You're always so polite. But thanks for the correction - Sorry if I judged from the artwork. I have this silly expectation that a vendor tries to accurately portray their products. I hope the Walthers

the art work in their announcement ? On 1/11/2023 8:49 AM, Bruce Smith wrote:

Figures. That's one of about 3 issues of Mainline Modeler I do not have. :-D I don't recall any compilation of all of the cars with the Viking 'corrugated' roof. Ed Hawkins did specify the type of roo

LOL -- The B&M, CofG and P&LE cars are ALL 10-0 inside height 1937 AAR box cars! Those D&RGW cars did have 4/5 ends but they were 10-4 inside height. They also had 12 panel sides. I think Yarmouth mad

The illustrations do not show an ACF underframe. It looks like Walthers applied a new tank body to their truly ancient el cheapo 8k tank car (ex Varney?) . That frame has no prototype as far as I know

Early AAR 50 ton flats (Union Pacific?) were built with wood stringers. Perhaps some 70 ton cars were also built that way. I vaguely recall (perhaps incorrectly) that Byron Rose's AAR 50 ton resin fla

I wish PM were in the public domain ! It was before my time. I've only snagged a few copies. On 1/10/2023 7:04 PM, Tony Thompson wrote:

For subscribers, the print run was probably sent by storage mail on passenger trains! For retail distribution, it's possible to use REA or LCL for a lot of that. Remember that long distance trucking w

I have no photos, but they were 10 panel riveted 10-6 box cars with a 4/4 improved dreadnaught end, SRE rectangular panel roof, 8 rung ladders, Ajax hand brake, Apex running board, and 7 panel 7 foot

The weird structure in ERIE 15850 is actually part of the car -- It is used for handling specific types of export crates. Also, the ends must have been welded shut because the car is listed as having

Phil The Athearn gondola is not a prototype of anything, but the Erie did have some 48 foot straight side gondolas with fishbelly center sills -- This one (ERIE 15850) had drop ends. It's a 1960 photo

For a large yard oriented layout, like a club, that may have hundreds or even a thousand freight cars, having NO unusual cars would also seem to be a bit arbitrary and unlikely, since major transit ya

Haha -- Mike had a playful sense of humor. I recall his automobile that rolled down the street fouling the grade crossing, operated by a hidden string... :-D On 1/8/2023 7:15 PM, gary laakso wrote:

Right! I forgot there were R-30-24's as well as R-40-24's. I have equal numbers of pictures of each and they seemed to have lasted equally long. On 1/8/2023 6:51 PM, B.L. Griffith wrote:

Here is a sample of Mike's work on his beautifully scenic'ed Sherman Hill On 1/8/2023 5:11 PM, Steve and Barb Hile wrote:

I know some R-40-24 reefers had expanded metal running boards (Transco? Gypsum?) but the model appears to have grid-style running boards (Apex et al). Just another factoid to be aware of. :-) On 1/8/2

I have always thought the best thing about my hobby is getting to meet and know really interesting and fun people. I am glad I got to meet and know Mike and I loved getting to visit his wonderful Sher

My photos agree with Bruce -- I have a shot of 68400 roof with DP roof. Also 68245, 68428, and 68431 all have tongue in groove wood sheathing, rather than plywood. I think some of these cars ran until

I have heard that aluminum molds don't last nearly as long as steel molds. Maybe Dennis can comment? Dick Schweiger (C&BT) proudly told me once that his molds were made of steel. The Branchline box ca

David Ah ! Yes, I looked at some more photos and indeed two different roofs were applied to the R-40-24. So it depends on the car number. Also, not all R-40-24's got plywood sides. On 1/7/2023 4:06 PM