WW&F On2 Tank Car Kit Completion

Looking at the Albion module this evening, I realized that I never posted the final tank car picture. So, here it is:

Personally, I'm not crazy about the light grey color but supposedly that's what they were.

The kit was produced by Portland Locomotive Works, they have a Yahoo Group for those interested. I got the kit for Christmas in 2016 and finished it recently. Here's the progression.

Started with the frame. Typical flatcar frame, easy going.

Next, I added the deck. Two things quickly became apparent. First, the end blocks were too far from the ends of the tank and the tank didn't sit well in the curved blocks.

First fix was to add some styrene to fill the gaps where the tank didn't sit well.

Next, I found some scale lumber to fill into the holes for the end blocks. Not perfect but unless you look really closely, you wouldn't know that they are there.

Next, I noticed the kit didn't contain any method to attach the tank to the car. It seemed unlikely that there was no attachment and sure enough the real Portland Locomotive Works drawings, provided by Ed Bond, showed how the tank was attached and the locations of the tie down straps. Turned out to be handy that dad stopped by the works years ago when they were still in business!

 

 I fabricated the straps out of styrene and brass wire with some NBW castings.

Then came the tank handlebar mounts. WOW! How in the world was I supposed to cut these off the 3D printing? The instructions suggested the use of a Dremel tool, which resulted in a 75% failure rate. Luckily, a quick email to Gary at Portland resulted in an extra set, no charge (Thanks Gary!). The next time I used a small wire saw and only managed to brake one!

The final result after painting. Well, you can see the results at the top of the post. An interesting build to say the least. It would have been cool if the WW&F had actually purchased these cars as projected. I'll use them on the module. Portland is talking about making the Brigton fuel tanks, so I might go ProtoFreelance for that part of the Albion module. Who knows, there's actually drawn plans for expansion.....

Car Progress

Finishing some final touches on the B&H or B&SR boxcar. Added the roof walk and platforms, brake wheel, etc. The roof end platforms were a real pain, had to re-do them three times to get them level with the top of the car. Put the right trucks on it. Just needs a little weathering and some brakes on one of the trucks. I'm happy with how it turned out. Didn't add the B&SR lettering, since it sits on my WW&F module.

Getting closer with the WW&F passenger car and Sandy River Mail car/Combine. Turns out I don't have the right lettering, so I have to order some before the final coat of finish. Then the windows, then I'm done. Still waiting for my replacement sides for the WW&F combine. Emails to GME are going unanswered.

B&SR RR Box Car

I did some horse trading a while back and picked up a Simpson B&SR RR box car #47 kit. I've always been a fan of the B&SR or B&H two foot in Maine. I like there track layouts, equipment, why just about the whole thing. Plus, I like shorter cars, as in 24-26 ft cars rather than the 30-32 foot cars of the "later years".

The kit was fairly well complete and ready to assemble. I had to do a few modifications. The scribed wood for the floor was all too wide, so I had to cut them down on the table saw. The steel corner posts are a but small but as per instructions, I could have made them out of styrene instead of the Gradtline castings. Finally, the scribed siding for the door seemed much to thick, so I substituted some thinner material. Its amazing how narrow in thickness narrow gauge car doors really are.

I used some 0.010 wire and some tin tape to simulate the tin roof. Think I need to use thinner wire next time. Here are some shots of the car before going into the paint shop. When it comes out, I'll add the roof walk, brake platforms, and brake wheel. A fairly quick kit to assemble and while its not WW&F, I'll be using it on the Ablion module.