Hi Folks, Here is a link to images of loading an experimental heavy tank (T29, T30) onto a flatcar circa 1949. http://www.afvnews.ca/cgi-bin/web-bbs/webbbs_config.pl/read/60976 The car is USAX 38005.

I wrote: "One nice thing about this model is that it's weighed vice being too light." Tom Madden replied: ????? Out of the box, the model is within NMRA RP-20.1 for car weight, which is more than

larry kline wrote: <snip> "There is a photo showing part of an as-built Frisco USRA composite gon on p84 of the Polaritz P&LE 2-8-2 book. The Jan 53 ORER lists 385 of the 1000 Frisco USRA gons

The 49 PFE will be assembled. We have a hard time getting InterMountain to ship us kits because they are doing all the painting and lettering in China now. Thanks for your inquiry! Tom

Ben Hom: ????? Tom Madden

Eric Petersson asked: "What happened to the Proto 1000 car? Are they still available? I can't find them even mentioned on Life-Like's website." This model looks like it has come and gone, though the

Stefan Laine wrote: I guess the other question is, how realistic is it for my late 1940s to mid 1950s era SP California layout to feature such a car? Would Frisco gons have been seen off line much

Ted Cullotta wrote "I believe that they are still $25 per print." Indeed!

"Richard White" wrote: <snip> I have got Daniel Lanz's book "Railroads of Southern and Southwestern (sic)Wisconsin" but it has no photographs of coal cars that have legible road names. To the

Thanks! I've seen the magazine ad for Mount Clare Shops years ago, but didn't know they were still available. Question: I've read here that the West Shore M-53 is slightly smaller than

stefanelaine wrote: Assume for a minute that the SLSF gon would appear on the SP in California only if there was some commodity could be loaded on the Frisco that somebody in California wanted. Who

No, Tim, Lot 439-B (capital "B", pleases) were regular USRA steel cars. For non-USRA steel cars, I don't know where anybody got the idea that NYC had anything other than the 100 cars in Lot

Rob Adams wrote: "Railroad Model Craftsman ran a Martin Lofton article in their October, 1990 issue that featured the Frisco's rebuilt USRA gons. I don't have access to it right now, but I recall

Ben, I guess the other question is, how realistic is it for my late 1940s to mid 1950s era SP California layout to feature such a car? Would Frisco gons have been seen off line much by this time? Or

Paul, Thanks for the heads up about the Sunshine kit. I didn't realize that he offered these cars. However, my original query was more with respect to what I could do with this spare undecorated IM

Aidrian, Well, I was thinking about the MP cars that Ben Hom mentioned, but now I am intrigued by the Frisco cars as these seem to offer much more potential for conversion with the IM kit. I model the

Stefan What timeframe are you thinking of? Many USRA gons were rebuilt or retired by the late thirties or early forties so there may not be quite so many choices if you are working to a later

Brian says: not scene The photo is dated 1941 Regards Bruce Bruce Smith Auburn, AL

Given other already identified schemes in the picture, clean X25 in CK paint, Erie 1932 box with small herald, B&O hoppers with lettering only, I think it is safe to say the middle boxcar in the back