So sorry to hear this. I usually saw Jon at (and at dinner after) various railroad meets here in Northern California. He was always interesting, friendly, and knowledgeable. And like Tony, I remember

Hi Folks, Ebay and their financial policies are OFF TOPIC for RealSTMFC. Please have your discussions off-list. Thanks, -Jeff Aley Deputy Moderator, RealSTMFC

I was cautioned by the late Dr. Denny Anspach to wrap models in FOOD GRADE polyethyline sheets or bags. Since the Reboxx are no longer available, he recommended buying them from Dan’s Trains in Ocala,

These look really nice – as we’ve come to expect from Tangent. My one question – why would gasoline require an insulated car? Is the idea to prevent the vapor pressure from building up in the summerti

Hi Andy, Good question – and probably one that other people also have. Step 1. Go to the groups.io page for RealSTMFC. It is at https://realstmfc.groups.io/g/main/topics . Step 2. Make sure you’re log

I am sad to hear of Bill’s passing. I only knew him from emails and from seeing him annually at Prototype Rails. Even so, he was always helpful and encouraging. I could always count on him to suggest

Hi Folks, Occasionally someone asks an off-topic question. That’s no big deal, but the responses should be sent OFF LIST to that person. As a reminder, this is group is about Steam-Era Freight Cars. T

Hi Ken, It’s hard to get a good measurement on something that small, but I measure 15 degrees (or you could say it’s 180 – 15 = 165 degrees). However, if I were going to make a new one, I’d measure a

Hi Folks, Yesterday I found an interesting tool that the late Denny Anspach had. As you can see it is labelled “Roofwalk (sic) support angle sander”. The end view (I added the yellow lines) tells the

Brianna, it seems, independently discovered one of the corollaries to Murphy’s Law: “There are two kinds of dirt – the dark kind, which is attracted to light objects, and the light kind, which is attr

It is my sad duty to inform you that my great friend, Denny Anspach, passed away today, September 20, 2020. Denny was a man of great accomplishments, not only within our hobby of prototype and model r

Hi Folks, We’ve had some great new people join RealSTMFC recently. And unfortunately, I neglected to send them a copy of the RealSTMFC rules. So here they are, for all of us (new members and old) to r

Guys, Many thanks for delving into these details to find the answer to my question (and confusion)! I am grateful to your for taking the time. Regards, -Jeff

Thanks guys, but I’m still puzzled. Now it appears that I don’t understand the ORER. The ORER has a column labeled, “Dimensions – Outside – Height from rail – To Extreme Width”. For this car, UP 18358

Hi Folks, The dimensional data in the attached image doesn’t make sense to me. I tried to puzzle it out using the ORER, but no luck. Obviously I have a wrong assumption somewhere. Here’s my thinking a

Prototype Rails postponed to January 6 - 8, 2022 Prototype Rails, normally held each January in Cocoa Beach, Florida, has been postponed. The current Covid-19 pandemic makes it impossible for us to pl

Hi Folks, Allen forgot one of the fundamental STMFC rules about selling – inquiries are to be handled OFF LIST. Please do NOT reply to RealSTMFC with your inquiries (double-check the “To:” line in you

Hi Folks, The Goodyear tire plant in Topeka, KS (and other tire factories) needed to receive raw materials. For some, the method of transport is obvious to me (bales of rubber arrived in box cars; car

This document, though dated 1970, appears to contain information from an earlier era, given the sizes of tank cars referenced (4K, 6K, and 8K gallon). The tank car stuff starts on page 3. https://www.

Hmm. I think a similarly-worded response would be “yes, it does.” But I’ll refrain from the all caps. Regards, -Jeff