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Soo Line gons in Green lettering?

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Sunday, September 4, 2011 9:42 PM

This is a photo of a WC  SOO LINE Bulkhead Gondola with green lettering. It is a slightly different design than others.

Andrew

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Wednesday, March 9, 2011 2:11 AM

If you hit reply and quote what was from the post, you will get the URL for the original photo.

Andrew

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Wednesday, March 21, 2007 10:21 AM

The photo of the Brown or Oxide Gondola with Bulkheads is of SOO LINE 8485. This is one of the cars built in the 1950's. Those old gondolas were modified and repainted in the late 1960's or early 1970's. The open square tube frames are available through Walthers from Keystone Locomotive Works. It is cast metal. You could make your own version from styrene.

Keystone Locomotive Works
Pulpwood Car Conversion Kit

Gondola, Tall, Open End Bulkhead
Walthers Part # 395-54
HO scale, $2.95, not currently in stock at Walthers, Expected: Unknown

 
Add-on details simulate equipment used on freight cars handling pulpwood.

On the http://www.sooline.org/ in 2006 there was a notice that soon there will be a book covering all the Soo Line freight cars. They were looking for contributions. There were sample pages. They have already published photos that were better than most of my photos. Sometime in 2007 the SLHTS will publish the comprehensive freight car book. 

Andrew

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Wednesday, March 21, 2007 12:10 AM
 WCfan wrote:

I rember seeing at the paper mill at Wausau a Brown Soo Line bulk head Gondola. Do any of you have any pictures of it. I would also like to find some decals for it too.

Andrew, could you please send me that photo.  

In the Soo Line by Patrick Dorin the Brown Gondola had an open frame square bulkhead.

Try to find it later.

Andrew

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Posted by Soo Line fan on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 9:07 PM

Here are a couple more. I also bumped up the DPI on the above photo.

Jim

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Posted by WCfan on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 8:24 PM

The modlers choice model has those same bulkheads like the one in Andews picture. But I think they are sold seperatly. So when they come out with the model, mabe I can find out where they got them. But are those the same bulkheads as in Jim and my photo?

http://www.modelerschoice.com/freightcars/future/ppmpv108.htm

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Posted by WCfan on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 7:43 PM

I rember seeing at the paper mill at Wausau a Brown Soo Line bulk head Gondola. Do any of you have any pictures of it. I would also like to find some decals for it too.

Andrew, could you please send me that photo.  

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 7:38 PM

Buy the Spring 2004 issue of The SOO from the Soo Line Historical & Technical Society for this article for the full details. www.sooline.org.

Andrew

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 7:29 PM

The Soo Line by Patrick Dorin on Page 158 has a Soo Line Railroad issued photo of these Bulkheads taken from a higher angle.

It appears to be a Sharp U Channel in the ends. From the shadows or dirt it looks like it is open from the top.

Andrew

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Posted by WCfan on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 6:00 PM

To me it looks channeled. If you look closely to the fourth cross bracing from the bottom, you see a gap. Also on that bracing you see it's bent up a little, if it was boxed tubing that would of been less likely.

 

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Posted by Soo Line fan on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 5:29 PM

Ed,

Your welcome,

I have been asking myself that since I scanned in the photo. No, the original does not make it any clearer, sorry to say.

I have some other shots but none show the ends.

Jim

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Posted by 7j43k on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 4:30 PM

Jim,

I can't tell from the end photo whether the "crosspieces" are made from rectangular section tubing (unlikely, I think) or channel section with the open end down.  Can you tell from the original?  Thanks for the photo, by the way.

 

Ed

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Posted by Soo Line fan on Tuesday, March 20, 2007 10:49 AM

Here is a good shot of the car end. I took this in Gladstone MI.

Jim

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Posted by billbtrain on Monday, March 19, 2007 11:00 PM

Andrew and WCfan.The bulkheads shouldn't be too hard to scratchbuild using Evergreen styrene.They look to be about 7 or 8 feet tall.Maybe a foot deep.The Modelers Choice cars look to be easy to build as opposed to cutting up a model to change ends.

Have a good one.

Bill B

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Posted by WCfan on Monday, March 19, 2007 4:53 PM

I just rembered that Walthers made a Thrall gondola in Soo Red lettering. I saw a Brown Soo line gon with bulkheads. I going to see if I can find a photo of it.

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Posted by WCfan on Monday, March 19, 2007 4:49 PM
I did notice the diffrent panal number on my Athern 50' gon (I forgot the brand) the one in the photo has 16 panles, and mine has 14.
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Posted by WCfan on Monday, March 19, 2007 4:45 PM
I will probably take a  50' mill gondola from walters or Round House products and cut off the ends. I will build the bulk heads out of stryne. I'll see if I can find some of those decals or just order them. I would print them if I had the right printer. Thanks for the advice, this will add alot of interest to my rolling stock. I saw the red lettering gon.....Just another car I can add to my long list of Soo cars I want. 
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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Monday, March 19, 2007 1:56 AM

In the photo of the Modeler's Choice Thrall Gondola on the right side of the frame is a white gondola with bulkheads, just like the Soo Line Bulkhead Gondolas with Green Lettering.

What somebody needs to find out is how those bulkheads were built and does Modeler's Choice have a source for them.

Andrew

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Posted by billbtrain on Sunday, March 18, 2007 8:55 PM

Here's another starting point for you.

http://www.modelerschoice.com/freightcars/kits/250001.htm

Have a good one.

Bill B

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Posted by 7j43k on Sunday, March 18, 2007 8:34 PM

You also will have to decide if you want your model of the SOO car to be one panel short--15 on the Atlas car or 16 on the SOO original.  It's also been noted that the Atlas cars have sides that are taller than earlier gons.  This may also be something to make a decision on.  I do agree that they have a very similar feel, though.

Ed

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Sunday, March 18, 2007 7:05 PM

The Atlas HO Thrall 2743 Gondola Gondola is coming this June or July.

It is the same type of gondola, you will only need to modify the ends.

Andrew

 

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Saturday, March 17, 2007 8:41 AM

In the photos it shows that the bulkhead inside the gondola is a large flat sheet with U shaped braces welded on the back and a U channel welded as a frame to connect it to the sides of the car. This design will most likely have to be scratchbuilt, unless you can find some rare model company that injection molds the bulkheads.

Andrew

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Friday, March 16, 2007 2:37 AM

You will need an LBF Company or Walthers type of Mill Gondola with rolled ends to start the project.

The orginal rolled ends will have to be popped out or cut out.

New Bulkhead ends for the gondola will have to be constructed from a larger sheet of plastic.

The bulhead section will have to be framed at the edges to match the real cars.

Andrew

 

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Friday, March 16, 2007 1:55 AM

Notice that these unique Soo Line Gondolas with Green Lettering are Integrated Bulkhead Gondolas. Modern Bulkhead Gondolas must have been made in HO Scale. If you do not have a Bulkhead Gondola to letter, forget the Green Lettering set until you build one.

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Posted by 7j43k on Thursday, March 15, 2007 7:03 PM

Thanks for the explanation.  I do wonder if having different colored lettering is really going to help if you've got someone who can't tell a gon from a covered hopper.  Still, it's colorful.

 

Ed

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Posted by Soo Line fan on Thursday, March 15, 2007 8:49 AM

Here is an example: To distinguish between a standard boxcar and one with internal tie downs the standard one was painted brown w/ white lettering. The Colormark car was painted White w/ red lettering along with the check mark.

Other font colors, such as green and blue were used for gondolas, covered hoppers and flats.

Later the lines were blurred. Some boxes were painted white w/ black lettering and no Colormark logo. Eventually the system was abandoned.

Jim

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Posted by Andrew Falconer on Thursday, March 15, 2007 1:48 AM

Part of Colormark orignally was color coding, but the most important part of it was listing loading features on the sides of cars.

Andrew Falconer

 

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Posted by 7j43k on Wednesday, March 14, 2007 7:16 PM

Soo put something on their freight cars called "Colormark".  I would guess that that might refer to some sort of color coding.  I must have been asleep in class when someone explained how that worked on the Soo--perhaps it could be repeated here?

 

Ed

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Posted by Milwhiawatha on Wednesday, March 14, 2007 11:23 AM
But make sure they are instock before you order them he stopped printing decals up due o shrtage or printers and ink.
Owner & Operator of Midwest & Northern RR and Midwest Intermodal (freelanced HO)

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