Roundhouse/MDC made several versions of gondolas over the years. This one, new in the box and unbuilt, was picked-up quite recently, and has the metal underbody with plastic superstructure. I added underbody details and a new interior floor, plus grabirons, and re-weigh data. I was surprised to find it with CNR lettering and the old-style black paint:
This one was acquired at the same time, also with a metal underbody, and was n.i.b., and unbuilt. I stripped the original paint and re-did it as shown. Lettering is from Champ and an F&C boxcar kit. I added brake gear and grabs, but note the different body style:
This is an older, all-metal car. I added the fishbelly underframe many years ago:
Wayne
Last year I built 12 C&O Hoppers from one of the 12 different # cartons, still have 72 more to build from C&O, B&O, N&W and NKP.
Rick J
Rule 1: This is my railroad.
Rule 2: I make the rules.
Rule 3: Illuminating discussion of prototype history, equipment and operating practices is always welcome, but in the event of visitor-perceived anacronisms, detail descrepancies or operating errors, consult RULE 1!
And so, both hoppers are all together, painted, and running well. They will look better after I make coal loads for them.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
PM Railfan R.C.R. - done alot of business with them. Love their 5 pak project bargains. Great place to get Roundhouse kits. PM Railfan
R.C.R. - done alot of business with them. Love their 5 pak project bargains. Great place to get Roundhouse kits.
PM Railfan
Agreed..That became my "go to" place for my Summerset Ry boxcars..Mill gons will be next project.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
the Roundhouse hoppers have cast Zamac underframes. And said under frame needs quite a bit of cleaning up before it fits into the plastic hopper right. I needed a 10 inch single cut mill file, my bench vise, some needle files, and 1/8 inch Xacto chisel blade, and a couple of hours.
Yep yep, just last year I had a set of four kit MDC D&RGW ballast hopper (individulally numbered). The zinc frames had a good deal of flash on them and took a lot of filing to clean them up. (I'm guessing they are from near the end of MDC's production of those kits when the molds for the zinc frames were worn out.) After much filing and cleaning up the flash, I painted them flat black and had to be careful cause the paint would come off easily, I got the frames installed and the kits built with IntMnt wheels and KD148 whisker couplers - decent layout models when finished.
While not an exact match to the prototype, the MDC offset ballast hoppers are decent stand-in's. I need to outfit a flat car with stacks of ties to go with them for a work train. I like the highly detailed RTR models but still mix in kit models when they are appropriate.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
Even saw some old timer boilers for their loco's plus Boxcab Climax universals.
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.
The Roundhouse freight cars in general kept using the cast white metal zinc alloy underframes. It provided a nice low center of gravity but as you point out, the metal needed a bit of work (plus painting, preferably before installation) which added a bit of construction time versus Athearn. And yes the cars still needed weight added which of course is no big deal with house cars.
I wonder - just a hunch -- if Roundhouse/Model Die Casting made use of the old metal underframe tooling for the three bay hopper from back when the sides and ends were also metal castings (a model reviewed in the February 1957 MR page 16, if you have the issue, the MR DVD, or the new All Access Pass). That car probably had no problems meeting weight standards!
If you do have access to older issues you may want to review an article in the January 1993 MR on adding invisible weight to open freight cars using sheet lead. the author mentions both the Roundhouse and Athearn hopper cars and calls the Roundhouse car "a guaranteed troublemaker."
At the risk of shameless self promotion anyone who benefits from articles in older issues of MR may want to check out and contribute to my weekly "book club" that takes up an older issue each week, posted on Mondays, on this Forum.
Dave Nelson
Been building a couple of older Roundhouse three bay hopper cars. I need more hoppers to make the long coal drag longer. The kits are from my unbuilt kit carton which means they are kinda old, possibly old enough to be from back when Roundhouse was still in business. Anyhow, to get the weight up some, the Roundhouse hoppers have cast Zamac underframes. And said under frame needs quite a bit of cleaning up before it fits into the plastic hopper right. I needed a 10 inch single cut mill file, my bench vise, some needle files, and 1/8 inch Xacto chisel blade, and a couple of hours. Not quite shake the box. Plus the cars need more weight, they only weigh 2 oz, which is quite light. I had to cut slope sheet weights out of lead flashing to get them up to 3.5 oz, the NMRA recommended weight. The underframes and the slope sheet weights are pickling in supermarket vinegar so the paint will stick as I write this.
I'm thinking Athearn blue box, with the stamped slope sheet weights and no underframe was a cleverer design. Those did go together for just shaking the box.