More Boxcar Projects

[rogertra]

Richard aka Electrical Whiz Kid asked me to post these two: -

The one in subject is of an Eastern Car Works depr. centre flat that got too close to a heat lamp whilst trying to straighten out a warp...

[jbrock27]

Jonathan, what material would you say the "cutable weight" is made from?

[jonathan]

Hmmm... It feels like soft rubber, and I can see metallic flakes infused within... lead or tungsten perhaps?

It was in the pinewood derby section of the store.

Regards,

Jonathan

[jbrock27]

Thank you for getting back to me.

[Mdaskalos]

Wayne,

I gotta tell you, the water in that last picture in the series of them, of the train crossing the river, is probably the most impressive water I've seen in a model railroad. The rippling on the surface is great in and of itself, but the clear/muddy transition is a tremendous touch of authenticity for me: In my hometown, where the Elk River runs into the Kanawha River, it looks just like that, with the Elk continuously dumping its murk into the Kanawha.

Manuel

[jbrock27]

I looked last night in Michael's for the stuff that Jonathan found and they do not have it (they also no longer carry Pinewood Derby items).  Also looked there for Mirco Brushes, no luck there either.

No Wayne, I did not get the video, unless I am missing something.
I did find a single shaft can motor but alas it is slightly higher and longer than the original and is not a drop in fit, so I will be doing some milling of the frame to get it to fit.  Not what I expected but it will be a fun learning experience nonetheless

[jbrock27]

I am sure I will.  I am not one to whine about problems, rather I like to fix and solve them.

Thanks Wayne, I will go back and check it out.

[J3a-614]

Between the work by Jonathan, Roger, and Dr. Wayne, I'm convinced I live in the wrong time, at least as far as trains go (but I've known that for a while!) 

Most interesting in Dr. Wayne's video of his "Bee" is the carbon black hopper in the train.  Where did that come from?

And the tank car in the consist reminded me of how tank cars are their own world as far as weathering goes.  Today they mostly look kind of dusty, with the grease stains from the wheels in certain areas, but in the steam age it wasn't uncommon to see some stains from the ladding where something got spilled in loading.  That would be a big no-no in today's environmentally regulated world (and it is undoubtedly and improvement), but it also is a difference in how you would apply weathering if modeling the steam era vs. today.

[rogertra]

Thank you, Manuel, for your kind words.

I actually based the river on the Grand River here in southern Ontario - it's like any other river, calm at times and then seemingly out of control.  It's often muddy in the Spring, what with the rain combined with melting snow.
The Grand eventually empties into Lake Erie, and while I've named mine the Maitland River, (the real Maitland River flows into Lake Huron), mine is modelled at the point just before it meets Lake Erie.  Here's a photo which better illustrates that:



One of my freelanced railroads is the Grand Valley, with the line more-or-less following the west bank of the river, which on the layout is represented by the aisleway.

Wayne

That is one impressive photo.  You need to send that the MR.

One prototype nit pick.  The Train number board, up on the top of the boiler,  reads "X725".  As this is an extra, the number should read "X25" as an extra is always given the lead locomotive's number.  A little black paint and that's fixed. 

But again, excellent photo.

Cheers

Roger T.

[J3a-614]

Dr. Wayne, thanks for the link to Rail Shop and the carbon black hopper.  The prototype area I'm modelling in West Virgina includes a substantial chemical industry (though I'm not modeling the chemical plants themselves--they are huge!), and carbon black hoppers and appropriate tank cars would be part of the train makeups in the 1940s.

Needless to say, I had to get one of these from Bachmann (Walthers listing shown); wish this was available with other numbers:

http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/160-17144

I'm also glad to see the PRR H-30 covered hopper in the Rail Shop listing, too; some photos of those cars also show up in the area as well.

Now if only I could find some appropriate 1940s era pressure or gas tank cars (easy enough), and the decals for Carbide & Carbon (now Union Carbide) for them (a bit tougher these days. . .), not to mention still having to acquire another hundred or so hopper cars for all the coal traffic (to go with the 50 or 60 already here--remember you need enough to simulate both loaded and empty trains), plus detail and decorate same. . .

Wonder if I should have picked a shortline or a midwestern road with box cars that you can't tell are loaded or empty?

[Desertdweller]

I have worked for two railroads that switched carbon black plants, one in Texas and one in Kansas.  Everything associated with its production is extremely messy.  It is the soot from the incomplete combustion of oil.  Various chemicals are added to the oil to produce carbon black of differing properties.

The stuff is moved within the plant in tubes, by compressed air.  The interior of the plant and the floor withing it is coated with a uniform layer of flat black powder.  It contains enough oil that it sticks to all horizontal and vertical surfaces.  Almost all is carried in covered hoppers.   Some is also transported in large bags in box cars.  All covered hopper cars I have seen in this service soon become flat black, regardless of the color they are painted.

These days, carbon black is usually carried in shipper-owned cars (with an "X" suffix on the reporting marks.  The most common paint scheme is black with white lettering.

The workers in these plants naturally become coated with the stuff daily.  It has to be real hard on their eyes and lungs.  I complained to a friend of mine who was a chemical engineer about how filthy the stuff was.  His reply was "It's not filthy, it's just carbon, the same stuff we are made of!"

Of course, this will also coat the locomotives.  I tried to keep some cars between my locomotive and the plant itself, but that was not always possible.  Once it gets on a locomotive, one can get dirty just walking past it.

Carbon black plants are often located in or near oil fields, handy to a local supply of raw material.  It is used in making ink, pigments, and a lot of other things.  It is what makes tires black.

[electrical whiz kid]

I believe I remember hearing that this stuff used to be made from the bones of animals.  Comparing the two, I would rather work at a nitro mixing facility.  I used to go into O.Z.Gedney to do repair work a long time ago, and those guys qualified for black lung benefits-and that was just a foundry!  I don't care what that engineer says, the workers qualify for black lung benefits for a reason!

Rich C.

[jonathan]

Well, I finally broke down and bought some weathering powders at the last train show.  For 12 bucks I received four colors and a little case to aid in application:



This particular brand has some sort of microglobule adhesive built in.  The adhesive activates as you brush on the powder. Supposedly, you don't need to dullcote after application.  I know, sounds weird to me, too.  

Anyway, my plan was to keep the weathering as minimal as possible.  However, it's hard to stop!  Applying weathering powder is fun, as it turns out.  

Now, after watching the few color videos and photographs of steam era trains, I observed that boxcars seem to be darker on the roofs and around the doors.  Let's call that soot.  I'm sure we all observe different details about weathering. Also, I'm sure weathering can be based on time of year and location (desert, forest, etc.).  Hopefully, weathering is one of those personal preference things.

Here's how my cars are turning out:








Seven cars done, about 70 to go.  Whew.

Regards,

Jonathan

[WoundedBear]

Jonathan..........

I just know that you're going to like using powders. I use the Doc Obriens set from MicroMark. They have the same self adhesive properties as the ones you picked up. I seldom use a sealer over them. If the model is going to be handled a lot, I might think about sealing the powder, but for the majority of my projects, it's all been good. Overspraying with dullcoat can sometimes lessen the effect of the powder and another application may be needed.

If you go too far with the powder, it can usually be washed off with water, then try again. A hint......don't use these on your normal work surface.....they will stain it. I try to work on a piece of newspaper. Also, save your leftover powder from the newspaper into a small container. The mixed colors that result are good for general dusting of items.

NIce work, as usual.

Sid

[jonathan]

Thanks, Sid!

The tips are much appreciated.

Regards,

Jonathan