PRR F29 Load Update

In the first post about constructing a Funaro & Camerlengo Pennsy F29 depressed center flat car, I made reference to a Walthers transformer load that I was possibly going to use on this car. Fast forward a couple of weeks and in looking at the transformer once I had it in my hands, it appears to be too modern for my late-1940s dated car. So, I went back to the drawing board and became optimistic about a Bachmann boiler that is marketed integrally with their depressed center flat car. I obtained the pair for assessment.

The Bachmann boiler

The boiler is a marine boiler (I believe; I'm not an engineer or a researcher of boilers!) that scales out to about 20 feet long with a diameter of about 10 feet. The lower portion of the deck of the F29 is a little longer than 20 feet, making the boiler an ideal fit. It is going to be a perfect load for this car... with one exception. It does not weigh very much and neither does the F&C F29 (and there is no place to hide weight in the F29). The boiler is assembled, with both of the ends glued in place and I don't want to risk damaging it by trying too aggressively to pry it apart. However, I suspect I can cut a slot longitudinally in the bottom of the boiler, where it will be invisible once the boiler is loaded on the flat car, and insert lead sheet to bring the weight of the car and boiler combo up to an acceptable level.

The opposite end of the boiler

I also referred to the loading instructions for such a boiler on a flat car as contained in Rules Governing the Loading of Commodities on Open Top Cars, from the AAR, revised 1941, effective March 1, 1942. They are presented herein and will be used to create a prototypical arrangement, including the rods, blocks, and braces.

Loading diagram for boilers

The boiler also has some very prominent mold parting lines that need to be cleaned up. The rivets along those lines are also either missing or deformed. I will clean up these lines through sanding and add replacement rivets in the appropriate locations using Archer rivets. More to come as things progress...