Soo Line 39826 "sawtooth" Box Car

Soo Line single-sheathed "sawtooth" box car, Speedwitch Media kit K108.2, is out of the M&N Shops where it received number 39826,series 39200-40198. The Speedwitch Media kit instruction sheet history portion states these cars closely followed the Canadian Pacific Fowler design; however, with some exceptions. The most distinctive feature of the cars was the method used to tie the crossbearers and body bolsters into the side structural members. The zee bar structural members extended below the side sill and tied into the ends of the crossbearers and bolsters.  This arrangement has been called the "sawtooth" single sheathed design by freight car researchers. The Soo Line Freight Equipment and Cabooses book by Ken J. Soroos, on page 11, states in 1923 500 cars of the subject car were built by American Car & Foundry.  These cars were the last of the 40 ft. single-sheathed cars built with five-foot doors and peaked roofs. The cars became the dominant visual standard for Soo Line box cars into the 1950's.

Soo Line box car 39826 sitting on MILW Interchange

The kit has an excellent one piece body so no time is spent building the "box", that is assembling the ends, sides and roof. Therefore, you start by fitting the underbody into the car body.  The kit instructions are very complete and have good photos to guide you with the underbody work; however, I did make several changes.  I used Kadee #262 couplers boxes rather than the resin cast kit ones, brake levers were made from Evergreen #8108 1x8" and #8106 1x6" strip styrene, and flora wire, .019" diameter, was used for the train line.  A tee made available due to efforts of Tom Madden and Geroge Toman and printed by Shapeways was installed on the train line to hook up the Tichy Train Group (Tichy) , set #3013, dirt collector. In addition, Tichy, #8021, turnbuckles were used for clevises on the brake rodding and A-Line, #29219, black 40 links per inch was used. The Accurail Andrews trucks provided in the kit received InterMountain
33" metal wheels.

Click or tap on  any photo to enlarge

Note Tee fitting on train line

With underbody completed to my satisfaction, I turned to the "B" end details. Again the kit instructions have good photos to guide you when adding the details.  I added a bracket to the brake shaft and a two brackets to the retainer line on the "B" end.  I bent the uncoupling levers from Tichy, #1106, .0125" diameter phosphor bronze wire and installed them with the Detail Associates provided eyebolts for brackets.

On the sides I made only a minor change. I carved off the cast door handles and replaced them with ones I bent from .010" diameter brass wire.

New wire door handles make a difference

Next I completed the roof details.  All running boards are in the kit as is the 1x4" strip styrene you use to form the support brackets for the laterals.  I did add lateral support bracket fasteners using MEK Goop, plastic melted in MEK. I used Yarmouth Models Works etched eyebolts, #YMW 256, for the roof grab irons corner brackets rather than the supplied eyebolts. I also made the longitudinal running board extension support brackets from Evergreen, #8102, 1x2" strip styrene which can be see in the photo of the "B" end.

Bracket fasteners made with MEK

The Soo Line box car was now moved to the paint shop. Before paint application, I washed the car body with a makeup cotton swab dipped in 91% isopropyl alcohol to remove any final traces of mold release agent and build grime.  I next sprayed the underbody Vallejo Model Air Dark Grey Blue, 71.054 (tarnished black).  The color for the box car body was based on the paint color
mix of Zinc Chrome Primer with a touch of Red Oxide suggested in the kit instructions.  I used the suggested colors to create a paint mix of Polly Scale Zinc Chrome Primer, F414293, 50
drops and Model Master Oxide Red Flat, #4882, 10 drops, thinned with a custom thinner mix of distilled water, Vallejo air brush thinner and flow improver, to spray the car body. The paint
mix after applied to the car, in my opinion, is a nice match for colors photos of early Soo Line box cars in the Soo Line Equipment and Cabooses book by Ken Soroos.  Once the paint was dry
I sprayed the car body with Model Master, #4638, Gloss Clear Acryl for a decal base.  Kit decals, with design credit to Ken Soroos of the Soo Line Historical & Technical Society, were
applied using MicroScale Micro Set and Micro Sol.  Once dry the decals were cut through on board lines on the car body with a single-edged razor blade and recoated with MicroSclae Micro
Sol.  I like to cut the decals and recoat as it provides the model with the appearance that the lettering is really painted on the wood sides.  Again after the decals were dry the car body
was sprayed with Model Master, #4636, Flat Clear Acryl for decal and handling protection. No weathering yet as I like to give the paint several days to dry.



Soo Line box car 39826 on MILW Interchange

Soo Line single-sheathed "sawtooth" box car 39826 is now in service on the Minneapolis & Northland Railroad Company.  I soon hope to have it joined by a second car with the only exceptions being a small "WC" in the upper left corner on the side and a number in the series of these cars that went to the Wisconsin Central.

Thank You for taking time to read my blog.  You can share a comment in the section below if you choose to do so.  Please share the blog link with other model railroaders.
Lester Breuer

Painting Jigs

Once a resin or undecorated plastic freight car is finished, off to the paint booth it goes. After preparing the model via washing with liquid detergent soap or 91% isopropyl alcohol and drying (usually a hair dryer is used to speed up drying) the model is ready for paint. My paint choice today is normally an acrylic paint as Vallejo or Model Master.  I still have a supply of Model Master which was removed from the paint market.

I always begin painting a freight car with the underbody.   For this task I like to use  a jig/car holder made of brass that Joe Binish soldered up for me.  Joe used the article "Building an Adjustable Paint Stand"  that appeared in Railroad Model Craftsman in July 1997.  As the article title states the adjustable paint stand which I call a "car holder/jig" is adjustable enabling it to hold a 36 ft., 40 ft. or 50 ft. car.

Brass Car Holder jig.
(Click on this or any image to expand.)

Brass Car Holder Jig in adjusted position.

When I airbrush a freight car I begin by spraying the underbody first.  Since I mount trucks and couplers early in a freight car build to have them installed to get the car weighted properly I remove them and use the brass adjustable car holder.

Adjustable car holder used  to airbrush underbody
of a freight car.

The adjustable car holder is also useful for other painting tasks including the spraying of a tank car.  One other task I like the adjustable car holder for is the painting of a car end when it needs to be a different color, such as black, from the rest of the car body.

Adjustable car holder with car taped
ready to have end airbrushed.

Once I have the underbody sprayed I remount the trucks and couplers and proceed with the car body color or colors.  I used to tape off the underbody; however, I believed there had to be a better way.  My solution to avoid the taping off  the underbody after spraying  is a simple jig/car holder anyone can build or use.  I use this car holder/jig with trucks and couplers mounted as you can just drop in the car as the cardboard sides protect the underbody and trucks.

The car holder/jig consists of a piece of lumber, 3/4" x 3 1/2" x 6", four nails inserted as shown in the photo and a 3/4" band  cut from cardboard surrounding the nails.  The band has a cutout on each end for the coupler to sit in. The dimensions in the photo are for a 40 ft. HO scale freight car.

A simple to make car holder with wood,
cardboard and four nails.

 I can not avoid taping completely as the couplers, in my opinion, still need to be covered with tape to maintain proper working order.  The car is placed in the jig/car holder and sprayed using airbrush or paint "rattle" can. The jig is especially handy for a RTR car or any car that needs a quick clear coat. Just drop the car in and spray.  

Car in car holder/jig with couplers taped

I have made car holders/jigs for longer cars.  Of course, the longer jigs can also be used for shorter cars.  The longer car holders were made using no nails at the corners of the 3/4" cardboard band.   I found 3M Blue painters tape worked just fine to hold the 3/4" cardboard bands to the wood base.

Car holder/jig for longer cars.

                                       

The simple jigs/car holders I have shown and described here have saved me a lot of time in the Minneapolis & Northland Railroad Company Paint Shop.  I hope you will find the same is true for you should you give them a try.

There are many other car holders or jigs for painting freight cars that individuals have made and shared with modelers.   One such car holder is made with folded cardboard stapled to a wood base.  This car holder can be found in the May 1995 issue of Model Railroader on page 148.   Another car holder is one using wire mounted on a wood base.  The wire is inserted into the bolster holes for truck mounting to hold the car for painting.  This car holder/jig can be found in the February 1996 issue of Model Railroad on page 163 or in the September 1984 issue of Model Railroader on page 147.

Thank You for taking time to read my blog.  You can share a comment in the section below if you choose to do so.   Please provide your name if you choose to leave a comment.   Please share the blog link with other model railroaders.
Lester Breuer

.

Swift Refrigerator Line 14973

Swift Refrigerator Line 14973, another Walthers kit 932-2551, is out of the M&N Shops and back in service on the railroad.  Swift Refrigerator Line 14973 began service in 1996 as did 14970.  The car received the same detail changes except for the Royal slack adjuster as Swift Refrigerator Line 14970 described in detail on this blog . On this car the Royal slack adjuster installed was a resin cast part from the parts inventory rather than being scratch built as on Swift Refrigerator Line 14970. You can enjoy the photos and if you wish to read the upgrade details please find Swift Refrigerator Line 14970.

Car on Swift plant siding.

 

Click or tap on photos to enlarge

 

Cars sitting on Swift plant siding after icing at Kool Ice

 

 

Thank You for taking time to read my blog.  You can share a comment in the section below if you choose to do so.  Please share the blog link with other model railroaders.
Lester Breuer

Swift Refrigerator Line 14970

During the build of Sunshine Models Swift refrigerator 14950 (described on this blog) I learned about the brine tank release rod, a feature on this car as well as some other Swift refrigerator cars. I decided to add the brine tank release rod to two Walthers plastic reefers of similar design in my freight car fleet since 1996 that should; however, do not have this feature. The prototype refrigerator cars, built in 1954 by General American Transportation Corporation, on the sides have four steel sheets laid horizontally with a pronounced horizontal seam, or overlap, midway up the car side.  A vertical rivet pattern of alternate center rivets tied the side sheet to the internal vertical posts.  The outside length of these refrigerator cars was 43 ft. per the 1953 Official Railway Equipment Register (ORER).  A special feature of the cars was the brine tank release rod located on the right side on both ends of the car running from the valve on the bottom of the car to the handle at the roof level.  The cars received the red with white lettering paint scheme and placed in the 14970 to 14979 series.  These cars were built with the same design and features of the previous 149xx series cars.  A photo of  Swift refrigerator 14950 from Doug Harding's Collection can be found on this blog under Swift Refrigerator Line14950. 

I started the upgrade with steel Swift reefer 15538, Walthers kit 932-2551, first. In a prior upgrade, molded on grab irons had been cut off and replaced with grab irons bent from Detail Associates, #2503, .010" diameter or #2504, .012 diameter brass wire. Roof grab irons used Detail Associates, #2206, eyebolts for corner brackets.  I modified the sill tabs to match prototype photo. Uncoupling levers were fabricated from Details Associates, #2503, .010" brass wire and again Detail Associates, #2206, eyebolts were used for mounting brackets. The kit trucks had Proto 2000, #920-21259, 33" ribbed back metal wheel sets installed.

Swift reefer prior to upgrade and new number

Before adding the brine tank release rods, I decided to start with the roof.  I removed the original kit running board and replaced it with a Kadee, #2000, Apex running board.

Click on this photo and other to enlarge

Now I turned to the "B" end to install the brine tank release rod. The release rod is made with Detail Associates .020" dia. brass wire with a bottom valve made from scrap styrene and the handle above the roof from a mounting pin cut off the Kadde running board to which a piece of Detail Associates brass wire was added. I mounted the release lever with Detail Associates, #2206, eyebolts for brackets. Once the release rod was in place I decided the "B" end needed additional details. I cut a new brake step from one of the Kadee, #2000, Apex running board laterals and installed it with brackets made from Evergreen, #8102, 1x2" strip styrene.  I installed a Sunshine Models resin retainer valve from the parts box and added a retainer line made with Tichy Train Group , #1100,.008" diameter phosphor bronze wire (PBW). A new chain from the brake housing to the brake rod was added using A-Line, #29219, black 40 links per inch black chain.  A Kadee, #2030, Ajax brake wheel was installed.

The end lettering was incorrect as it was black applied on the white fascia stripe.  I removed the lettering with a nylon scratch brush. I touched up the paint with Vallejo Model Color White, #70.951 and Flat Red, #70.975.  The Vallejo Flat Red needed a brushed coat of Model Master 4637 Semi-Gloss Clear Acryl to match the factory red paint.  New white lettering was made with Clover House, #9600-11, Railroad Roman Condensed Bold-White dry transfer lettering applied to decal paper coated with Microscale Liquid Decal Film. The shop made decals were applied using Microscale Micro Sol. As I added the previous details, the ladder rungs began to look very large and I decided they needed replacing.  I cut the rungs off with a sprue cutter and replaced them on the end ladders with rungs cut from Plastruct, #90850, .010" styrene round rod.

 

Next, I made changes on the sides.  I cut off ladder rungs on side ladders and new rungs cut from Plastruct, #90850, .010" styrene round rod were installed. Molded on sill steps were cut off and replaced with A-Line, #29002, type C, on the ends and Yarmouth Model Works, #200, sill steps were installed under the doors to replace the previously installed A-Line ones.  I did not remove the straight grab irons on the left side of the door; however, they could be replaced with Kadee bracket style type. The route card holder was carved off and moved to current location.  The number 15538 was removed with a nylon scratch brush and the number 14970 was applied using Clover House, set #9600-11, dry transfer lettering described above.  I changed the number from the 155xx series, 37 ft. in length, to the 149xx series, 43 ft. in length, based on length.  The Walthers car is a better match to the 43 ft. series.  In addition, the tall door hinges and latch are the same as the short door needed on this car.  Now the final major change was to rework the tall door into a short door.

To create the short door I carefully carved off the upper two hinges on the door on each side and put them aside to be reinstalled.  I scribed a new upper door line.  Now I carved off the upper section of the door latch and again put it aside to be reinstalled.  Having established the new door height,  I installed the carved off hinges and door latch per prototype photo.  A new drip edge at the top of the scribed door line was made using Plastruct, #90851, .020" styrene round rod. 

Tall door before rework into short door and new number

 

 

New short door and new number

 

I thought the upgrade was finished until I looked at the underbody. The air reservoir and control valve were in the wrong location so they were moved to the correct location.  New air reservoir mounts were made with sill steps cut off other upgraded cars.  I scratch built a royal slack adjuster, correct for this car, from styrene using the data in an article written by George Toman that can be found on the Resin Car Works blog.  The slack adjuster was mounted and Tichy brake levers, set #3013, were installed. Brake piping from air reservoir to the control valve was made with Tichy, #1100,.010" PBW. The brake pipe from the brake cylinder to control valve was made using Tichy, #1106, .0125" diameter PBW.  All brake rods are also made with Tichy, #1106, .0125" PBW.  The chain is A-Line, #29219, black 40 links per inch.  A train line and dirt collector could be installed.

Upon completing underbody upgrade, I weathered the car again with eye-shadow makeup.  Finally, I decided this upgrade was finished.  I have Swift refrigerator 14970 back into service on the Minneapolis & Northland Railroad Company. I will now do the upgrade of my other Walthers Swift Refrigerator Line car as well.  On the remaining Swift Refrigerator Line I may make additional lettering changes using Clover House, Swift set 9300-09, to match the original lettering.

 

I wish to thank Bob Heninger for his suggestion I change my focus from the number on the car  to the length of the car.  Once I did that the upgrade became much easier as the car length was close to prototype with a new number and short door was much easier to build than the door on the 155xx series.  And, I wish to thank Doug Harding for providing the photo of Swift 14950 from his collection used for this upgrade.


Thank You for taking time to read my blog.  You can share a comment in the section below if you choose to do so.  Please share the blog link with other model railroaders.
Lester Breuer