A confession and a question!

[Searsport]

I am, for the very first time, about to dirty-up a boxcar. Why? Well I have a pile of old Athearn / Bev-Bel / Roundhouse kits unbuilt that I could either sell for not very much or do something with, that something being something I would not be bold enough to do to a modern, expensive, state of the art gem.

My first candidate is Bev-Bel 1094, Louisiana & Arkansas 40' Boxcar in boxcar brown with Southern Belle herald, built 11-47. I am going to model this with the door open on one side, with some guys handling the cargo, so that it can either be run apparently closed-up, or stand stationary being loaded / unloaded, simply by changing the side on view.

My questions are, would a car of this era have a plain wood-planked floor, linoleum, or what and what color? And would the interior walls / ceiling be painted white to maximise visibility?

I have found lots of guidance on how to weather the exterior / roof / underframe / trucks / wheels / etc., but not much detail on the interior.

Grateful for any advice / info,
Thanks,
Bill.

[jonathan]

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,30811.105.html

Bill, I experimented with boxcar interiors.  I found very few photos of interiors from that era.  I found wood floors and interior walls seem to be the norm.

I painted the interior wall a very light tanish color, very light--lots of white mixed in.

For the interior floors, I faked it with some Evergreen siding, painted a wood-like color with dark weathering added.

The link above may, or may not, help your project.  Most of my work was "best guess" rather than following an actual prototype.

Regards,

Jonathan

[Searsport]

Hi Jonathan, thanks. Wow - are those the Exactrail B&O Wagontops? They are on my wish-list!! And exactly the sort of cars I would not want to take a risk with until proficient.

The Bev-Bel does come with a representation of planking, if you consider a raised line between each plank as such - more like a health and safety trip-hazard for 1/87 feet!

Best Regards,
Bill.

[jonathan]

They are Funaro and Camerlengo Resin Kits.  I've built around 50 of their kits--couple dozen are the wagon tops.  Both fun and frustrating.

Regards,

Jonathan