Hey y'all!
I'm new to the hobby (rekindled a childhood passion around Christmas 2019). I currently have zero space for a layout so I've been attempting to build up my rolling stock for when space is afforded me. I feel that I've made a few rookie mistakes while acquiring freight cars; my aim is to model (freelance prototype) contemporary Central Texas - where I now call home. Many of my early acquisitions were far too old to be found on interchange service today so if someone could maybe point me in the right direction towards finding modern/contemporary freight cars, which I'm struggling to find, I would greatly appreciate it. I digress...
Alas, what I came with the intention of posting. I made my first attempt at a draft gear conversion the other evening and I'm mildly satisfied with how it turned out for a first attempt but it's clear I have a long way to go till becoming a master modeler.
The model that I converted is an Accurail Branchline covered hopper. I will attach a few before/after photos for critique.
Thanks in advance for the feedback and happy modeling!
Gallican2
Your photos did not make it to me. I assume you are converting to Kadee couplers. Most freight cars will accept a #5 Kadee coupler or the whisker version (#147 I think). Kadee has a "what-fits-what" list on their website which lists every piece of rolling stock ever made and the right Kadee coupler to fit it. Although you can warp a #5 into nearly anything, you can save yourself a lot of hacking and filing and cussing by using the recommended coupler.
As far as comtemperary rolling stock, a lot of it is advertised in Model Railroader and Rail Model Craftsman. Train shows used to be my source for this kind of stuff but Corona virus has closed up the train shows for the time being. The last local hobby shop up here closed a decade ago so anything I don't find at train shows I mail order for Walthers or Micro Mart or E-bay. I think they are still operating although I haven't placed any orders in the last few months.
As far as reasonable age for prototype rolling stock, the railroads all expect stuff to last for forty years and they finance it for forty years. So it is reasonable to see a car built in 1980 running in 2020. And I daresay, if the car is in decent shape, they will keep running it until something expensive breaks.
You might consider setting your era back a few years. There were more short lines running back then. In 2020 most of the short lines are either out of business or bought up. If you go back as far as 1980 you could run all sorts of stuff going back as far as 1940.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
(Removed incorrect post)
Hi, Gallican. I don't know what you're doing to attempt to post photos, but it's not working. Please read the "How to Post a Photo to the Forums" thread in the General Discussion Forum.
--Steven Otte, Model Railroader senior associate editorsotte@kalmbach.com
Hi Gallican
The photos are not visible in the Forum but the links work so I could see your project. Unless you were having problems that I do not have, it is not necessary to remove the cast on coupler draft gear from an Accurail car and cement on a Kadee draft gear box when switching the car over to Kadees. The bronze "spring" that #5s use should fit right in as should the Kadee #5 coupler (remembering to use a screwdriver handle or other smooth metal rod to "burnish" the kadee coupler shaft) and the original Accurail "lid" to the draft gear box to finish things off.
I believe the newer generation of Kadee whisker spring couplers should also be a drop in fit. Swapping out draft gear boxes was more necessary back when many cars came with the old horn-hook trainset couplers, but even then many of the draft gear boxes could still be used so long as there was a central pivot for the coupler. Where it was really necessary to swap out the coupler draft gear box was back when a strange variety of proprietary couplers such as Mantua or Baker was used because those draft gear boxes were too narrow for most Kadees. Those days are decades and decades behind us.
If you do prefer the slippery nature of the Kadee plastic draft gear boxes which is a legit reason to swap out, note that the box for the #5s has a center mounting hole for a screw but also two "ears" with mounting holes on either side of the box. Those ears date from a time when model freight car floors were wood and you could use small brads, nails, track spikes, or small wood screw in each ear to mount the box to the wood floor. If you simply cement the box to the model as it appears you did, or if you use the central screw hole with a screw, then those ears can and should be clipped off because they tend to restrict the wheels/trucks as they take sharp curves.
Learning how to judge the correct date of a given model has always been one of the acquired pieces of wisdom in the hobby that comes from experience and over time. A few manufacturers do a good job of making plain what the era for their stuff is. If you can track down a review of a given model in MR they give the era. I have a collection of Car Builder's Cyclopedias -- not a modeling publication, but one meant for prototype railroads to use, sort of their "Walthers catalog." They publish every few years. I have volumes for my 1966 era, plus the 1960 one before that and one going back to 1937 for just about the oldest car I would expect to see in my era. And I bought one for the year after my era so I could get a feel for what looks like it MIGHT be right, but is in fact too new.
But and this is a big but - I spent a lot of time tracking down those volumes, and I spent a fair amount of coin acquiring them. Failing that, Kazlbach sells books by Jeff Wilson on freight cars that will help. One is on older cars, the other on cars you would expect to see in freight trains of our era. There are some older books by Jeff Wilson on freight cars in general - out of print but helpful if you can find them at a shop or swap meet.
Give the price of models today it certainly is something you want to know before buying. Back when an Athearn boxcar kit was $1.79 list price you weren't so nervous about guessing wrong.
Dave Nelson
Let's try this again.
Before:
After:
Dropbox doesn't work as a site where we can see the pictures in this forum. Neither does google or facebook.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
gallican2Sorry, I was struggling to add the photos via mobile UI. Please see below:
I've had a few Atlas cars (maybe the same molds if Atlas and Branchline are one in the same now?) and the draft gear covers were glued into impossible to remove without breaking draft gear covers.
You're on the right track to replace them with Kadee products
Kadee has a snap-together draft gear, #242, that does not have the two mounting holes protruding from the sides (though, could be trimmed off). Sometimes these mounting lugs will interfere with the back faces of the wheels at that point.
From Kadee:
The following are our current HO boxes and what they directly apply to.
#232 is the common box with the "ears" or side holes and this is used in our NO.5®, #58, and our 20-Series coupler packages.#233 is the box use for our 30-Series coupler package that uses the thin wire torsion centering spring.#234 Is used for the short shank #23, #24, and #25 couplers. It is similar to the #232 with a rounded front to keep the coupler head from hitting the corners of the box.#242 This is the snap together box that comes with our 140 and 150-Series Whisker® couplers.#252 Is a snap together modified #233 box designed for our Whisker® couplers.#262 Is a narrow low profile snap together box made for our Whisker® couplers.The #252 and #262 boxes are only sold as separate items without couplers.
Good Luck, Ed
Gary
dstarr,
Thanks for all the great advice; I really appreciate your insight. Unfortunately, I am a bit bull-headed and most likely will not budge on the era that I'd like to model but, as I said, I do greatly appreciate the advice.
The balance of y'all,
I do, also, appreciate all of your insight. The reason I went with a full box replacement (as I originally just put Kadees in the stock box) is that I ended up breaking the plastic "pin" off the push-on cover and quite honestly I'm not a fan at all of those push-on style draft gear box covers. You'll also not in the before pictures that I busted off the push-on truck fasteners as well - which I converted to Kadee 100-ton roller bearing trucks that are screw mounted.
I think I really just need to let my patience grow and try not to hulk a plastic kit together. As I said it was my first go and now I know that maybe burnishing out the holes before pressing in the covers maybe a wise step to add.
Thanks again for all the great advice!
For cars from Tichy, Accurail, Walthers, and others that use push-in plugs to secure trucks and coupler covers, it's easy to replace them with screws. The trucks are the easiest to do, as a 2-56 screw will fit the supplied holes and easily cut its own treads into them.
For coupler covers, I slice-off the moulded-on pin, then use a #47 bit to drill a clearance hole in it. You can then drill the coupler pocket with a #53 bit, to accept a 1-72 screw, which will thread the drilled hole if you turn it in carefully.
I use flathead screws for the coupler covers, and if you select the proper-size drill bit, it's easy to create a countersink so that the screwhead is less noticeable...
The old Train Miniature cars used part of the separately-applied underframe as push-on coupler covers, but it's easy to cut the covers from the underframe, then drill out the mounting pegs inside the draught gear boxes to accept1-72 screws...
Wayne
gallican2 Let's try this again. Before: After:
I'm curious. Why did you feel it necessary to chop the Accurail coupler box off and replace it with the Kadee box? It isn't really necessary. Normally I simply drop in the Kadee coupler of my choice and check for coupler height with the Kadee height gauge and call it good.
I buy my Kadee's in bulk packs and they don't come with the draft gear and it saves a considerable amount of money assuming there are many pieces of rolling stock to convert. I have a large number of Atlas and Athearn rolling stock, which come with plastic McHenry couplers which have a tendency to jam or get stuck.
The 50 pair bulk packs are $69.99 while the 2 packs are $3.59 (at my favorite online vendor. That's $1.80 a pair in the 2 packs vs. $1.40 a pair in the bulk pack. That is a savings of $20 dollars if you don't need the Kadee coupler box and need to convert a bunch of cars.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
I am a real stickler for always using Kadee coupler boxes whenever possible.
I know Kadees will drop in to most coupler boxes, but they are much better in the boxes made by Kadee.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
gallican2 I do, also, appreciate all of your insight. The reason I went with a full box replacement (as I originally just put Kadees in the stock box) is that I ended up breaking the plastic "pin" off the push-on cover and quite honestly I'm not a fan at all of those push-on style draft gear box covers. You'll also not in the before pictures that I busted off the push-on truck fasteners as well - which I converted to Kadee 100-ton roller bearing trucks that are screw mounted.
OK. I hate those pins, too. I cut them off and drill a clearance hole in the cover, though I grab a 43 bit. I run a 2-56 tap in the truck bolsters and coupler boxes, but screws will probably self-tap. A 2-56 screw will work for both coupler and trucks--new Accurail cars come with screws.
Wayne,
Thanks a lot for the insight; your technique looks really great and obviously one I had not thought of. I will certainly attempt ony next go around. I really appreciate you!