Mike, As you know, this is an important modification for these cars in their later years. Would you mind posting a photo of how that looks? -- Chris Barkan (still in Deerfield, MA)

Nice job, Brian! I really like the roof treatment. Group; I am especially pleased with these cars. Here is where the work pays off. Bill Schneider, in particular, is great to work with. Rapido

Group; To add: PRR had a convoluted history with tie-downs and stake pockets, with use of collapsible interior stake pockets (ex: class GS and G26) popular until the late forties, when many were

A correction. The flat car is an FM class, not an F22. Eric Hansmann Murfreesboro, TN

Neat shot. I agree on the PRR F22 flat car number. I’d say most of the gondolas in that string could be PRR gons Eric Hansmann Murfreesboro, TN

Photo: PRR Flat Car With San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Section Photo from the San Francisco Public Library: https://tinyurl.com/mr3afxfv Photo can be enlarged. Car number possibly is 925112.

Photo: SP Freight Cars In State Belt Ry. Train (1940) Photo from the San Francisco Public Library: https://tinyurl.com/3psdkzh4 Photo can be enlarged. Bob Chaparro Hemet, CA

In the steam era (up to 1957-8) which this group confines itself to, it may have been North American practice to build gondolas with tarp tie downs inside. Coal and other mineral loads were left open.

While NMRA does have standards for most parts of a wheelset (Standard S-4.1, S-4.2, and S-4.3, go to https://www.nmra.org/index-nmra-standards-and-recommended-practices ), those standards do

Bruce, Brian, I only said the Moloco 1.005" length axel wheels worked in the Tichy Andrews trucks. I realize there is no common standard let alone a recommended practice for axel length amongst maker

Hello Ron & Group! The Ft. Dodge car next to WAG 5240 are both former B&M XM-1 boxcars from 1929/1930 (SSC). The FtDDM&S actually started getting their 100 or so cars about a year and a half before

What's the origin of the car in the last photo, coupled to the WAG car? I recognize the car in the first photo as ex-RI, possibly ex-CNW, and the second as ex-RI. Ron Merrick

Maybe some cars esp the Fowler cars got black car cement but a majority of photos show body color roofs or unpainted (weathered?) roofs. Dunno about the underframes. In general

I experimented with laying a strip of blank Champ decal film over the bottom of the car body to represent the patch these got without having to repaint the car. This was a suggestion from Bill

All of the EBT locomotives had poling poles on them. Here is a pic of EBT 15. This picture was taken by Jerry Day in the 70's but the poles were there during their operating careers under the EBT.

Attached are some Jim Sand’s photos from my collection. The few color photos I have of FDDM&S boxcars appear to have black roofs, or more likely roof cement, and underframes/trucks. Ends look to be

-- Allen Cain Modeling the Southern in 1955 in HO Scale

In modeling this is really fun to delve into but in real life from what I've heard I'd be far too weary to engage in it. The wooden poles can snap and puncture on a second without warning! -Bob

Roger WHY did MDT build RB insulated box cars with ice hatches ?? I can't think of any other example of that. -- Tim O'Connor Sterling,

Most railroads had a long standing rule that poling was only to be done using the pole provided for that purpose, which was always fitted with steel bands on the ends to prevent splitting. So, any