coupler, necessary.

I don't know if this is a problem unique to their covered hoppers, or if all of their kits have this problem.

[nslakediv]

I have the same problem with just the covered hoppers, they need just a little weight also.

[jsoderq]

Where else can you get Pennsy cabeese?

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the info, guys - I'll give them a try!

- George

[darth9x9]

I have over 200 of their 100 ton hoppers. They are fabulous!!! I have 114+/- put together and I run a 112 car coal drag at the train shows. I use Kadees and both Intermountain and Atlas wheel sets drop right in to the Bowser truck.