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Re: Couplers, Coupler Pockets, The NMRA, and Scale Size
Charlie Vlk
Denny-
You wrote..... Charlie Vlk comments that the MK5 Kadee model defines the market.Understand that I am all for thinking "outside of the box:" and promoting improved standards. But manufacturers have to field product that meets the greater marketplace. STMFC is an important, significant viewpoint and a factor to be considered, but Kadee cars are outsold by Athearn MDC by a signficant order or magnitude or more.... so scale draft gear and couplers have a lot of installed base and less-than-STMFC level material to overcome in the greater marketplace. The jury is out if such scale coupler gear would be commercially viable on Atlas/Walthers/Athearn type equipment. Charlie Vlk Railroad Model Resources
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Re: PRR N6B; was injection molding tooling costs in China
Gatwood, Elden <Elden.Gatwood@...>
Ed, Eric, and all;
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Yes, the N6B has been made in various forms before. We hope that the current Walthers model will be done with the same care that the research was done, as the result would be better than anything done to-date. Yes, the manufacturers continue to make money, and continue asking for advice on equipment to make; however, the decision to pursue individual projects is up to their marketing folks. There doesn't seem to be any shortage of interest in cars from the PRR, and most other roads, for that matter. It may just be a case of the PRR being a large railroad with perhaps some presence on most everybody else's rails, and nowadays with a very large following. Therefore, this cabin car will likely sell well. No, tooling costs and pattern-making are not low cost. Several manufacturers spoke to me yesterday about this very subject. The choice of projects is a very difficult one. No one wants to risk a bomb, so much up-front time and energy is spent trying to pick a winner. Lastly, those lettering illustrations shown do not match anything exactly. I am sure that many would prefer that manufacturers show photos of either the finished product, or a nice prototype. Unfortunately, this is not done all the time, and indeed may result in buyers being turned-off to individual projects before they happen. I have jumped that gun myself, and later regretted it. Ben is correct that the end result may be far different from this bit of advertising fluff. Several people with the PRRT&HS would not have devoted so much of their time if the expected a hack job; and you all like the new PRR baggage car, right? Let's wait and see what they do with the car. Elden Gatwood P.S. So, what are the real reasons no one is doing the alternate standard offset twin hopper?
-----Original Message-----
From: STMFC@yahoogroups.com [mailto:STMFC@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of ed_mines Sent: Monday, October 10, 2005 8:42 AM To: STMFC@yahoogroups.com Subject: [STMFC] injection molding tooling costs in China Walthers is going out with another caboose? Wasn't the same Pennsy caboose available from one of the toy train manufacturers? And QualityCraft? And in brass? I would think that everyone who really wants prototype cabooses already has them in brass, or from Q'Craft or AMB and this would limit sales. Apparently Walthers is making money. Are injection tooling costs less now then they were before because the work is done overseas? There are other car kits that I would expect to have limited interest to the general modeling population - like the Pennsy express reefer and troup sleepers. There is no shortage of choices either. Or are a lot of the NMRA type guys collectors? If tooling costs are low maybe someone from this group could have a kit made for cars we want (like chemical tank cars). Ed Yahoo! Groups Links
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Re: Athearn PS-2 3 bay hopper
bierglaeser <bierglaeser@...>
Is the Athearn car supposed to represent the earliest 3-bay covered
hopper with 3219 (or thereabouts) cubic feet? If it is then I need to start lobbying for a version in the M&StL post-1956 billboard paint scheme. If moving the hatches on the Athearn car is anything like moving the hatches on the MDC car, then it isn't hard to do. A 1/4 inch hole with a short piece of 1/4" styrene tube provided the new location and 'flange.' A 1/4" circle of styrene punched out with a paper punch plugged the old hole. Squadron putty and a little sanding finished the job. Gene Green --- In STMFC@yahoogroups.com, "Montford Switzer" <ZOE@I...> wrote: This usually involves fitting the old lids on lips around new openings(you don't really have to have a hole there unless you want to openthem). Filling the old holes, assuming there are any is the hard part.But the Athearn model looks like it is worth the effort.Behalf Of Mike BrockAthearn carthey are.less shocked if the sun went out tomorrow. From what I see in Ed'sarticle, thethe vastwhich varies the most. It would be possible, of course, to move the 4be interesting to see how the hatch is attached.
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Re: 1949 NKP Car Movements
Andy Sperandeo <asperandeo@...>
Only two Santa Fe boxcars in the latest batch from Bill:
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ATSF 146177, a Bx37 carrying bulk meal (with 12 grain doors!). This is one of the last batch of this large class, built in 1942. It's represented in HO by a Sunshine kit, and can also be modeled with modifications to the Red Caboose modified 1937 AAR standard boxcar. (I've also got one I built from a Westrail kit, if anyone besides Richard H remembers those.) Many of this class had National B-1 trucks, but this particular car had ASF spring-plankless trucks. ATSF 270725, a Bx42 carrying bean meal. This is a 1944 graduate of the Santa Fe's program of rebuilding Bx9 and 10 1925 ARA standard double-sheathed boxcars into all-steel cars similar to the modified 1937 AAR standard. It's also represented in HO by a Sunshine kit. So long, Andy Andy Sperandeo Executive Editor Model Railroader magazine asperandeo@mrmag.com Phone: 262-796-8776, ex. 461 Fax: 262-796-1142 www.modelrailroader.com
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Re: Scale Coupler Application
bierglaeser <bierglaeser@...>
Oh, OK. That gap doesn't look good. I can see why it would be an
issue. Thank you. What about spacing between cars with Kadee #78 or the AP coupler? Prototypical? Too much? Gene --- In STMFC@yahoogroups.com, "Brian J Carlson" <brian@b...> wrote: between the knuckle and the rest of the coupler head. Made them lookstrange. I have a bunch of cars that have gaps, but I still like the size comparedto the 5. The links below show both the gap and non-gap couplers.
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injection molding tooling costs in China
ed_mines
Walthers is going out with another caboose?
Wasn't the same Pennsy caboose available from one of the toy train manufacturers? And QualityCraft? And in brass? I would think that everyone who really wants prototype cabooses already has them in brass, or from Q'Craft or AMB and this would limit sales. Apparently Walthers is making money. Are injection tooling costs less now then they were before because the work is done overseas? There are other car kits that I would expect to have limited interest to the general modeling population - like the Pennsy express reefer and troup sleepers. There is no shortage of choices either. Or are a lot of the NMRA type guys collectors? If tooling costs are low maybe someone from this group could have a kit made for cars we want (like chemical tank cars). Ed
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Athearn PS-2
Montford Switzer <ZOE@...>
My contact at Athearn just old me there will only be ONE ROOFas per the
photo in RMJ. The unlucky ones (possibly me) will be moving some roof hatches. This is still much easier than dealing with the AHM PS-2's of 30 years ago! Mont Switzer
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Re: Athearn PS-2 3 bay hopper
Montford Switzer <ZOE@...>
Mike:
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For the unlucky ones among us the hatches and covers can be moved. This usually involves fitting the old lids on lips around new openings (you don't really have to have a hole there unless you want to open them). Filling the old holes, assuming there are any is the hard part. But the Athearn model looks like it is worth the effort. Any chance they will do two roofs? Mont Switzer
-----Original Message-----
From: STMFC@yahoogroups.com [mailto:STMFC@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Mike Brock Sent: Tuesday, September 27, 2005 10:20 AM To: STMFC@yahoogroups.com Subject: [STMFC] Athearn PS-2 3 bay hopper From perusing through the nice article on the PS-2 2893 cu.ft. 3 bay hopper in the Sep RMJ by Ed Hawkins, I'm led to the conclusion that the Athearn car could apply to a rather large number of prototypes IF the car's intermediate positioned hatches did not come attached to the car....as I assume they are. In fact, I would be stunned if they were not attached...probably less shocked if the sun went out tomorrow. From what I see in Ed's article, the hatch placement by Athearn seems to eliminate quite a few cars. In the vast majority of cases, it looks like the position of the "intermediate" hatch [ located between the center hatch and the end hatch ] is the one which varies the most. It would be possible, of course, to move the 4 internediate hatches, carefully cutting them from the car's roof. Hmmm, it will be interesting to see how the hatch is attached. Mike Brock Yahoo! Groups Links
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Re: RP CYC 12
Andy Carlson wrote:My geography must be bad, for I thought it was....No argument!! Every state, of course, will have its own In Massachusetts you end up in Athol.
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Re: Athearn PS-2 3 bay hopper
raildata@...
Gene,
The Athearn 3 bay PS-2 is a model of the 2893 cu. ft. car. Chuck Yungkurth Boulder CO
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Re: RP CYC 12
Anthony Thompson <thompson@...>
Andy Carlson wrote:
My geography must be bad, for I thought it was....No argument!! Every state, of course, will have its own favorite for this saying <g>. Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA 2906 Forest Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 www.signaturepress.com (510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@signaturepress.com Publishers of books on railroad history
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ADMIN: Order in the Court....again
Mike Brock <brockm@...>
Ah...it's nice to be back in chambers. As Head Judge I'll just don my robes...you know...the one with the stripes on the sleves...only mine have 4. There.
Hmmm. There were a few messages while I was gone. Looks like about 83 on couplers and about 71 on the RPCyc. How the heck can there be that many messages on couplers after everything known to man about them was written before I left town? Sigh. Hmmm...must be some interesting stuff in the RPCyc for all the messages. Now...where'd I put that beer? Oh yes. Ok...lesseee now. Geeez. We're writing messages about the business practices of the RPCyc guys? Where's my gavel? Bonk! Bonk! Bonk! Order in the Court. We don't discuss the business practices of manufacturers...be they makers of resin cars or books. 83 or so messages on couplers. And I thought sitting through an NMRA Business Meeting was bad. Hmmm. Now there's a thought. Rather than Moderate Jail.... Mike Brock STMFC Owner
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Re: Sergent Couplers
Jared Harper <harper-brown@...>
--- In STMFC@yahoogroups.com, Rob Kirkham <rdkirkham@s...> wrote:
that once the magnet is heldinclose enough to raise the internal ball lock, a little loco power You're not missing anything.reverseRob Jared Harper Athens, GA
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Reboxx Replacement Wheelsets for Broadway N&W Hoppers
golden1014
Tom, All,
Thanks much for following up on the Reboxx wheelsets. As I mentioned to you off-line, John Burr at Reboxx contacted me and asked if I'd send him some of the Broadway trucks so he could do some accurate roll testing. He seemed like quite the gentleman, so I happy to help. Hopefully he'll have the answer for everyone at PMS. FYI, I'm sold on the Reboxx wheelsets as replacements for all my rolling stock. The prorotypical appearance of the code 88 wheelsets is very nice and they operate very reliably on good HO track. Plus, the different axle lengths--which allow you to get the right axle length for different brands of trucks--eliminates most unwanted sideways motion. The problem is that Reboox wheelsets are pretty darn expensive, so my replacement program for 125 cars is proceeding rather slowly! The best price I've found is through mail order at MB Klein, which has them for something like $7.99/12 wheelsets. See y'all at Naperville! John Golden O'Fallon, IL ____________ Message: 6 Date: Sun, 09 Oct 2005 01:48:56 -0400 From: "Thomas M. Olsen" <tmolsen@UDel.Edu> Subject: Re: Reboxx Replacement Wheelsets for Broadway N&W Hoppers Bryan, John and List members, Saturday afternoon I attended the Great Scale Train Show at Timonium Maryland. While there, I was able to speak with the folks at Reboxx. Here are some answers that touch on the axle data for BLI N&W H2a Hoppers and J.P.'s new coupler. 1st the coupler: When I broached the coupler issue with J.P., he said that there had not been a problem in getting anything produced in China, but that the reason he has not pursued it recently had to do with the very severe illness that he had last fall and spring. This coupled (no pun intended!) with a large back log of other business has pushed the coupler to the back burner. We must remember that trains is not his primary business, but a part of what he does. He intends to return to the coupler issue soon. He has been following the Sergent coupler thread that has been going on on this list. His take on these couplers is that they look very good compared to the competition, but the ability to uncouple them at a distance and the fact that unlike the tried and true Kadee's, they do not center. Also,the requirement that someone has to open the knuckle if found to be closed. He also thought that the Kadee has the edge because the knuckles need not be open when making the coupling which is of great value when making up trains and switching. His contention was that there really is no substitute from an operational aspect, there is no substitute for the present Kadee couplers unless these issues could be solved to the point where reliability was not an issue. In regard to the Reboxx wheel sets for Broadway N&W hoppers: I spoke with John and gave him one of the trucks from one of the N&W hoppers from home. He first tested the as-is truck on the roll incline tester to see how well they operated. He said that they rolled quite well considering they were stock items. Then he popped the wheel set out and measured it to see what the axle length was. After doing so, his conclusion was that the WS10975 wheel set with an axle length of 24.77mm was the most likely candidate to replace the BLI wheel sets. He felt that the BLI truck would not stand up well to the little coring tool and to use one to clear the journal boxes, it may cause the wheel sets to be a bit sloppy. So, the upshot of this is for now, you could use the WS10975 wheel sets, but he would not recommend wholesale changes right away, that a period of experimentation was called for to determine that these is the most accurate axle length for these trucks. The WS10975 wheel sets come packaged 12 wheel sets to the package. Regards, Tom Olsen 7 Boundary Road, West Branch Newark, Delaware, 19711-7479 John Golden wrote: Guys, John Golden O'Fallon, IL http://www.pbase.com/golden1014
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Re: RP CYC 12
Andy Carlson
My geography must be bad, for I thought it was....
toggle quoted messageShow quoted text
Bakersfield! --- Anthony Thompson <thompson@signaturepress.com> wrote:
In California the saying is, "life is tough
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Re: RP CYC 12
Anthony Thompson <thompson@...>
Bob Webber wrote:
Spoken from the UP management booklet on how to treat loyalIn California the saying is, "life is tough and then you go to Fresno." Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA 2906 Forest Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 www.signaturepress.com (510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@signaturepress.com Publishers of books on railroad history
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Branchline 50' Steel Express Reefers at cost
Andy Carlson
I have Branchline UNDEC REA Express Steel Reefers I
wish to close out at cost. $15.00 ea. MSRP of $24.98 Shipping is $3.85 for first car, add another $1.00 for each additional car. contact me off-list at <midcentury@sbcglobal.net> Thanks, -Andy Carlson
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Re: The Dispatcher Knows (was: SP Freight Train Numbers . . . )
Anthony Thompson <thompson@...>
Andy Sperandeo wrote:
I don't know how UP or SP dispatchers did it, but Santa Fe dispatchers' train sheets from the 1940s have a row across the top for train symbols . . .SP train sheets had the same. Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA 2906 Forest Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 www.signaturepress.com (510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@signaturepress.com Publishers of books on railroad history
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Re: Drains On Refrigerator Cars
Anthony Thompson <thompson@...>
Jeff Aley wrote:
Why would one WANT to close the drains on a reefer? To keep outOn meat reefers, some cars complied with the recommended practice to retain the very salty melt water on board rather than dump it on the trucks, rails and bridges. Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA 2906 Forest Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 www.signaturepress.com (510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@signaturepress.com Publishers of books on railroad history
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Re: Couplers, Coupler Pockets, The NMRA, and Scale Size
Anthony Thompson <thompson@...>
Andy Sperandeo wrote:
If the NMRA had the slightest influence on any of this, it's that the Athearn coupler box was meant to hold an X2f-style horn-hook coupler. And while that coupler was designed by an NMRA committee, and quickly picked up by manufacturers anxious to have a compatible coupler . . .I think they just wanted a cheap coupler that was molded in one piece and that made kind of an off-hand gesture toward automatic coupling. Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA 2906 Forest Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 www.signaturepress.com (510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@signaturepress.com Publishers of books on railroad history
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