PRR Transition Era Gondola Fleet presentation files

 

My presentation from Hindsight 20/20 4.0 this past weekend can be viewed as a youtube video or just the presentation file in .pdf format. Enjoy and all feedback is welcome

Hindsight 20/20 4.0

 Registration is open for Hindsight 20/20 4.0 at the Speedwitch site

Sunshine Models Burlington XM-29

 

I recently finished this model for friend and 'Q' modeler Al Hoffman. He did all the construction and detailing. I took his good work and media blasted the metal details with aluminum oxide. I washed the model using liquid dish soap and a soft toothbrush. I applied a base coat of Tamiya XF-66 Light Grey. For the body color, I used Red Leather (136) by Vallejo.

The decals are a mix. The dimensional data came from Microscale's 87-734 set for CB&Q wood box cars. The other lettering, including reporting marks, capacity, build data, etc., were scrounged from Speedwitch CB&Q lettering. Interestingly, the plate on the door for the "Burlington Route" emblem was too small compared to the decals from Speedwitch, Westerfield, and Microscale. I had to make the white border slightly smaller to fit and it is evident if one looks closely, as the lines are close the the "B" and "n" in "Burlington."

Paul Dunn photo

The 500 members of the XM-29 class were built in 1936 in company shops and assigned to nos. 25500-25999. They continued the Q's preference for single sheathed cars. HO scale Q modelers are fortunate as all of the single sheathed classes from XM-21 through XM-31 (the class XM-24 class was 40-ton USRA double sheathed cars) have been available as resin kits. The USRA cars have been produced in both styrene (Rapido, Accurail, and Ertl) and resin (Westerfield and Funaro & Camerlengo.)

More Tools

 

Blade One Nipper Item Code: GODGH-PN-120 

I frequently espouse keeping up with the goings-on within the military modeling community. They seem to operate in a parallel world that sometimes intersects with ours, but seemingly should more often. Over the years, I have found many incredibly useful tools that those guys use that we in the model railroading community know little about. These tools from GodHand are good illustrations. The nippers are incredible. Their cutting edge is quite sharp and the leverage of the cut is solid, with the cutters doing the work. The sharpness of the cutting edges means that things that would often deform through cutting, such as hollow tubelike shapes, do not; the cutting action starts before any "crushing" forces are imparted, making them extremely delicate. They won't make my Swiss nippers obsolete, as their jaws are not as fine, but they have firmly established a place in the tool box.

The other find from GodHand are these chiseling tips. Think of them as the old Xacto no. 17 blade on many doses of steroids. They are incredibly sharp (as in be very careful sharp.) They are also substantial hardened metal, making them work with less effort than the old Xacto blade. There is far less "slippage" since these do their work with less effort. I have used them many times and love them; I can't wait to try them to remove the end detail from an MDC 50' single sheathed auto car. The handle shown above is an Excel handle from MicroMark (Excel part no. 30605.) I purchased the GodHand items from HobbyLink Japan, but you can find them on eBay, too. Postage was modest and they arrived quickly.

Left item (green) is Bit Blade: Flat Blade Set of 5pcs Item Code: GODGH-BBH-1-3

Right item (red) is Bit Blade: Round Blade Set of 5pcs Item Code: GODGH-BBM-1-3

 

Union Pacific B-50-24

 

Another throwback... of the models I built for the "Essential Freight Cars" series this is one of my favorites. I was thrilled with the outcome, particularly the weathering and it is such an attractive car. In case you did not see the article, the model is a Trix/Marklin UP B-50-24/27 box car, with the body stripped. I replaced the roof with an IMWX roof and added a Speedwitch UP welded underframe. The model was lettered with Speedwitch decals from set D125. I was also thrilled to have a prototype that used the Superior power hand brake from Red Caboose (see below.)

Bob's Photo

The UP B-50-24 & -27, along with several other classes of UP steel box cars and some groups on the SP and SSW, had "alternate center rivets" in the middle of the steel side sheets, as shown in the photo above. This was a subtle, yet distinctive detail that prototype modelers seek to replicate. Below is a table that details the various groups of the B-50-24 and -27 cars.

Class	Reporting Marks	Series	Quantity	Year Built	Builder
B-50-24	UP	187000-187499	500	1939	UP Omaha
B-50-24	UP	187500-188199	700	1939	UP Grand Island
B-50-24	OWR&N	188300-188999	700	1939	UP Albina
B-50-27	OWR&N	189000-189299	300	1940	UP Albina
B-50-27	OSL	189400-189899	500	1940	UP Albina
B-50-27	UP	190000-190599	600	1940	UP Grand Island
B-50-27	UP	190600-190699	100	1940	UP Omaha