Model this scene! Cedar Rapids, Iowa

 

"Untitled photo, possibly related to: Grain elevators and flour mill, freight yards. Cedar Rapids, Iowa," September, 1941, Marion Post Wolcott, FSA/OWI Collection, The Library of Congress, negative LC-USF34-090050-D

These images were recorded by Marion Post Wolcott in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in September, 1941. She was one of many professional photographers of the era who were contracted by the government to record facets of industry, culture, daily life, etc., under the auspices of the Farm Security Administration that morphed into the Office of War Information. They were mostly medium format, so the negatives are generally high quality, and the photographers were generally free to choose their subject matter. As they were recorded under government contract, there were (and are) no copyright restrictions on their use [note that people do download these images and sell prints of them; if you buy such an image you are generally paying for that which you could acquire for free with a little sleuthing.]

"Grain elevators and flour mill, freight yards. Cedar Rapids, Iowa," September, 1941, Marion Post Wolcott, FSA/OWI Collection, The Library of Congress, negative LC-USF34-090049-D

Back to these images... these three images illustrate (to me, at least) what would make an exceptional switching layout opportunity. I presume that these images were recorded over a relatively short period of time, yet you can see in the images the activity level. This entire scene could be recreated in a walkaround island four to six feet wide, depending upon your space and eight to twelve feet long, incorporating some or all of the industries and tracks shown or it could be narrowed to include fewer tracks and perhaps flats instead of full structures on one side and run along a wall. 

"Grain elevators and flour mill, freight yards. Cedar Rapids, Iowa," September, 1941, Marion Post Wolcott, FSA/OWI Collection, The Library of Congress, negative LC-USF34-090051-D

In these images you can see four (!) locos switching these tracks. There are plenty of operating opportunities here. There is also an interesting mix of cars, including the usual box cars plus automobile cars, stock car, reefers (including a dry ice refrigerator car,) tank cars, and coal gondolas. The Sanborn maps for this location can likely be located and there are probably resources about Cedar Rapids in historical society publications. If you're an aprtment dweller or have a small to modest-sized room available for your layout, you could do worse than to recreate this scene.

Pennsylvania Railroad X32A model photos

 

This post picks up the finishing of the pilot model for the Speedwitch X32A parts set (or with Shadow Keystone; note: if you want to peruse the instructions for these sets, the linked file can be found via the two previous links.) The model was painted using Polly Scale light freight car red, followed by Polly Scale zinc chromate primer. I lettered the model with National Scale Car's set for the PRR X31/32/33. Weathering included some streaking using artists' oils, dilute washes and more artists' oils (especially on the roof to simulate pooling of sooty/dirty water, etc.,) plus application of PanPastels in select places. The chalk marks are also from National Scale Car. The placards on the doors are images of actual placards that I had printed on decal paper. The route cards are from Owl Mountain.

I found the base color I airbrushed to be a little too dark for the prototype so instead of repainting the entire model, I sprayed the center of the panels on the sides and roof with a lighter color, resulting in a shaded outcome that was appealing (to me, at least)

I added oils to simulate the spray from the wheels of adjacent cars

The underframe was one of the impetuses for this entire project

Photos of the completed ATSF Bx-34

 

Here are some photos of my completed Santa Fe Bx-34 Modified 1937 AAR box car with Duryea Cushion underframe. The model was built using a Sunshine kit combined with Speedwitch parts (1959+ lettering.) I finished the model using Polly Scale mineral red for the majority of the car body plus Tamiya black for the roof.

The intention was to keep the weathering fairly modest. I applied some streaks using artists' oils dabbed on and brushed down the side using mineral spirits. I also added some light washes, again with thinned artists' oils. These were sealed with flat coats. I then added some sparing and selective applications of PanPastels and Bragdon powders, mostly to the roof, underframe, and trucks. The chalkmarks are from National Scale Car and the routing cards are from Owl Mountain. Excessive "unremoved" dust on the photo above courtesy of myself!

Weathering Book

 

mig Ammo (the paint and related supplies company) published a series of books related to the various techniques and skills needed to build and finish military models. Number 4 in the series (Encyclopedia of Aircraft modelling techniques) is "Weathering." Yes, I am aware that aircraft, armor, etc., aged and deteriorated in different ways than railroad equipment. However, the general techniques, materials, and tools presented in this book are excellent and would be a valuable reference to anyone seeking to learn about weathering or enhance their existing skills. In particular it covers techniques like chipping and using tools like watercolor pencils; my skills for both could stand improvement!  I cannot wait to try out some of the materials and techniques and will present the results on this blog. Military modelers always seem to be ahead of the curve on their skills, materials, and tools, although when the model is the only and end result, it makes the building and finishing paramount. If you can't hide the work among a sea of cars, structures, and scenery on a layout, close inspection is the only way to view it, revealing all flaws (and features too!)

I purchased my copy on ebay, although I noted that there are copies to be found there as well as from online hobby sellers that cater to the military modeling community. A good addition to the library

Where we are at...

 

I am typing this from an almost horizontal position. I was supposed to be arriving at Naperville today, but my balky back made other plans. So, I type this from home. It's been a couple months or so since I started things back up in earnest, including casting. As the "RPM season" sets in, I thought it a good time to share a little bit about what's coming over the next few months.

Some old Speedwitch stuff turned up: DT&I gondola, MEC ARA box car parts, NYC stock car roof and 50' combination rectangular and diagonal panel roof (some prototype details here.)

Parts sets have proven to be a good way to dip my toes in the casting pool. I mostly learned a few things about what shape of mold works best for me and how I like a few varieties of silicone. I am adding a couple wrinkles to the existing offerings. First, for the ATSF Bx-34 parts I have added the 1959-1970s scheme, illustrated in the photo at the top of the page. In addition, I have added Shadow Keystone decals covering 1950s+ schemes for the PRR X32A parts. 

This and the following three photos are of the R-40-25 parts

On the parts front, there are also a couple other offerings nearing release. The first is the PFE R-40-25. This set is intended for an undecorated Intermountain R-40-23 kit or any Amarillo/Intermountain PFE R-40-25 that is NOT the delivery scheme as the UP medallions on those cars are incorrect (I will share info on that when these parts are released.) The sets include correct resin ends and etched parts to correct/upgrade the underframe, side sill details, ladders, hatch cover supports, steps, etc. [there is a companion set for the R-40-26 that is in the works, as well; see undeframe photo below.] The other parts release is for the ITC 1937 AAR box cars with AC&F Carbuilder's ends and also includes resin details, etchings, and decals.

R-40-26 underframe floor casting... board-by-board!

Illinois Terminal AC&F Carbuilder's end for 1937 AAR box car (pre-production before changes)

Photo illustrating the extremely subtle ripples in the side sheathing of the PRR X43A

I am also charging ahead with some full kit offerings. The first is the Milwaukee 50' single sheathed auto cars that I teased awhile back. It will be released November 1st via the Speedwitch site (all decals, etchings, trucks, and other parts are already in house so they will ship immediately!) Another project is the Pullman-Standard-built Central of Georgia 10'0" inside height Emergency box car (PS if you have National Scale Car's set for the A&WP/WofA/Georgia, those decals will work on this model, as well.) If the CofGa offering proves popular, I will add Birmingham Southern, as well. I also have three PRR cars in the hopper: the G28, X43A and X45. The G28 is a project that I started years back. It will be a showstopper, with full underframe detail... and the underframe was a unique welded design with very interesting crossmembers so it bears full attention! The X43A was a 40', mostly postwar AAR design car, with welded sides. I have created patterns with extremely subtle waviness to the sides that I am extremely pleased with and they were unusual in the PRR universe in that they were delivered with black roofs. The last of these three is the X45, a proprietary PRR design for a 50' welded box car. I again added waviness to the sides and the Pennsy proprietary details, including the underframe, are really cool. 

The last of the full kits, but by no means least, and listed in its own paragraph, is a Western Pacific flat car built by AC&F in 1942 that is a fully 3D printed offering. It is spectacular. More details to follow on this gem...

A final tease... several years back I presented a clinic including details about scratchbuilding board-by-board patterns for single sheathed cars. I have been fruitlessly looking for those patterns for over a year. I thought they were lost in the past year's move. Well, a few weeks back, they were presented to me. Turns out I had sent them to someone along with a bunch of other stuff and they were returned! Here is the end for the car in question. IYKYK 

Yarmouth Model Works Etchings

 

An SP&S flat car that I mostly scratchbuilt and used YMW etched sill steps for detailing

Like many of you, I depended upon the Yarmouth Model Works etched metal detail parts for various projects. The shuttering of the brand has been met with shock and dismay by the modeling community. However, I am fortunate to be able to help stem that pain in some measure. I have taken on the etched metal parts line and am currently offering it via ebay “Buy it Now,” as that was the easiest and most expeditious path to getting it up and running. Over time, I will try to migrate it over to the Speedwitch site. Until then you can find what's available via this link.

An F&C PRR G22 with YMW sill steps and Carmer uncoupling devices

One note: I cannot guarantee that all items will be available at all times or will be rerun once sold. So, in other words, what's available is what's available. Also, I have not made any concrete decisions about taking this "on the road" to RPM meets. Once I decide about that, I will post an update in the usual places. 

Thanks to Pierre for making all these available and for reaching out to me to see about keeping it alive

Framingham Wool

 

This image is an ebay find that is one of those scenes that appears quite plain, yet has many of the details that we seek to replicate in our scaled-down worlds. The structure is part of Framingham Wool Company. Interestingly, while Framingham has a history in the industry, my attempts to find info about this specific company proved fruitless. 

There are many interesting details (to me, at least.) The last "inset" at the end of the platform and the one across from the end of the car closest to the photographer's position are doors. The center section has a classic gooseneck lamp over the doorway and sign that probably read, "Freight Office" or "Shipping & Receiving" or some other similar notation. That section presumably contained a freight elevator with the shaft running up to the roof. There is a single, window-mounted air conditioner unit on the third floor, presumably for an office space. The power pole at lower right has great detail, as well. Note how the vertical concrete sections between the windows are deeper by one or two factors for the lower floors. That's a highly realistic structural feature that is missing from many scale buildings.

Morris Abowitz photo

The Soo Line auto car was from groups of cars built in 1937, 1940, and 1942, by Pullman-Standard. They were assigned to series 76000-76198, 76200-76398, 175000-175498, 175500-175698, 175700-175898, and 175900-176498, even numbers only. There is one additional series, 176500-176598, although with my references I cannot confirm that it is identical. Resin Car Works offered HO scale kits for these cars that are currently out of production.

One other random detail is that there is actually a small rail yard visible at upper left, above the roof line. There isn't much to discern, but I could make out New Haven and Cotton Belt box cars.

All in all, a perfectly plain yet rich scene