SN3

[Frisco]

Hi, I found  a SN3 tank car that I like, I know that the wheels, trucks, and maby underframe detail will have to be changed but how will the car look with ON30?

[Hamish K]

My guess would be too small - I know some standard gauge s scale items look OK converted to ON30 so narrow gauge items (being smaller)  are likely to be a bit little. However prototype sizes varies a lot, so without knowing the particular item one can not be sure. Really you need to view the item together with your ON30 equipment.  And of course if it looks right to you - it is, whatever others think.  Remember though it is not just overall size that matters but details - 1:64 scale details could look odd next to 1:48 scale items.

Hamish

[renniks]

    Photos on a On30 group of a sg S scale tank that has been converted to On30 show that it is larger than the Bachmann car so a Sn3 version may not look too bad.

    Eric UK

[railtwister]

Measuring it with a scale rule would give you some idea if the proportions seem reasonable for On30. If you model mostly 3' gauge prototypes, it's probably a bit small, but for 2' prototypes or 1/4" scale industrial equipment it might be fine. Going in the other direction, I have thought a couple of times that the On30 inside frame 4-4-0 would be a great candidate for a kitbash into an Sn42 locomotive.

Regards,
Bill Nielsen
Oakland Park, FL USA

[ebtbob]

Good Morning All,

         How will the Sn3 tankcar look?    How it looks to you is all that matters.   I have both On30 and HOn3 in my basement.   Among the HOn3 rolling stock are Blackstone cars from Colorado and East Broad Top cars.   The EBT cars are slightly bigger and unless you know the facts,  look too big.   The reality is that EBT equipment tended to be bigger than that equipment used in the west.   To some the EBT stuff looks too big and shouldn't be used but again,  it is all in the eye of the beholder.
        Almost all of my On30 rolling stock is Bachmann.   But....this past May I got two of the Deerfield River Laser  EBT caboose kits.    I have seen this car built up and is every bit as big as the Bachmann boxcar and to some looks too big,   but......I think it looks great and is a car I have wanted for several years now,   so they will be built and used on my railroad.

[Frisco]

Thanks, I can't see the real thing as it is a brass tank car on Ebay. I plan on modeling 3-foot proto-types so I will probaly not get it. Thanks, Ryan

[Hamish K]

Thanks, I can't see the real thing as it is a brass tank car on Ebay. I plan on modeling 3-foot proto-types so I will probaly not get it. Thanks, Ryan

Do you know the prototype?  If so, and its dimension are obtainable some idea of its suitability as an ON30 item could be worked out.

Hamish

[Frisco]

It is just like the Large scale no-frame tank car.

[Hamish K]

It is just like the Large scale no-frame tank car.

If my calculations are correct, a 1:64 scale version of the Bachmann Large Scale frameless tank car would be about 6 1/2 inches long, 1 3/8 inches wide and 1 7/8 inches high. The Bachmann ON30 tank car is about 6 1/2 inches long, 2 inches wide and 3 inches high. So, assuming your car is to the same (prototype) dimensions as the Large Scale frameless tank car its length would be similar to Bachmann ON30 equipment, but it would be considerably narrower and lower. I doubt that it would look OK in an ON30 context

Hamish

[Frisco]

Ok, thanks.