I have enjoyed Bill Welch's work ever since joining the STMFC and especially enjoyed learning from him and sharing what little info I had on "watermelon cars" as we always called ventilated boxcars in

The photo of the NC&StL flat car with two lee tanks is helpful Bruce. Note that it too has a cable along the side between the inner piece of the stirrup steps on each end. Thus I believe you are corre

John Riddell wrote: "Here is an ad for THE FOWLER CAR printed in the 1916 issue of Car Builder’s Dictionary and Cyclopedia" and included a photocopy of the ad. That's all well and good but that doesn'

Am I all wet or is there a cable running beneath the deck of this BAR flat from mounts just beyond the outer side of the last stake pocket on each side, perhaps to indicate how depressed the deck is f

Hi Garth, Please name even one stock car built that used the Fowler Patent. This nonsense began with my old friend Al Westerfield. The fact of the matter is that fewer than 10,000 BOX CARS were constr

Since when does an early Lidgerwood become a "flat car"? These things were around for years to unload ballast from ballast cars with sides that opened though I yet to figure out how it was done on cur

David Thompson wrote: " The tank looks like a pre-1917 GATC car (though that doesn't tell you whose car it is), and I'll suggest that the car behind it is a C&O steel-sheathed rebuild of their 1920s a

All I can tell you,Rob, is that all of those slides were taken of the New Haven main line west of New Haven. Wish they were sharp enough to be bown up well. My best, Don Valentine PS: How's your cours

Tim O'Connor wrote" "I split box car doors by putting them on a hard flat surface, lining up a single edge razor blade where I want to make the vertical cut, and then using pressure first and then ham

No “Maybe” about it, Schuyler. Many earlier GN cars had Great Northern written out on the left side of the door. If I’m not mistaken even some with early use of the billy goat herald had this feature.

Paul Doggett wrote: “Don There were four photos two of each car.” Hi Paul. I wish that were so as I have only the two of the rib side car. Don’t know whether it is my half vast Internet service provid

Re: Accurail Milw 16xxx From: Paul Doggett Date: Thu, 05 Nov 2020 08:57:39 PST Two nice looking cars Clark Paul Doggett. England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 What “two” cars guys? I see only opposite sides of the same Mil

What a neat refer that No. Pac. #94631 is! That would be a GREAT prototype for Frank Hodina To do masters for as nicely as he did those for the Santa Fe Rr-11 for Sunshine. That is easily on of the be

IIRC that’s the same Japanese firm that was making Vernier calipers for PFM that read out in HO scale measurements. There was a fellow in Grantham, NH who kept them in the marketplace after PFM stoppe

Stumbled onto this video when taking a break for a moment this morning and agree, it is well worth watching having an actual date and place. I was surprised to find an Erie carfloat operation n Chicag

Being a Rutland modeler I have a number of these box car and auto car kits and have some questions about two that turn out to be NYC cars, NOT Rutland versions. For those wo do not know the difference

Great info Ken. Thanks for posting it. I find it interesting that more cars were wrecked on what I have long called the Standard Scrapyard of the World than on the next two railroads on which a large

With bulging sheathing boards that will drive Ted Cullota nuts after his virtual clinic last Saturday. LOL Cordially, Don Valentine

This is one of the Erie’s version of what is properly known as the Dominion car. Whether in incorporated use of the Fowler patent used for the first few thousand Dominion cars constructed I do not kno

Not only does the door open to the left but except for that and what appears to be a wood sheathed end the car looks to be an earlier version of the first car. Cordially, Don Valentine