Bits Box and Scrap

Many of my freight car builds, especially freight car upgrades  and freight car modifications (kitbashes), produce scrap that most modelers place in the trash.   Not the case on the my Minneapolis & Northland Railroad Company workbench (desk).   On my workbench I have what I and others have named our “bits box.”   In other freight car builds and upgrades described on this blog I have mentioned using materials from the bits box.   I thought it was time to explain what the bits box is and how it can be used.   In addition to the bits box, on my workbench I have two small scrap containers.  And, under the workbench a larger scrap container, gifted by a friend.  Of course, the normal waste basket is also near.  Why do I have a bits box and scrap containers?  I will show you and explain why.

Workbench with Bits Box and Scrap Containers.
(Click or tap on this or any image to enlarge.)

Scrap container under workbench.

First I want to tell you about  my bits box.  A plastic food container with a collection of product bubble formed covers on product packing to let us see what we are purchasing.   The various bits box container sections are for different scrap created during a modeling project.

Bits Box on workbench.

As you can see in bits box photo, it has several stacked containers for various items:  on the left small styrene and next to it larger styrene,  on the right pieces of phosphor bronze, brass, and other short lengths of wire, in front on the right tiny plastic scrap, in the front on the left larger plastic scrap and in the bottom for other.   Cleanup during or after a modeling project produces scrap that ends up here in one of the containers rather than in the waste basket if I believe they may be of future value. 

Bits Box sections.

One example of using the scrap in the bits box is from my latest freight car build.   During the build of a drop bottom gondola I used several pieces of wire for the piping between brake components from the bits box wire container.  And, I used several of the bits box plastic scrap pieces to create two parts on the underbody upgrade details.  The parts were the mount for the pivot plate for the floating brake lever and for the dirt collector.

Drop bottom gondola with bits box parts.

On this gondola I could not use a Tichy Train Group (Tichy) dirt collector from AB brake set #3013 due to small spacing between parts.   I could install the pipe, Tichy #1106, .0125” diameter phosphor bronze wire from AB valve to the train line (green floral wire).  I could create the dirt collector by using small scrap styrene rod molded in black and red color, from the bits box’s glued to the installed wire.   And, that is what I did.

Top view of dirt collector and floating lever
plate (yellow).

Mount under floating lever pivot plate and
dirt collector (black and red styrene rods).

During a freight car build or cleanup after a freight car build is finished in preparation for the next build, parts that are not considered of value to be placed in the bit box will be brushed into one of the scrap containers.

Scrap containers (old film containers)
on workbench.

Scrap containers on desk.

Large scrap container (sold as ash tray).

Large top allows scrap from workbench 
to be easily brushed in.

Lots of space for scrap remaining.

Collecting scrap from the workbench may cause you to ask, “ Have you lost your mind?”   “No”, again  please let me explain.   The scrap collected when building our freight cars can be used to create scrap loads for the freight cars, specifically for gondolas.   A base, in my case a piece of foam core board painted with Vallejo Model Color black #70.950 or packing foam cut to fit into the car, onto which white glue has been spread is covered with the collected workbench scrap from one of the containers.

Scrap loads made with scrap collected
from freight car builds.

Scrap load spotted for unloading at
Leone Foundry, Eureka Center, Minn.

Scrap load spotted for unloading at
Leone Foundry, Eureka Center, Minn.

If you have not already done so, maybe now you too will establish a bits box for your workbench.  And, you may even begin collecting scrap from your workbench.   Even if you do not do either, you can begin to understand and appreciate the phrase, " Model railroaders save everything."

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 sign your comment with your name if you choose to leave one.  All comments are reviewed and approved before they appear.  Please share the blog link with other model railroaders.

Lester Breuer

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