tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87770666476752570122024-03-14T04:22:24.719-04:00Chesapeake, Wheeling and Erie RailroadTom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.comBlogger251125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-17398238455444916252023-03-26T20:51:00.002-04:002023-03-26T20:51:26.892-04:00CHEX 372<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Fun but a foob. I've lost track of all of the changes and modifications that I made to this old McKean covered hopper. Every time I looked at prototype photos of these cars, I found something else that needed to be corrected. And it still isn't right. I'll let the rivet counters find all the flaws. But it was a learning experience, and I had a chance to do some things that I haven't done in the past. I sectioned and lengthened a Plano Models etched metal roof walk. I'm continually amazed at these kits- great instructions, everything goes together well, and they are relatively easy to build. And they look fantastic.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilxJCiEbjAcFYXrpghZwR-HTHFgL1LchNwuBOYR5Mho4LKxFHHySMzygrs1lUEeWkMDml_rfh3170DlwUf3KJNZV5pOpjkb7UGnGZC-5lv6lL76Ce7UdRF96gGGX0EAVauDfSnCk96FD9lh1j5_5_NLQipH7a2RG7VzVPIDl55oVWhGJECgc2BkWqUjQ/s2048/333441090_5972480136163314_6095857942702777170_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="455" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilxJCiEbjAcFYXrpghZwR-HTHFgL1LchNwuBOYR5Mho4LKxFHHySMzygrs1lUEeWkMDml_rfh3170DlwUf3KJNZV5pOpjkb7UGnGZC-5lv6lL76Ce7UdRF96gGGX0EAVauDfSnCk96FD9lh1j5_5_NLQipH7a2RG7VzVPIDl55oVWhGJECgc2BkWqUjQ/w590-h455/333441090_5972480136163314_6095857942702777170_n.jpg" width="590" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I also had the chance to rebuild the side ladders using flat brass stock and Tichy plastic grab irons. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVvex00lF-Z2hp5IqvGHghUNsEoe22z3JxyvGKI81VXGjHF8h5OmGOzExtQByXONJxlVjxKdFHDb9_tkY3hZGFnJUoFTbaATVnFJf0w5P4ZbVhv3grkE4V2E4w96CXQSnACC2r_xYU0NQ1swlW0tBG-l2kG36p3Mtops1nVu-wPCFyBBWD6aR52Dur3w/s2048/333897875_761142988662597_4883504013753464293_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="441" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVvex00lF-Z2hp5IqvGHghUNsEoe22z3JxyvGKI81VXGjHF8h5OmGOzExtQByXONJxlVjxKdFHDb9_tkY3hZGFnJUoFTbaATVnFJf0w5P4ZbVhv3grkE4V2E4w96CXQSnACC2r_xYU0NQ1swlW0tBG-l2kG36p3Mtops1nVu-wPCFyBBWD6aR52Dur3w/w588-h441/333897875_761142988662597_4883504013753464293_n.jpg" width="588" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The prototype photo below shows what I was trying to achieve, although it was taken at a later date.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaYjCDYgaVun5GMnTR7ir_Xlrtg7Vk6_DKnvBK-JqS9Pnr5pf7o-s1Ivn5k2eUoOyIbRuH25EfWZRhwK9gGfFoWY4it9MI1CjvXzrWY5X_BsgdYsnZd0geKa_TKzHlSKk4woK22Ti6IoXMx0UA_sZnhL7Ym9C0y7W99oHDVEvhRrvahpVwAfeT_C8bIw/s1200/333312213_884258049510687_3762134524659632334_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="612" data-original-width="1200" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaYjCDYgaVun5GMnTR7ir_Xlrtg7Vk6_DKnvBK-JqS9Pnr5pf7o-s1Ivn5k2eUoOyIbRuH25EfWZRhwK9gGfFoWY4it9MI1CjvXzrWY5X_BsgdYsnZd0geKa_TKzHlSKk4woK22Ti6IoXMx0UA_sZnhL7Ym9C0y7W99oHDVEvhRrvahpVwAfeT_C8bIw/w592-h301/333312213_884258049510687_3762134524659632334_n.jpg" width="592" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Now I'm off to work on a Tangent gon that needs nothing more than a little weathering.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-44588662532382360142022-10-30T07:06:00.004-04:002022-10-30T10:58:17.442-04:00The Passing of a Legend: W. Allen McClelland<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Allen McClelland passed away peacefully this past Friday.
Like countless others in the hobby, he had a profound effect on me. Many have
commented since his passing that their railroad wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for
Allen, and the same is true for me. He gave me two very special gifts for which I will be eternally grateful.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">The first gift was a keen interest in proto-freelancing.
When I got back in the hobby in 1978, the V&O Story had just appeared in
the model railroad press. I poured over every issue and decided right then and
there that I would develop a proto-freelanced railroad. At the time, it wasn’t
common to develop a model railroad that fit into the greater scheme of real
railroads and was geographically centered in some part of the country. I jumped
on the bandwagon and developed my railroad, and I’m still at it- the same
railroad- over forty years later. It has sustained my interest over that period
of time and provided more hours of enjoyment than I ever thought possible. What
a wonderful gift! And I know there are thousands of other people who received
the same gift from Allen.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The second gift was his friendship. Back in early 2016, I
begged my way into Gerry Albers’ work group. Gerry, Allen, and a handful of
other incredibly gifted model railroaders get together every Tuesday to work on
Gerry’s beautiful VGN layout. As many of you know, it includes a portion of the
V&O that Allen affectionately calls the V&O 3.0. In the summer of 2016,
Allen asked if I would be his backup on the V&O. The job would involve
assisting him in staging the railroad between sessions, troubleshooting any
mechanical problems, and dispatching the railroad when he was unable to make a
session (which was almost never!). It’s the best job I’ve ever had. Over the
years, Allen and I developed a friendship that will be with me for the rest of
my life. How often do you get to meet one of your heroes, let alone have the
chance to become friends with them? His kindness, sense of humor, and ability
to make someone feel special were only a small part of what him such an
incredible person.<o:p></o:p></b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">Allen was working on the V&O right up until the end. He
had plans for an RDC-3 that would make the run up the Durham Sub from
Martinsville to Charleston and back. He was also planning some additional trains
to run across the Gauley Division, using some of the train numbers from the
original V&O. He was an endless source of creativity regarding the
railroad, and he would always preference his new thoughts with the comment,
“You know, I’ve been thinking, and you know how dangerous that can be.” Oh, how
I’ll miss those conversations. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: arial;">So farewell, Allen. You have touched thousands of lives
throughout your long run in this wonderful hobby. And I’ll be forever grateful
to you for touching mine.</span></b> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib0ZPyCDJvZx0_xrY8m3gLy-PPGKW-u5iQ1TaiX6pHWzd2WY0EEPXbsPPAkA8fojyv4pzyGrSBPEbBJmnaEuVBLJekxBUlx4As7oW3bZetrhlSypBwtt4hqWxG1gashvZ4_zOc51nsK_09JWqj2bh02vn2M7ASiM-vlgfi-mfLEkJtdxxIYHgI5zF4XA/s4032/IMG_4099.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib0ZPyCDJvZx0_xrY8m3gLy-PPGKW-u5iQ1TaiX6pHWzd2WY0EEPXbsPPAkA8fojyv4pzyGrSBPEbBJmnaEuVBLJekxBUlx4As7oW3bZetrhlSypBwtt4hqWxG1gashvZ4_zOc51nsK_09JWqj2bh02vn2M7ASiM-vlgfi-mfLEkJtdxxIYHgI5zF4XA/w625-h469/IMG_4099.JPG" width="625" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-91550615857301013002022-10-05T20:14:00.000-04:002022-10-05T20:14:42.336-04:00The Coaling Tower at Nelsonville- Part 1<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It's been a while since I've posted on the blog here. There have been periodic updates posted on the CWE Facebook page, which is much easier to manage, and the blog has suffered as a result. But I thought I might put up a few posts about the progress on the coaling tower at Nelsonville. I had been stuck on this project for a long time, and I finally found a way to get the whole thing back on track (pun intended). But first, a little history.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I built the coaling tower at North Pierce back around 2003- 2004. I replaced all of the Walthers steel pieces with Tichy parts and spent a good deal of time weathering it. And while it worked at the time, I was never completely satisfied with the weathering. You can see it in the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9oBnm4F2R5MQrPa2t0FcJhU_7q6OzXsNfQ-QHI09-mhEXkIYYEdIQbj9JMuFD6AvfSDUsYu_HxUvWI5OnnTx0MYUudXg7Df_oJNWJRIWztLi2PTdUTQ_MXlGYg-an7lGhFVa2QeRu-5z5Z_QT2HwtCVbIcRRpwxJD5wCY--8E0C8argyc--pt5kKJWA/s2016/197029979_4113096972084915_9059657072832329182_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2016" data-original-width="1504" height="601" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9oBnm4F2R5MQrPa2t0FcJhU_7q6OzXsNfQ-QHI09-mhEXkIYYEdIQbj9JMuFD6AvfSDUsYu_HxUvWI5OnnTx0MYUudXg7Df_oJNWJRIWztLi2PTdUTQ_MXlGYg-an7lGhFVa2QeRu-5z5Z_QT2HwtCVbIcRRpwxJD5wCY--8E0C8argyc--pt5kKJWA/w460-h601/197029979_4113096972084915_9059657072832329182_n.jpg" width="460" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I wasn't able to capture the look of concrete very well, and my attempts at replicating the cast lines from the concrete forms fell woefully short. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Fast forward ten years or so and I was planning the engine terminal at Nelsonville. I had been studying photos of C&O coaling towers, and the structure at Sandy Hook yard in particular. You can it in the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyx8xVUqNXSSQNDOxjFu8A3rKkKZhRW7R_OGihjpzH9EyrVywjY8afTwEFObnVDX-N0dB1JCJ1HbYQDurcmE_vi5rvWTzJrYHF7JPR6yeDAiJKeUOEbuVO-Uq9IPnGeLjapFW6XQJVVxYjFhO-Bs69vhZO2kp8U29VYT8GEjpQoNYNHxEmhSAUBpwlPg/s960/15726907_1281556478585229_727415194450752646_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="645" height="627" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyx8xVUqNXSSQNDOxjFu8A3rKkKZhRW7R_OGihjpzH9EyrVywjY8afTwEFObnVDX-N0dB1JCJ1HbYQDurcmE_vi5rvWTzJrYHF7JPR6yeDAiJKeUOEbuVO-Uq9IPnGeLjapFW6XQJVVxYjFhO-Bs69vhZO2kp8U29VYT8GEjpQoNYNHxEmhSAUBpwlPg/w421-h627/15726907_1281556478585229_727415194450752646_n.jpg" width="421" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I thought I could modify the Walthers kit to closely resemble this, and I started playing around with different shapes. I finally got serious and started cutting plastic. The photos below show some of the steps.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uatz8b5ZwgxTwYT-JoMMnjXkWlwtuFIK4c3YWTg0MeMirniLfNcU6IA2sD7UXB_GX8xIYY89aPXzUMBlzdvjvCCmoc5Q8dTE4LQ-KwZPGC5EjBA8la9rCKfC1nGI4pWST_dti6G1A2ig5Mm_jYAFWfdQziKa4mHwnROmE13-znSnTeIfIqEP_IpKtg/s3264/IMG_0894.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3uatz8b5ZwgxTwYT-JoMMnjXkWlwtuFIK4c3YWTg0MeMirniLfNcU6IA2sD7UXB_GX8xIYY89aPXzUMBlzdvjvCCmoc5Q8dTE4LQ-KwZPGC5EjBA8la9rCKfC1nGI4pWST_dti6G1A2ig5Mm_jYAFWfdQziKa4mHwnROmE13-znSnTeIfIqEP_IpKtg/w563-h422/IMG_0894.JPG" width="563" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>At first, I thought I would just fill in the back of the base of the tower and leave the front part as it came in the kit. The photo below shows how the base looked at this point.</b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimQJn0wUcqxYaqQTucgaez143orm_LQEiuE6xAQpAlDNdhBzCJGS1y7ry5q3T8a2RoYGnN_gQRyRouJq6KxZYvmKd9nVSQnHMDZGmODd0irHXiyrxQwPc7Y_fc_fdeHGP5GMrnYBgDkmAA_rIscl2Gv47lU5Con_fkvtfT_I_HJdIDxsq4uOEm2Ivy3g/s3264/IMG_0896.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="732" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimQJn0wUcqxYaqQTucgaez143orm_LQEiuE6xAQpAlDNdhBzCJGS1y7ry5q3T8a2RoYGnN_gQRyRouJq6KxZYvmKd9nVSQnHMDZGmODd0irHXiyrxQwPc7Y_fc_fdeHGP5GMrnYBgDkmAA_rIscl2Gv47lU5Con_fkvtfT_I_HJdIDxsq4uOEm2Ivy3g/w549-h732/IMG_0896.JPG" width="549" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I applied Bondo to fill in the cracks and joints and then sanded everything smooth. At some point, I decided to go all in and change the base to look like the one at Sandy Hook.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvzPLCrLTRJOwcUUIttTsE3o-HP6Iqghk3uox_-Filv6-JllCUp1wuswzyCoUGeIl-LfGvRIimUnJUIDF3umHLmu2s3N5Z__3zQ-4plE_dNZXEt46g_H3h8nSIkmk67J9t8pMI1doj58Pr4mkJyvAFX3zx0gUFP_bk5AbP38SoVVpd_L4lvSqAwFMevA/s3264/IMG_0916.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="2448" height="693" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvzPLCrLTRJOwcUUIttTsE3o-HP6Iqghk3uox_-Filv6-JllCUp1wuswzyCoUGeIl-LfGvRIimUnJUIDF3umHLmu2s3N5Z__3zQ-4plE_dNZXEt46g_H3h8nSIkmk67J9t8pMI1doj58Pr4mkJyvAFX3zx0gUFP_bk5AbP38SoVVpd_L4lvSqAwFMevA/w520-h693/IMG_0916.JPG" width="520" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Eventually, I got all of the concrete sections of the tower assembled and painted using Vallejo Aged Concrete. I then scratch built an unloading shed and fitted it to the elevator on the back side of the building. At this point, the structure looked like what you see in the engine terminal in the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0RfHbYg4SFZgl4o2Fj7khM_OQwtKH3FktskHZE98mOVz7GiZ-TvO1U8oVzmijKenCanwRyAfRcaD54RQlgFUGGnr3CBMP8t9vW15XogJJPL3PFRsZ9PH2a6rsM0uOL_6Cp3lHIV1ia2ZbjMi-Obb2Y06HZojn4DTm0U9km8Txc1W-LsZZlMnzH791wg/s2048/277007395_5025412747519995_8944458119555476352_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="414" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0RfHbYg4SFZgl4o2Fj7khM_OQwtKH3FktskHZE98mOVz7GiZ-TvO1U8oVzmijKenCanwRyAfRcaD54RQlgFUGGnr3CBMP8t9vW15XogJJPL3PFRsZ9PH2a6rsM0uOL_6Cp3lHIV1ia2ZbjMi-Obb2Y06HZojn4DTm0U9km8Txc1W-LsZZlMnzH791wg/w553-h414/277007395_5025412747519995_8944458119555476352_n.jpg" width="553" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>And it sat like this for a very long time. In the next post, I'll explain why.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-11060017526296555192022-03-10T16:52:00.002-05:002022-03-10T16:52:31.977-05:00SCPX 3527<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>One of my favorite parts of the hobby has always been building freight cars. Back in the day, I would modify Athearn Blue Box kits, Robins Rails cars, and others to make reasonable representation of prototypes that weren't available commercially. And one of my all-time favorite authors is Bob Rivard. I have long been a big fan of his work and especially his freight car projects. I've collected all of his freight car articles I could find and have recently started building some cars based upon his work.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>A case in point is SCPX 3527. Bob wrote an article in the December 2021 issue of Railroad Model Hobbyist on how he built this car from an Atlas cylindrical hopper car that he had picked up cheap at a show. I had the same car, but decorated for Penn Central, and I'd never been able to find a prototype photo of it. So, I gave it a bath in 91% isopropyl alcohol and ordered a Plano Model Products roof walk for the car. I also ordered the decals that Bob got from Bill Brillinger at Precision Design Company.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The only thing I did differently than Bob was I painted the model with Tru-Scale C&O/B&O yellow as I had that on hand, and it looked spot on to the photo I was using for reference.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhEqhiduI9ci7YosmVM1ryYJIJgpIn15ebQIUIMPGkYwuBpeMfyN9yFLhoJqeOnUtVqJqGpSmhTczSnl6cLQ1xPHlUitMUwY1X7sHqH18511XqytGJyIOQd0Xpl4ec5QCIs2hD2lQVW6VbUPWdX2aM9fE4jEtJnmSn2NDSHVYIV3y1Q4B8IGJo-P8lZUg=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="467" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhEqhiduI9ci7YosmVM1ryYJIJgpIn15ebQIUIMPGkYwuBpeMfyN9yFLhoJqeOnUtVqJqGpSmhTczSnl6cLQ1xPHlUitMUwY1X7sHqH18511XqytGJyIOQd0Xpl4ec5QCIs2hD2lQVW6VbUPWdX2aM9fE4jEtJnmSn2NDSHVYIV3y1Q4B8IGJo-P8lZUg=w622-h467" width="622" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This was the first time I've built a Plano roof walk and I was amazed at how well everything went together. The brackets have to be bent to shape, but this was relatively easy, and they fit right into the holes left from the Atlas roof walk. And they do make a difference, as you can see in the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjxkKs6wkNW2s4EjkQD4cGCBXu5Pt5-DMqOmM3M-gkd00LOWu7KnKgjeDw1XSh8gSnF3wEYsr7yvmkU6pPlhfTidPe07V1-oSVGnnf9k6-QuxvMuxqtFyK4CLHxiZCdhW5nEqVoHyj1wqe1kgaoevs-WB9S6uF3Dx1QN_iNzKpojMfsSC-qo9svsKcEjw=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="468" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjxkKs6wkNW2s4EjkQD4cGCBXu5Pt5-DMqOmM3M-gkd00LOWu7KnKgjeDw1XSh8gSnF3wEYsr7yvmkU6pPlhfTidPe07V1-oSVGnnf9k6-QuxvMuxqtFyK4CLHxiZCdhW5nEqVoHyj1wqe1kgaoevs-WB9S6uF3Dx1QN_iNzKpojMfsSC-qo9svsKcEjw=w624-h468" width="624" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The photo below shows one of the prototype cars in May of 1976. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzL-C22i7KkwfhijqAsosOfXtUhWCgPLyRnju_Nhpr0BRc9lontdNGF5At6UyyJjk0f_vZ-nuA8s2WP5sHDDJxelQ4Y3blUnMawzEnsOaBY6Fcez8vEIcWa6y2hgvX3w5AOfHDyKhuGAA5T6BJiz7Xr3_cuqcDdyMAdokkj6G-MYBm8kBUlQEx05fFrw=s2592" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1096" data-original-width="2592" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzL-C22i7KkwfhijqAsosOfXtUhWCgPLyRnju_Nhpr0BRc9lontdNGF5At6UyyJjk0f_vZ-nuA8s2WP5sHDDJxelQ4Y3blUnMawzEnsOaBY6Fcez8vEIcWa6y2hgvX3w5AOfHDyKhuGAA5T6BJiz7Xr3_cuqcDdyMAdokkj6G-MYBm8kBUlQEx05fFrw=w623-h263" width="623" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This was fun build, and I've always enjoyed adding something to the roster that hasn't been offered by any of the manufacturers before. Of course, now that I've built this, Atlas is sure to come out with this paint scheme in the not-to-distant future... </b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-57102945410879843612022-01-08T06:47:00.005-05:002022-01-08T06:47:44.502-05:00Test Fit<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Time for a test fit. The ties and rail have been removed, the ballast has been scraped up, and holes have been drilled for the wires for the lights. It appears that everything will fit as intended.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjWC0TrP7wgu0pznlvuZGm46tYEkLzQqYLe1Z5tcjVUVo_yb0zq9g-DMbImPMfRVjWO2oJ0YkZkerruaDxfOhIbji1wIpS5OrAhqKH5nEL1drOsKVAaoJkBk7muab1E5D94jMTBRmTicAznKAGemSpbyhAlaZcduv5xh2QpiL2cW5CzQ6bb2EkvHP9pTg=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="475" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjWC0TrP7wgu0pznlvuZGm46tYEkLzQqYLe1Z5tcjVUVo_yb0zq9g-DMbImPMfRVjWO2oJ0YkZkerruaDxfOhIbji1wIpS5OrAhqKH5nEL1drOsKVAaoJkBk7muab1E5D94jMTBRmTicAznKAGemSpbyhAlaZcduv5xh2QpiL2cW5CzQ6bb2EkvHP9pTg=w633-h475" width="633" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEirdk0IFCBk9oWqHyp7b2ihFbp3DY1dvaJLkMAQCh9jZJthL8_yiQhsDpZS5hAEDFuXAjbB2FdWwqsxOTlKnH_Nf-_HyKwG-3FLyn6qnK_gcBNydFF6eRr1TUSBUv7PBx1FXLfgUSOE9vPyQVDAPZVVv5-agHoat-8nC6s-PHLtO_bsl4cKrefUnF0knQ=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="473" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEirdk0IFCBk9oWqHyp7b2ihFbp3DY1dvaJLkMAQCh9jZJthL8_yiQhsDpZS5hAEDFuXAjbB2FdWwqsxOTlKnH_Nf-_HyKwG-3FLyn6qnK_gcBNydFF6eRr1TUSBUv7PBx1FXLfgUSOE9vPyQVDAPZVVv5-agHoat-8nC6s-PHLtO_bsl4cKrefUnF0knQ=w631-h473" width="631" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Now back to installing the 3,468 rafter ends along the roof overhang. And the clerestory still needs to be weathered. As can be seen in the photo below, the structure will dramatically change the overall appearance of the engine terminal at Nelsonville.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEicE-SBmyZLRlZYa_ZKn_peRBxaNjdghFpfEaS5QdVzrk2utyfphrhXk4-nF158Z0t3tlZ8UZgyZLrs1rH7aFf-htJ4h0WYTe2NCAYZG0Y-yMDoYNnZqefAonJ20zAHtPmhBiO3nMxgfQ4ot-6GyLgCsqWl_WQMClyY07R32FNukdedsOXu6VQwIkAt-g=s2048" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="473" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEicE-SBmyZLRlZYa_ZKn_peRBxaNjdghFpfEaS5QdVzrk2utyfphrhXk4-nF158Z0t3tlZ8UZgyZLrs1rH7aFf-htJ4h0WYTe2NCAYZG0Y-yMDoYNnZqefAonJ20zAHtPmhBiO3nMxgfQ4ot-6GyLgCsqWl_WQMClyY07R32FNukdedsOXu6VQwIkAt-g=w631-h473" width="631" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /> </b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I'm anxious to see how it will look with the lights on inside. Stay tuned.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-56257904095564886132021-12-26T09:21:00.001-05:002021-12-26T10:49:01.119-05:00The Engine House at Nelsonville- Part 2<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Progress continues on the engine house at Nelsonville and in fact, the project is nearing completion. I'm waiting on the lights to arrive from Evans Designs and they should be here tomorrow. I'll install them along with the roof trusses and then work on the roof itself. Some pieces of trim need to be added to the corners of the structure, but most of the major construction is done. The photos below show the clerestory resting temporarily on two of the roof trusses.</b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjXO7M5ZrqbUTwc7O1ka9S93kKDMITUxtoOZO_EUiByj42FjBRs_vikZvBdqaUvxAntXMenrhhUQS6_5z6c80RE-z5GhxbL_prP4DntFhW6F8TXCCn87cHX9X3l8amn7GbtAFXZkkxQdjwpa-GfVXxdSm6RcunEPJv56n0WH1m-yXfYLyF2lKbQ1CUAOA=s2048" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="827" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjXO7M5ZrqbUTwc7O1ka9S93kKDMITUxtoOZO_EUiByj42FjBRs_vikZvBdqaUvxAntXMenrhhUQS6_5z6c80RE-z5GhxbL_prP4DntFhW6F8TXCCn87cHX9X3l8amn7GbtAFXZkkxQdjwpa-GfVXxdSm6RcunEPJv56n0WH1m-yXfYLyF2lKbQ1CUAOA=w621-h827" width="621" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQBEwL4HcuzM3CiYwX4gR8oBrfCCauGxwbk6_coEyzcLUQODVNAaXCSrjHYKMq2-I04mJ1KnPKDny0hyZDF70ktU7gEephfNDDvz3w9InneziTr9Q7-CkcLT604sEQRYpCDaSIUn9XnR75RTWPVFZ059zOQ7zD15zxgX2wxdDc1q_rX7bguKBl2aIL8w=s4032" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQBEwL4HcuzM3CiYwX4gR8oBrfCCauGxwbk6_coEyzcLUQODVNAaXCSrjHYKMq2-I04mJ1KnPKDny0hyZDF70ktU7gEephfNDDvz3w9InneziTr9Q7-CkcLT604sEQRYpCDaSIUn9XnR75RTWPVFZ059zOQ7zD15zxgX2wxdDc1q_rX7bguKBl2aIL8w=w621-h466" width="621" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>With any luck, the structure will be mounted on the railroad in the near future.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-2768316417558801352021-11-12T12:31:00.002-05:002021-11-12T12:31:11.411-05:00The Engine House at Nelsonville<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Since the first time I saw a picture of the single stall engine house on the C&O at Martin, KY, I've wanted to build a model of it. In fact, the engine terminal at Nelsonville was planned around a single stall structure. Over the years, I've collected a significant number of photos of the building. I found plans for the structure in the November 1986 issue of <i>Mainline Modeler</i> in the CD collection of C&O MM articles that was produced by the C&O Historical Society a number of years ago. But what was odd was that the drawings by Julian Cavalier only showed the end of the building and a cross section showing the interior framing. It finally occurred to me that the side elevation would have been a fold-out page and that's why it wasn't included on the CD. I put out a request on the internet and eventually found someone who scanned the rest of the drawing for me. Around this time I also found out that Minuteman Scale Models was offering laser cut windows and doors for the building. I quickly ordered them, along with the Evergreen siding that I would need for the project. </b></span><b style="font-family: arial;">I also made a drawing of how I would tackle the long louvers in the clerestory on the roof. Then I put everything away and wondered off to another project.</b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">Fast forward ten years and the inspiration finally came back around. It arrived in the form of Neil Schofield's beautiful work on a typical New England barn. Looking at all of that bright white Evergreen styrene and windows got the creative juices flowing. You can see some shots of Neil's barn here on the Model Railroad Hobbyist forum: </b><a href="https://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/43088?page=10">CP Rail's Newport & Lyndonville Subdivision | Model Railroad Hobbyist magazine (model-railroad-hobbyist.com)</a>. <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>So I got out all the plans and information, reviewed all of the pictures, and got started. The picture below shows the progress on one of the sides along with the elevation drawing.</b></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CIubQutk7pA/YYq45OZOeiI/AAAAAAAADFQ/Cr_vIMaQQBgl9goRfm3gxwmTEY7pZblmgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3392.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="423" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CIubQutk7pA/YYq45OZOeiI/AAAAAAAADFQ/Cr_vIMaQQBgl9goRfm3gxwmTEY7pZblmgCLcBGAsYHQ/w565-h423/IMG_3392.JPG" width="565" /></a></div><br /><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">While working on the sides, I also started on the louvers. My original plan was to build a long strip of stringers for the individual slats and then cut them to size. The drawing below shows how this would be accomplished.</b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SXCr6C7f_XA/YY6EInpVpoI/AAAAAAAADFY/wzQy91n2E4kcgGzxxGlQeCxemQyXAqrkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3395.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="461" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SXCr6C7f_XA/YY6EInpVpoI/AAAAAAAADFY/wzQy91n2E4kcgGzxxGlQeCxemQyXAqrkgCLcBGAsYHQ/w615-h461/IMG_3395.JPG" width="615" /></a></div><br /><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">It quickly became apparent that there was no way I was going to be able to cut the stringers into 4" wide strips. Do you know how wide 4" is in HO scale? So it was on to plan B. I thought I might be able to place 2x6's at an angle on 2x4's and build up the louvers individually. I made a jig to hold the 2x6's at a 60 degree angle while the glue dried and used a small piece of basswood to provide spacing between them. You can see the initial setup below.</b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jJsx8VGmkfc/YY6FjItOgJI/AAAAAAAADFg/MY6z70Btq7A15NRuAqhHF2qyVfsSO6mfQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3397.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="462" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jJsx8VGmkfc/YY6FjItOgJI/AAAAAAAADFg/MY6z70Btq7A15NRuAqhHF2qyVfsSO6mfQCLcBGAsYHQ/w615-h462/IMG_3397.JPG" width="615" /></a></div><br /><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>While the spacing looked good, it seemed as though gluing the 2x6's to the 2x4's on the edge wasn't going to provide a very sturdy sub-assembly. So I came up with plan C. I thought I could glue small pieces of 2x3's to 2x6's and build the louvers up in this manner. The photo below shows the results of the test.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5RSY3WxfvR0/YY6GuYMtJVI/AAAAAAAADFo/gCneC4njo5Yo5A_3ax_DKSCN3C6d-SYiwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3396.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="462" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5RSY3WxfvR0/YY6GuYMtJVI/AAAAAAAADFo/gCneC4njo5Yo5A_3ax_DKSCN3C6d-SYiwCLcBGAsYHQ/w616-h462/IMG_3396.JPG" width="616" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /> </b></span><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">There were several things wrong with this approach. First and foremost, there was simply no way I was going to be able to build the louvers this way. I don't have enough time left in my life. Secondly, they just didn't look right when held at the angle that they would be mounted on the building. So it was on to plan D. </b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">I had given up on the idea of building louvers that you could actually see through. It seemed the only solution was to construct them as a solid structure and make them appear as though there were openings in them. I took piece of 2x12, glued a 2x2 to the edge, and then started building a jig. It seemed as though this just might work. Paint the area between the louvers black and it would help hide the fact that you couldn't actually see through it. The photo below shows the results.</b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8b7Y7_PMlGc/YY6IHqzDgJI/AAAAAAAADFw/hS0qu5WtmGEJIyr3NR_raVeGd8IFH8GCgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3398.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="467" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8b7Y7_PMlGc/YY6IHqzDgJI/AAAAAAAADFw/hS0qu5WtmGEJIyr3NR_raVeGd8IFH8GCgCLcBGAsYHQ/w623-h467/IMG_3398.JPG" width="623" /></a></div><br /><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">Eventually I finished the jig and it had eight louvers in it. But the section was small, gluing the 2x2's to the 2x12's was a pain, and it became clear that this wasn't going to be a very fast way of constructing all the louvers. And I was struggling with how to make these pieces into all the sections that would be needed to span the length of the roof. So now what?</b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">As I was working on the wood jig above, I moved the assembly from plan B out of the way. I was getting ready to pitch it when I noticed that it was pretty sturdy. And when I flipped it over, it looked really good. So I thought there's no harm in adding a few more boards to it. Once I got going, I figured out the best way to add the 2x6's and the process began to go quickly. Most importantly, when the piece is flipped over, the louvers look great! And it would be relatively easy to connect these sections together. The photo below shows the progress using this method.</b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ahuodO6_xo8/YY6KClPl0UI/AAAAAAAADF4/1ajQ5m99DPcP5Grqsb-myXdRGnSuMcQTwCLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/image51.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="468" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ahuodO6_xo8/YY6KClPl0UI/AAAAAAAADF4/1ajQ5m99DPcP5Grqsb-myXdRGnSuMcQTwCLcBGAsYHQ/w623-h468/image51.jpeg" width="623" /></a></b></div><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /> </b><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">I got pretty discouraged at various times while trying to figure out the louvers. But fortunately, I stuck with it and didn't pack the whole project back into a box. It now looks like there just might be an engine house at Nelsonville in the not-too-distant future!</b></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-69740253169914693702021-09-16T12:32:00.001-04:002021-09-16T12:32:29.520-04:00Lost in the Fleet<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>As part of my "Finishing Stuff" campaign that I started back in March of last year, I recently painted a 3-bay covered hopper car, two woodchip cars, and a 2-bay covered hopper to be used in sand service. These cars had languished in the paint shop for 2-3 years, victims of lost interest and inspiration for other projects. But it was finally time to get these finished. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The 2-bay covered hopper is the last of the five cars that will traverse the railroad between supply sources and the engine terminals at North Pierce and Nelsonville. As I was decaling the car, I remembered back to the first one I built. It was the late summer of 1983 and I was living in Cleveland. I spent some time that summer in Cincinnati railfanning the Southern engine terminal in Ludlow, KY. You could almost always find a couple of covered hoppers in sand service like the one in the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BYE8X9GQD4A/YUNrayUANoI/AAAAAAAADEc/ZBcBUVy87Okn7PoFLLOjwqHQNpGbblBhQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1328/IMG_20210916_0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1032" data-original-width="1328" height="482" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BYE8X9GQD4A/YUNrayUANoI/AAAAAAAADEc/ZBcBUVy87Okn7PoFLLOjwqHQNpGbblBhQCLcBGAsYHQ/w620-h482/IMG_20210916_0001.jpg" width="620" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /> </b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>E&B Valley had recently released their 2-bay covered hopper kit and it was exactly what I wanted for my sand service cars. I modified the side ladders like the ones on the SOU car and numbered it in the 99XXX series reserved for company service and MW equipment. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nwk2dTvVgRQ/YUNtWs-DYYI/AAAAAAAADEk/_Hcmes8BZqgoJpCUNnZ29wR6F-G20MbHACLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/image0.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="468" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nwk2dTvVgRQ/YUNtWs-DYYI/AAAAAAAADEk/_Hcmes8BZqgoJpCUNnZ29wR6F-G20MbHACLcBGAsYHQ/w624-h468/image0.jpeg" width="624" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>So here we are, almost 40 years later, and the last one is finally being added to the roster. This is a Bowser car and I removed all of the cast on grabs on the ladders and replaced them with .010 styrene rod. The photo below shows the car as it's being decaled. And there are two other cars just like this in service already.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FHkLQNzmYjI/YUNv2QeLLrI/AAAAAAAADE0/G72PDubfm3cM5GwYBX_76M9d87hed4fvQCLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/image15.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="465" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FHkLQNzmYjI/YUNv2QeLLrI/AAAAAAAADE0/G72PDubfm3cM5GwYBX_76M9d87hed4fvQCLcBGAsYHQ/w619-h465/image15.jpeg" width="619" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It occurred to me as I was working on this car that it is one of the "fleet" cars. Unremarkable, fairly non-descript, and unlikely to be noticed by any of the crew as a new addition. But it's one of the cars you need if your going to have some variety in the operating scheme and your rolling stock. Like all the hopper cars on the railroad, it's just another one that will be lost in the fleet.</b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-28079432688549606722021-09-09T11:10:00.002-04:002021-09-09T11:10:50.106-04:00Diesel Paint Schemes- Part 2<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>In the late 1940's, the Marketing Department of the Chesapeake, Wheeling & Erie was charged with developing a new advertising campaign for the railroad. Given the road's main line connection between the Great Lakes and the Atlantic seaboard, it seemed important to emphasis this route when dealing with both existing and potential customers. As a result, the "Central Belt" moniker was born. This further developed into the slogan "The Central Belt- Linking the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Seaboard." The first evidence of this change on rolling stock occurred in early 1950 when the original steam era herald was replaced with the new "CWE- Central Belt" herald. And the first units delivered with this herald were the F7's that arrived on the property in 1950.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pNiunF4dPOE/YTofGU2jsPI/AAAAAAAADDg/zLvKYFw1yqILpfoFMD0eQPzAEBvSZcP-ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BF7A%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pNiunF4dPOE/YTofGU2jsPI/AAAAAAAADDg/zLvKYFw1yqILpfoFMD0eQPzAEBvSZcP-ACLcBGAsYHQ/w603-h302/CWE%2BF7A%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" width="603" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XWWZ65M8k-E/YTof0nXMJZI/AAAAAAAADDo/_E91RyzSEjQP6LtKkTj7CpZN5GLf5gu1QCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BF7B%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XWWZ65M8k-E/YTof0nXMJZI/AAAAAAAADDo/_E91RyzSEjQP6LtKkTj7CpZN5GLf5gu1QCLcBGAsYHQ/w604-h302/CWE%2BF7B%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" width="604" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>These units were followed by the first order of GP7's in June of 1951.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w44i3E7qIgE/YTogRiCm3iI/AAAAAAAADDw/3dGBwt6tv40L0G6iquShBOd8hK8GSxWOACLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BGP7%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="301" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-w44i3E7qIgE/YTogRiCm3iI/AAAAAAAADDw/3dGBwt6tv40L0G6iquShBOd8hK8GSxWOACLcBGAsYHQ/w602-h301/CWE%2BGP7%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" width="602" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This paint scheme would last until early 1957 when the first of the F units were repainted into the F2 paint scheme. At this time, the railroad elected to use the Central Belt moniker as the road name with small "CW&E" initials under the cab windows on the A units and at one end of the B units. In order to improve visibility, the cab units were painted solid yellow below the grills and the ends of the GP's were painted solid yellow.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AltEhQ6_nn4/YToifiwXNzI/AAAAAAAADEI/1L07a3wIgp0SeF-83CJHaaxsq4PS2vQEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BFP7A%2BCentral%2BBelt%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="303" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AltEhQ6_nn4/YToifiwXNzI/AAAAAAAADEI/1L07a3wIgp0SeF-83CJHaaxsq4PS2vQEQCLcBGAsYHQ/w605-h303/CWE%2BFP7A%2BCentral%2BBelt%2BScheme.png" width="605" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Cac0i_XltzM/YToin8MJrFI/AAAAAAAADEM/0rWAUQgv-ZE0uUk2sYuqTz7AIiU4hB8pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BGP7%2BCentral%2BBelt%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="302" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Cac0i_XltzM/YToin8MJrFI/AAAAAAAADEM/0rWAUQgv-ZE0uUk2sYuqTz7AIiU4hB8pwCLcBGAsYHQ/w603-h302/CWE%2BGP7%2BCentral%2BBelt%2BScheme.png" width="603" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This paint scheme and numbering system would remain in effect until 1966 when the railroad began to renumber all locomotives according to horsepower ratings and the Central Belt logo was discarded for the large "CWE" herald.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><p></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-68185202332437770422021-06-26T19:03:00.001-04:002021-06-26T19:03:08.875-04:00Inspiration- Part 4<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>While looking through my Facebook feeds this morning, I came across a photo on the Freight Car Enthusiast page that really caught my eye. It's a picture of a 40' Penn Central boxcar painted in Bicentennial colors. While that's not unusual in and of itself, it's the fact that the car is assigned to wreck train service that makes it so unique. The photo was posted by Eric Werner and is from his original slide collection.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pcn-SqoAWDY/YNetKrZ5mFI/AAAAAAAADB8/UaxzETwOxf4Egb2hvI1q8ZUuDSJ7zCLPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1795/PC%2BBicentennial%2BWreck%2BTrain%2BCleveland%2B1976.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1795" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pcn-SqoAWDY/YNetKrZ5mFI/AAAAAAAADB8/UaxzETwOxf4Egb2hvI1q8ZUuDSJ7zCLPgCLcBGAsYHQ/w638-h424/PC%2BBicentennial%2BWreck%2BTrain%2BCleveland%2B1976.jpg" width="638" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The caption for the photo said it was taken in Cleveland in 1976. If you look closely at the lettering under the road number, you'll see that it says "Collinwood." So one could assume that this car was assigned to the wreck train based out of the ex-LM&SS/NYC complex in Collinwood, Ohio, on the east side of Cleveland. Shortly after posting this photo, Eric posted a picture of the entire work train.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k45zzrTGuo8/YNetqViJJJI/AAAAAAAADCE/JmgrDqVa8vEretXQb-gzviFoFTMoHRPZQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1808/PC%2BBicentennial%2BWreck%2BTrain%2BCleveland%2B1976%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1808" height="422" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k45zzrTGuo8/YNetqViJJJI/AAAAAAAADCE/JmgrDqVa8vEretXQb-gzviFoFTMoHRPZQCLcBGAsYHQ/w637-h422/PC%2BBicentennial%2BWreck%2BTrain%2BCleveland%2B1976%2B2.jpg" width="637" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>In the photo above, you can clearly see the old back shops and locomotive erection buildings that were part of the Collinwood yard. But what really caught my eye, in addition to the somewhat odd paint scheme for a wreck train, was the specific equipment. Note the two gons with panel track and the gon with trucks. Also note the coach and baggage car. On the far side of the baggage car is the boom tender along with the crane.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This photo is exactly what I needed to fill out the rest of the wreck train on the railroad. I'll add three gons like those above and similarly outfitted. Add a coach or some ex-troop sleepers and viola! Wreck train ready for service!</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-83788866887286074642021-05-07T11:28:00.005-04:002021-05-07T11:53:20.277-04:00inspiration- Part 3<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Ever since Matt Snell delivered CWE business car no. 1 to the railroad, I've been thinking about how to incorporate it into an op session. It's been tagged onto the back of priority freights for a number of sessions, but that just didn't seem to do the beautiful car justice. Fortunately, I found some inspiration while surfing the internet recently.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The photo below shows Penn Central SPX-2L, an eastbound inspection train, in May of 1975. It consists of an SD45, a PC caboose that appears to be recently painted, and a PC observation car.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uIopfHliM34/YJVYwJ6cy5I/AAAAAAAADAg/ShZoefBMQ0QHQkndUQMrt1IKBsLtJTw6gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1473/Eastbound%2Binspection%2Btrain%2BSPL-2X%2B5-9-75.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="897" data-original-width="1473" height="394" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uIopfHliM34/YJVYwJ6cy5I/AAAAAAAADAg/ShZoefBMQ0QHQkndUQMrt1IKBsLtJTw6gCLcBGAsYHQ/w646-h394/Eastbound%2Binspection%2Btrain%2BSPL-2X%2B5-9-75.jpg" width="646" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Talk about inspiration- this photo shows exactly the type of movement I wanted to replicate. So I grabbed one of the road's SD45's, one of the newest cabooses, and teamed them up with CWE 1. You can see the results below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VVTUnX0wvQ0/YJVZVgx4ghI/AAAAAAAADAo/eEP5ouwl4tsh0KzA4an50jXlq5NqeOatwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0002.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="431" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VVTUnX0wvQ0/YJVZVgx4ghI/AAAAAAAADAo/eEP5ouwl4tsh0KzA4an50jXlq5NqeOatwCLcBGAsYHQ/w647-h431/DSC_0002.JPG" width="647" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Train cards have been made up for the crews and they can be seen below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uPaYn59zuE8/YJVau6etMiI/AAAAAAAADAw/xs4PH1ctwDwJ5gzECFyX8QThVfL6jl8GACLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/image0.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="484" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uPaYn59zuE8/YJVau6etMiI/AAAAAAAADAw/xs4PH1ctwDwJ5gzECFyX8QThVfL6jl8GACLcBGAsYHQ/w645-h484/image0.jpeg" width="645" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The staging track assignments have been left blank and will be filled in based upon whatever tracks are open during a particular session. A wet erase marker insures that they can be used over and over again.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The photo below shows SPX-10 headed east through Big Chimney.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-udYQJsVb1Sc/YJVbQxcYPHI/AAAAAAAADA4/xsVBUWGTVckCxfnxLLBcWiIJE4fre9eQgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0005.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="429" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-udYQJsVb1Sc/YJVbQxcYPHI/AAAAAAAADA4/xsVBUWGTVckCxfnxLLBcWiIJE4fre9eQgCLcBGAsYHQ/w644-h429/DSC_0005.JPG" width="644" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>As my good friend Keith VandeStadt suggested, this train will be a show stopper- everything will have to clear up for it. I'd hate to be the dispatcher that put it in the hole for any reason! And I sure wouldn't want to be the employee that calls it the circus train- at least over the radio. Right, Bill Doll?</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-36472320512053540872021-04-26T11:21:00.000-04:002021-04-26T11:21:02.162-04:00WC 17<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>For whatever reason, maintenance of way equipment has always had a special appeal to just about anyone interested in railroads. For us railroad modelers, MofW equipment gives us the opportunity to build unique models with paint schemes that differ from the rest of the rolling stock on the railroad. And for those of us with operating railroads, the equipment gives us a chance to have special movements periodically.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The plans for a wreck crane on the CWE were hatched almost 40 years ago when I purchased one of the Athearn 200-ton crane kits. I clipped several adds for brass cranes of a more modern design from magazines over the years and saved them in the box with the crane. My plan was to eventually kit-bash a more modern crane from the Athearn kit. However, as the design plans for the railroad were developed and the operating scheme came together, it became apparent that a 200-ton crane would be based at one of the major yards, not on the modeled portion. Would a smaller crane be located at the yard at North Pierce? Perhaps. But the plans for WC 17 didn't fully gel until I found the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nb-zA4QEPEs/YIbWijfQkYI/AAAAAAAADAA/_j2BCe28k1Ehbqkubs8JPn6woyNoigpFgCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/AB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="800" height="422" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nb-zA4QEPEs/YIbWijfQkYI/AAAAAAAADAA/_j2BCe28k1Ehbqkubs8JPn6woyNoigpFgCLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h422/AB.jpg" width="625" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The photo shows one of the C&O's smaller cranes at Thurmond, WV and I'm guessing it's sometime in the 1960's but perhaps a little later. I don't know if it was kept there or not, but one could imagine it was stationed there to handle any minor derailments on the numerous branches that originated here. And it just so happens that Tichy makes a kit of this exact crane. That was all the inspiration I needed!</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The photos below shows the completed model on the RIP tracks at North Pierce. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UbdHYXEjdrw/YIbX26L4clI/AAAAAAAADAI/7ZE-XoW3A90ZebhjJiZI83Z7919M0QZqgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="476" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UbdHYXEjdrw/YIbX26L4clI/AAAAAAAADAI/7ZE-XoW3A90ZebhjJiZI83Z7919M0QZqgCLcBGAsYHQ/w634-h476/IMG_3049.JPG" width="634" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2Vx30aYjrY/YIbX-PumB5I/AAAAAAAADAM/ggYPfNBO1JYUkN6LhR0_Klq2ougO-cGJgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="476" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2Vx30aYjrY/YIbX-PumB5I/AAAAAAAADAM/ggYPfNBO1JYUkN6LhR0_Klq2ougO-cGJgCLcBGAsYHQ/w634-h476/IMG_3050.JPG" width="634" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The kit was a joy to build, and I'm really impressed with the design work. All of the pieces fit together beautifully, and it's very apparent that someone spent a lot of time and effort engineering how everything would fit together. The only additional detail that I added was the side curtains.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mhm7DJwFRrg/YIbYn7y7IbI/AAAAAAAADAY/yOYeXnjsJOw9S3zEYbNAdMkVUzuM6g4aQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_3051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="477" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mhm7DJwFRrg/YIbYn7y7IbI/AAAAAAAADAY/yOYeXnjsJOw9S3zEYbNAdMkVUzuM6g4aQCLcBGAsYHQ/w636-h477/IMG_3051.JPG" width="636" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>So the boom car that was built back in the mid-1980's finally has a companion. In addition to the recently completed baggage/tool car, there is a tender in the works. There will probably be a passenger car or two that will be added to the wreck train. And I'm not sure if it will be station here at North Pierce or somewhere else on the railroad. Time will tell. But the wreck train will certainly make an occasional appearance during an op session. And yes, it will be limited to 10 MPH.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-6438341034766821322021-03-12T10:27:00.001-05:002021-03-13T06:24:24.243-05:00The Chesapeake, Wheeling & Erie on Facebook<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>For those of you who are on Facebook and aren't aware of it, I created a FB page for the railroad back in November of last year. Here's a link to the page: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/859085098163401">https://www.facebook.com/groups/859085098163401</a>. There have been some interesting and fun posts by some of the members, so check it out if you're so inclined.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>And here's what was posted most recently for Front End Friday.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-st-cLiRWZ7Y/YEuIDiQ-W-I/AAAAAAAAC_U/ECIhW5lxp1I1gc67ekGFYSJ9W23D-BkDgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0015%2B1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-st-cLiRWZ7Y/YEuIDiQ-W-I/AAAAAAAAC_U/ECIhW5lxp1I1gc67ekGFYSJ9W23D-BkDgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h426/DSC_0015%2B1.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-16173719963949602292021-03-04T07:13:00.001-05:002021-03-04T07:13:14.585-05:00Introducing... The Suffolk Northern Railway Blog<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>As my good friend Keith VandeStadt likes to say, "drum roll please!" And with that, we'll formally introduce the new blog for the Suffolk Northern Railway. It can be found here: <a href="http://www.suffolknorthern.com/">http://www.suffolknorthern.com/</a>. A link is also listed in the Great Railroad Modeling Sites column on the right hand side of the page.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>You may recall from previous posts that the Suffolk Northern is a proto-freelanced coal hauler set in the mid-1950's. I've had the pleasure of operating on this railroad for almost 10 years now. Part of what makes it so special is how well it runs and that's thanks to Keith's fastidious attention to making sure everything works just as it should. But it really is the complete package- from paint schemes to weathering to scenery to structures, it's a joy not only to operate but to view as well.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Keith has done a remarkable job with the new blog. It's entertaining, informative, humorous, and just a really fun read. He has gone into great detail about the background and history of just about every aspect of his railroad. I can't imagine there's anything about it that you couldn't find in the wealth of information posted here. So do yourself a favor and check it out. I think you'll enjoy the time spent on the Suffolk Northern.</b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-42731939334238726562021-02-27T12:13:00.003-05:002021-02-27T12:13:46.113-05:00Tool Car 91094<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The shops have been busy. The most recent addition to the roster is tool car 91094. I had planned to convert a couple of passenger and/or baggage cars for wreck train service ever since I read an article on kit-bashing them in Model Railroad back in the late 1970's. There's just something about MofW equipment and wreck trains that appeals to just about anyone interested in railroading.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The original plan was to modify a couple of Athearn Blue Box passenger cars. These cars measure a scale 74' over the coupler faces and are right at the limit of what will operate on the railroad given the tight tunnel clearances and 30" minimum radius curves. At some point, I started looking at shorter cars. Most of these have 4-wheel trucks, and I'm preferential to the look of 6-wheel trucks under passenger equipment. Fortunately, I found a Rivarossi 60' baggage car on eBay and it was reasonably priced. In addition, it came with wire grabs and some great looking underbody detail.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>A trip through the paint shop followed by decals and weathering resulted in Tool Car 91094.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ER3XDbxqQms/YDfdaGy-pII/AAAAAAAAC-g/uvAPxQyJvqkCZvQM0cjfGDr6my81kKeHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0002.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="418" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ER3XDbxqQms/YDfdaGy-pII/AAAAAAAAC-g/uvAPxQyJvqkCZvQM0cjfGDr6my81kKeHwCLcBGAsYHQ/w628-h418/DSC_0002.JPG" width="628" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The sides were painted UP Armor Yellow and the roof was painted Vallejo aluminum. I studied a number of photos of various baggage cars in MW and wreck train service and was surprised at the lack of dimensional data and lettering. I had planned to add small "MofW" lettering or "Tool Car" on either side, but passed for the simplicity of what you see here. I am absolutely certain that I have never put so few decals on a piece of rolling stock.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YKAFttYkyzc/YDfepnRS0iI/AAAAAAAAC-o/E_1D4g1YUrMcw7mhmL--Qn21JsHceRaZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0009.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="417" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YKAFttYkyzc/YDfepnRS0iI/AAAAAAAAC-o/E_1D4g1YUrMcw7mhmL--Qn21JsHceRaZwCLcBGAsYHQ/w626-h417/DSC_0009.JPG" width="626" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The grab irons were painted white per the standard paint scheme for MW equipment and the ends of the diaphragms were heavily weathered with oil paints. The sides and roof were weathered lightly using artist's acrylics to represent a car that had recently been repainted.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CvCSC0hSdtc/YDffRnLfZdI/AAAAAAAAC-w/oQbySjBONzEBEk0_YYNcW32ybHs_PRXLgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0011.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="417" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CvCSC0hSdtc/YDffRnLfZdI/AAAAAAAAC-w/oQbySjBONzEBEk0_YYNcW32ybHs_PRXLgCLcBGAsYHQ/w626-h417/DSC_0011.JPG" width="626" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This last shot shows the car in wreck consist. It will be joined soon by the Tichy 120-ton Brownhoist crane that's about to go into the paint shop.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wFHtjSwp4ts/YDp8kwhOPoI/AAAAAAAAC-4/gl2nRIltZGMXpj7TisViajMjPzMHiRrhgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DSC_0017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="421" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wFHtjSwp4ts/YDp8kwhOPoI/AAAAAAAAC-4/gl2nRIltZGMXpj7TisViajMjPzMHiRrhgCLcBGAsYHQ/w633-h421/DSC_0017.JPG" width="633" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>When the wreck train is finished, it will occasionally make an appearance during an op session. It may also be stored temporarily on one of the RIP tracks at North Pierce.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-39939246774141757282021-02-14T12:50:00.002-05:002021-02-14T12:50:13.311-05:00"What a long...<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>...strange trip it's been." At least with regard to getting this freight car on the railroad!</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It all started back in the fall of 2017 when I purchased an Accurail covered hopper car at the local NMRA show. It was decorated for the PC and I intended to patch it and reletter it for Greg McComas' Michigan Interstate. You can read more about this car on this post: <a href="https://cwerailroad.blogspot.com/2019/10/finishing-stuff.html">https://cwerailroad.blogspot.com/2019/10/finishing-stuff.html</a>. I finally got the car painted, lettered for the K&LE, and prepped for weathering. And then into the paint shop drawer it went- a year ago last month.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>While I am generally pretty good about finishing projects that I have started, there are those occasions when I just lose interest somewhere along the way. Such was the case with this car. It sat waiting to be weathered for over a year. About a week ago, I started perusing covered hopper car photos and sure enough, the inspiration came. I got out the gouache and powders and went at it. The photos below show the results.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tJJo2hUDXFA/YClg7C9VMPI/AAAAAAAAC94/WJDkmw_XRFoM_gDmIduFFi2j0dzSjOUfACLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/image2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tJJo2hUDXFA/YClg7C9VMPI/AAAAAAAAC94/WJDkmw_XRFoM_gDmIduFFi2j0dzSjOUfACLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h469/image2.jpeg" width="625" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AEU-Gaz07lw/YClhBhQbQhI/AAAAAAAAC98/MupNR6u3tIoBJqKgaIHybz6-SCaqqMYfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s4032/image1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AEU-Gaz07lw/YClhBhQbQhI/AAAAAAAAC98/MupNR6u3tIoBJqKgaIHybz6-SCaqqMYfwCLcBGAsYHQ/w626-h470/image1.jpeg" width="626" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This car was new in 1972 so it was weathered to reflect just four years of service. I mixed up a wash of light grey gouache using Windex and white, ivory black and a little burnt umber. The wash dries fairly quickly but can be manipulated for a long time. I took a rough bristle brush, wetted it with Windex, and then drew it down the sides to get the rain and dirt streaks. The same mix was blotted on the roof with a cosmetic sponge. The trucks received the usual mix of artist's acrylics and powders. While certainly not anything close to an award winner, it will look fine running the railroad in a grainer. And it's great to finally have this one done!</b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-1849774945256171312021-02-01T12:46:00.003-05:002021-02-01T12:46:21.147-05:00Back to the Future<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The incredible M.R. Snell is at it again. He recently decided to add several buffer cars to the Conrail Shared Assets Operation fleet and he included a CWE car in the mix. As you would expect from Matt, the car includes all of the appropriate markings. He even went so far as to number the car in the same MofW/Company Service series that previous non-revenue car have been assigned. The photo below shows the car on the Oak Island Runner during a recent op session.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q0f4ey2Occc/YBg88U3FL-I/AAAAAAAAC9k/onDAu7agUJkHr1FhME9mtiJjv-e0ulv6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2892.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q0f4ey2Occc/YBg88U3FL-I/AAAAAAAAC9k/onDAu7agUJkHr1FhME9mtiJjv-e0ulv6QCLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h469/IMG_2892.jpg" width="625" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>And speaking of back to the future, you'll note that the boxcar in the lower left hand corner of the photo is a Suffolk Northern Railway car. That's the proto-freelanced railroad of Keith VandeStadt, another one of the local crew and a frequent operator on the CSAO. The SNR is set in the late 1950's but there just happens to be a modern car roaming the rails in New Jersey.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It's a great looking car, Matt- thanks for including the CWE in the project!</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-55691513667672861782021-01-31T08:51:00.002-05:002021-01-31T08:51:25.668-05:00For the L&N guys<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>As I've mentioned before, I rely on prototype photos for inspiration. Being able to see something in a photo from my era provides both the motivation and the colors to recreate it in miniature. And so it was when I came across the photo below of a yard in Allentown, PA in 1975.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1AdGrmKucrw/YBasTgwDBsI/AAAAAAAAC8s/gwchHzMhgLsgOjO05_bw5JO-oCra_Kq8wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1474/Allentown%2BPA%2B1975.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="967" data-original-width="1474" height="410" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1AdGrmKucrw/YBasTgwDBsI/AAAAAAAAC8s/gwchHzMhgLsgOjO05_bw5JO-oCra_Kq8wCLcBGAsYHQ/w624-h410/Allentown%2BPA%2B1975.jpg" width="624" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I could model every freight car in this photo and have already done the Lehigh Valley X58 boxcar, albeit in a modified version of the old Athearn BB kit. But it was the L&N boxcar in the lower right hand corner that caught my eye recently. I seemed to recall having purchased a similar car from the second-hand inventory at the old Tim's Trains a while back. Sure enough- I bought two of them. They are the old Intermountain kits that were part of a run done by the Louisville & Nashville Historical Society. I assumed the paint scheme and numbers were correct and a quick check with my good friend Stuart Thayer confirmed it. In fact, Stuart worked with Intermountain on the graphics for the kit. In addition to being a very accomplished modeler, Stuart is a long-time member of the L&NHS. He is also one of three members of the operating crew on the railroad that are dyed in the wool L&N fans/modelers. So it was only fitting that a few cars from their favorite railroad should show up occasionally during an op session.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I only made a few changes while building the kits. I added cut levers and wire grabs at the bottom right hand side of the ends and replaced the plastic stirrup steps on the left side of the sides. I also replaced the COTS stencils as the ones on the kit appeared too small to me. With the addition of metal wheels and an ACI label, the cars were complete.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The photo below shows the two cars after a trip through the paint shop. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RDwplHoT0pc/YBawUCTi3OI/AAAAAAAAC84/uTfdUxxOY2EzzkxfpqxLiJzrXvyCEyzygCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2884.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="473" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RDwplHoT0pc/YBawUCTi3OI/AAAAAAAAC84/uTfdUxxOY2EzzkxfpqxLiJzrXvyCEyzygCLcBGAsYHQ/w631-h473/IMG_2884.jpg" width="631" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The roofs of the kit were painted the same blue as the rest of the car. It was difficult to see in the original photo just what the roof looked like, but it appeared to have some peeling paint in addition to some faded paint with perhaps a little rust. I blew up the photo to get a better look and you can see what I found below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L7bywSj8yLA/YBaxJdycEsI/AAAAAAAAC9E/l_awQBH82B0I629x-4WzGJMcpUFNbL_eQCLcBGAsYHQ/s513/Allentown%2BPA%2B1975%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="336" data-original-width="513" height="415" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L7bywSj8yLA/YBaxJdycEsI/AAAAAAAAC9E/l_awQBH82B0I629x-4WzGJMcpUFNbL_eQCLcBGAsYHQ/w632-h415/Allentown%2BPA%2B1975%2B1.jpg" width="632" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I decided to paint the entire roof silver and then come back and add some blue to represent the old paint. I used Vallejo Model Air Aluminum followed by Testor's DulIcote for the base layer. I then mixed Vallejo Model Color Medium Blue with a little white and applied it sparsely using a cosmetic sponge. I got a little too aggressive with the blue and ended up going back over the roof with some Aluminum applied with a cosmetic sponge. Lastly, I added a little artist's acrylic burnt umber to represent rust in a few locations. The photos below shows the results.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FigYZpWtdi0/YBazlIKmvNI/AAAAAAAAC9Q/hRyu3wOHpQIbNLHOaSuZrFMaFoxajNa7ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2888.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FigYZpWtdi0/YBazlIKmvNI/AAAAAAAAC9Q/hRyu3wOHpQIbNLHOaSuZrFMaFoxajNa7ACLcBGAsYHQ/w637-h478/IMG_2888.jpg" width="637" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /> </b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-16D8hwl7neU/YBazswZwvjI/AAAAAAAAC9U/9a6iFXdkm3g8vEQxCAxUXOKsN2x0XeMcQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2886.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-16D8hwl7neU/YBazswZwvjI/AAAAAAAAC9U/9a6iFXdkm3g8vEQxCAxUXOKsN2x0XeMcQCLcBGAsYHQ/w637-h478/IMG_2886.jpg" width="637" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The trucks were weathered with the usual combination of artist's acrylics and powders. Once a few waybills have been made up, these cars will be ready for revenue service!</b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-33846723529002149282021-01-24T12:08:00.001-05:002021-01-24T12:08:46.683-05:00Freight Car Redo- 2<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Continuing with the freight car improvement program, I tackled an old E&B Valley 65' mill gon this past week. I built this car back in 1991 and was pleased at the time with the weathering. I used oils to represent rust on the exterior and a wash of oils mixed with ground foam to dirty up the interior. However, the car had that monotone look that came from a lack of detailed weathering on the trucks and a basic overspray of Floquil Grime. The photos below show the car before the trip through the shops.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xPG5JTqnwEY/YA2l_ucs3OI/AAAAAAAAC78/7n9MF7tRxMYV4vzdXsNdATtij6WJDWkhwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xPG5JTqnwEY/YA2l_ucs3OI/AAAAAAAAC78/7n9MF7tRxMYV4vzdXsNdATtij6WJDWkhwCLcBGAsYHQ/w626-h470/1.jpg" width="626" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6WFlLUxQFHA/YA2mE_R4IBI/AAAAAAAAC8A/e5Ojm-MPdIg0vDW7QSMx55ZxUJjx833yQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6WFlLUxQFHA/YA2mE_R4IBI/AAAAAAAAC8A/e5Ojm-MPdIg0vDW7QSMx55ZxUJjx833yQCLcBGAsYHQ/w627-h470/3.jpg" width="627" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">These old E&B kits took a lot of work in order to get them to look good and run well. In addition to adding weight to the underframes, the truck bolsters needed to be modified. This resulted in the removal of the sleeve that the trucks fit over, and if you then used the trucks that came with the kit, there was way too much side-to-side play in them. Consequently, they wouldn't track very well and were prone to derailment. I decided that if I was going to spend time re-weathering these cars, I was going to fix the truck problem.</b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;">I dug through my parts and found some old Kadee sprung trucks that have a small hole in the bolster for the mounting screw. Using a 2-56 screw, this eliminated almost all of the side-to-side play. Next up was weathering. I used a combination of artist's acrylics, AIM powders and MIG pigments to improve the overall look. The photos below show the results.</b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-POpMlvSFXyE/YA2oTXuajvI/AAAAAAAAC8Q/FnuZX_GY_YQGlP2i3gEzHgaO6q6o8JccQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="479" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-POpMlvSFXyE/YA2oTXuajvI/AAAAAAAAC8Q/FnuZX_GY_YQGlP2i3gEzHgaO6q6o8JccQCLcBGAsYHQ/w638-h479/2.jpg" width="638" /></a></div><br /><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b><p></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VBp6h-Nd1Cg/YA2od4S9a-I/AAAAAAAAC8U/ieYIhwv03so5pZ1C1e5t5T0EgLFJZcN4ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VBp6h-Nd1Cg/YA2od4S9a-I/AAAAAAAAC8U/ieYIhwv03so5pZ1C1e5t5T0EgLFJZcN4ACLcBGAsYHQ/w639-h480/4.jpg" width="639" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><b style="font-family: arial;"><br /></b></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Now the car can be billed to go anywhere on the railroad and not be restricted to one of the branches. Guess that means I need to come up with a load of some kind!</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-77205020741074133162021-01-16T14:23:00.003-05:002021-01-16T14:23:47.042-05:00New Motive Power- 2<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Along with the SD9 that was added to the roster recently, the shops have completed another Alco C628 for the railroad. This is one of the original Stewart kits from back in the day. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j1OkKsE174s/YAM6rShvwpI/AAAAAAAAC7I/19PwfM-Zn0wo3Eech6Phy9lsqQMJNrY-QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2764.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="476" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j1OkKsE174s/YAM6rShvwpI/AAAAAAAAC7I/19PwfM-Zn0wo3Eech6Phy9lsqQMJNrY-QCLcBGAsYHQ/w634-h476/IMG_2764.jpg" width="634" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It was originally intended to be a powered unit. I have another one of these older models on the railroad and it runs extremely well. But after installing a Tsunami in this one, I couldn't get it to run smoothly to save my life. So I yanked the decoder and the motor along with the gears and turned it into a dummy. It will initially be paired up with the Lehigh Valley C628 in the photo above along with an SD45 that's ready to be weathered.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5RniuTdG5ok/YAM7stDsuyI/AAAAAAAAC7U/jDBH9VNOFJMfPilvIF790GLv-bT5jk1MQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2843.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="479" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5RniuTdG5ok/YAM7stDsuyI/AAAAAAAAC7U/jDBH9VNOFJMfPilvIF790GLv-bT5jk1MQCLcBGAsYHQ/w638-h479/IMG_2843.jpg" width="638" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I used the usual assortment of artist's acrylics, weathering powders and Pan Pastels to weather the unit. While these Alcos were delivered in the Phase 3 paint scheme with the large "Central Belt" on the long hood, they were subsequently repainted in to the more modern Phase 4 scheme seen in these pictures.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-70243923310579466832021-01-15T17:37:00.001-05:002021-01-15T17:37:33.743-05:00Follow by email<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>One of my good friends asked me some time ago if there was a way to subscribe to the blog so that he would be notified by email when a new post showed up. I spent a little time looking through the design setup and couldn't find anything, Well, that friend is now setting up a blog for his railroad and, of course, he found it in no time. So now you will be able to subscribe by entering your email address in the gadget to the right of this post.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>As soon as Keith's blog for his Suffolk Northern is up and running, I'll get the word out here. You won't want to miss it as Keith does some fantastic transition era modeling. And his railroad is a real treat to operate.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>And thanks, Keith, for the instructions on email subscribing!</b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-18242029191296627312020-12-24T12:49:00.003-05:002020-12-24T12:49:55.454-05:00Why am I doing this?<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Talk about a project that was completed in fits and starts, these two gons take the cake.</b></span> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Many years ago, I purchased a Concor 52'6" gondola kit that included steel coils, coil troughs and hoods. Somewhere along the line I found another one, probably at a train show. I had always intended to build these for the home road and paint them in a similar scheme to those found on the C&O/B&O/Chessie System in the 1970's. The photo below shows how Chessie marked these cars especially for coil service. In addition to the two yellow panels on the side and the "COILS ONLY" stencils, the interiors of the cars were painted yellow. This was supposed to help alert crews and shippers to the special loading requirements.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4E3zyUFiaCY/X-THDBrHtJI/AAAAAAAAC5k/_glB1y0o6LwqPl_J31bAnk8437CyFl0JQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1000/co305005amg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="376" data-original-width="1000" height="232" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4E3zyUFiaCY/X-THDBrHtJI/AAAAAAAAC5k/_glB1y0o6LwqPl_J31bAnk8437CyFl0JQCLcBGAsYHQ/w619-h232/co305005amg.jpg" width="619" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>So this past May, I took the kits to Michigan with the intention of building them over the summer. I had built one of these kits before for general service, and I remembered that the underbody had to be modified in order to lower the trucks. And lowering the trucks meant changing the coupler pockets and end sills. There was a great article many years ago on how to do this, but of course I couldn't find it. So I looked at the bottom of the one I had built previously in order to figure out what needed to be done.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>So I started hacking away at the bottom of the car. I knew it wasn't going to be pretty, but I wasn't building this for a contest and no one was ever going to see the bottom of it anyway. The photo below shows the modifications to lower the trucks and raise the coupler pockets.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2jmCEWq0ShA/X-TI6qeBrZI/AAAAAAAAC5w/0WQU66aFHR88KX5_VJsLR7u4JBhJf3DmQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2379.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2jmCEWq0ShA/X-TI6qeBrZI/AAAAAAAAC5w/0WQU66aFHR88KX5_VJsLR7u4JBhJf3DmQCLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h469/IMG_2379.JPG" width="625" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The next step was to glue the underframe pieces to the body. Armed with a few clamps and some wood blocks, the next step was easy.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-19o_EJuZl8M/X-TJRsKgtbI/AAAAAAAAC54/wexz7dtJ4jUL2CqmURtgTJ1rQyaTz6n2ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-19o_EJuZl8M/X-TJRsKgtbI/AAAAAAAAC54/wexz7dtJ4jUL2CqmURtgTJ1rQyaTz6n2ACLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h469/IMG_2380.JPG" width="625" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>As I was working on the underframe, I was also looking at the sides and ends and trying to determine what needed to come off and be replaced with some finer detail. It soon became apparent that just about everything had to come off. About this time, I began to wonder why I was spending all this time hacking away on a kit that was at least 30 years old and lacked all of the finer detail that's available on RTR stuff today. I was about to throw in the towel when I came across the photo below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hrJQHeBnWpc/X-TKE_5lUEI/AAAAAAAAC6E/hlgTSOCpFIo-URorphlMTFANIayJwyZXwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1200/B%2526O%2BClark%2BAve%2Byard%2BCleveland%2B9-81.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="748" data-original-width="1200" height="389" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hrJQHeBnWpc/X-TKE_5lUEI/AAAAAAAAC6E/hlgTSOCpFIo-URorphlMTFANIayJwyZXwCLcBGAsYHQ/w626-h389/B%2526O%2BClark%2BAve%2Byard%2BCleveland%2B9-81.jpg" width="626" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The picture taken by Steven Brown shows Clarke Avenue Yard in Cleveland on the old B&O. What caught my eye was the gon behind the switcher. Note the yellow interior- this is clearly one of the coil gons and it's in pretty good shape. And while it is difficult to see in this photo, the car has ladders on the right side. I had been working on a resin kit of a SOU gon and it had ladders on all the corners. So it occurred to me that I could use ladders instead on grabs on the corners. And there was the additional inspiration I needed.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Next up, I carved off most of the detail and added new ladders and stirrup steps. I also added some etched walkways pieces to the solid platforms by the handbrake. As I wanted the cars to be able track well while empty, I also added some shot to the bottoms. Remember- I said that no one was going to see the bottoms! The photo below shows the cars at this point.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NUhUXnLpcMY/X-TNXytgf6I/AAAAAAAAC6Q/grG3r4yuiuQmndNmdJFqfZf6qS-Z1uCwgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="473" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NUhUXnLpcMY/X-TNXytgf6I/AAAAAAAAC6Q/grG3r4yuiuQmndNmdJFqfZf6qS-Z1uCwgCLcBGAsYHQ/w630-h473/IMG_2673.JPG" width="630" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>With the cars complete, I now turned to the hoods and troughs. My efforts here didn't last long as it became apparent that the hoods would require major work. In addition to adding grab irons all around, the braces for the top that came with the kit weren't going to work. I started looking through kits I had on hand and online but couldn't find anything that would work. I really didn't want to scratch-build these, but I was too far into this project to turn back. So the cars sat for awhile.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Sometime later, I came across a photo of the B&O gons with a caption that said these cars were rebuilt for hot coil service and as such, didn't have hoods. Bingo! That was exactly the inspiration I needed to finish these up. I dug through my coil car photos and found the one you see below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q_rGOcOAOgg/X-TPbc_F4PI/AAAAAAAAC6c/SiADBLvDPmkQzoLVX7TrCQ3EwVy8VmMTgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/18193435_1667021926646677_5667447524311194274_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="471" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-q_rGOcOAOgg/X-TPbc_F4PI/AAAAAAAAC6c/SiADBLvDPmkQzoLVX7TrCQ3EwVy8VmMTgCLcBGAsYHQ/w628-h471/18193435_1667021926646677_5667447524311194274_o.jpg" width="628" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>A cradle like the one in the gon would be easy enough to build out of styrene shapes. A quick search through my supplies yielded exactly what I needed. So the last piece of the puzzle for these two cars was finally in place!</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Several trips through the paint shop, some home road decals, and this project was finally complete. The cars received light weathering as they were rebuilt in September of 1975. The photos below show the final results.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lKqvrKbbfN4/X-TRl8FmXbI/AAAAAAAAC6o/S7d5wuV1dC0I81R2TrMfh2_FPUgDnm--wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2760.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="470" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lKqvrKbbfN4/X-TRl8FmXbI/AAAAAAAAC6o/S7d5wuV1dC0I81R2TrMfh2_FPUgDnm--wCLcBGAsYHQ/w627-h470/IMG_2760.jpg" width="627" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nS81SWfl6NM/X-TRsaHsCjI/AAAAAAAAC6s/snR0rmNU0AsDu6bLICzbLJlq-RBWvwoiwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2761.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="471" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nS81SWfl6NM/X-TRsaHsCjI/AAAAAAAAC6s/snR0rmNU0AsDu6bLICzbLJlq-RBWvwoiwCLcBGAsYHQ/w628-h471/IMG_2761.jpg" width="628" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>So why did I do this? Several reasons. First, I had always wanted to have a couple of coil gons like these decorated for the home road. Second, I still enjoy taking some of the old standards and making something somewhat acceptable out of them. And lastly, one of the really neat things about proto-freelancing is that you can come up with rolling stock like this. While there's no specific prototype for the car, it is based upon prototype principles and practices. And hopefully, I've followed those closely enough to make it appear as thought there could have been prototype for it.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-74620235756738075832020-12-20T12:34:00.004-05:002020-12-20T12:36:28.498-05:00New Motive Power- 1<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The railroad's locomotive shops have been busy. The most recent addition to the roster is SD9 1752. This is a Proto 2000 unit that was decorated as a BNSF repaint of a Burlington Northern unit. It was on sale at Walthers and had a Tsunami in it so I figured I couldn't go wrong even though it would need some modifications. The footboards had been cut off the bottom of the pilots and notches were cut in the top corners to accept the newer style cut levers. As it clearly represented a unit that had been updated at some point, I was going to paint it in the modern CWE scheme (F4). But after retiring SD9 1763, there were no locos on the railroad in the earlier paint scheme (F3). So I decided that this unit would carry the colors that were last applied to diesels in early 1967.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This project turned out to be more work than I had originally anticipated. The rotary beacon on the cab rood had to be removed and the hole filled. I cracked one of the number boards trying to get it out of the body and it had to be repaired. Then there was the frame. If the unit was going to be painted in the F3 scheme of the early 1960's, it probably wouldn't have had the footboards removed and the newer style uncoupling levers. So I dug through my spare parts boxes until I found a frame from an older unit. Fortunately, the shell fit onto the frame without any problems. Next, I wanted to add spark arrestors that were applied to all of the first generation EMDs. Of course, the BNSF winterization hatch interfered with them, so I had to dig through my parts box to find a replacement. Once all of the changes were complete, it was off to the paint shop.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6XcJatZaLgY/X9-JRR45yaI/AAAAAAAAC5M/HZSf3BrZ_DQbuFgZnkhNiYVcET2POCq0QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2727.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="475" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6XcJatZaLgY/X9-JRR45yaI/AAAAAAAAC5M/HZSf3BrZ_DQbuFgZnkhNiYVcET2POCq0QCLcBGAsYHQ/w634-h475/IMG_2727.JPG" width="634" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>I tried fading the Pullman Green with oils by mixing up a dirty grey color. It didn't turn out as I had hoped although it did a fairly good job of fading the paint. I went back over it with another wash of burnt umber and ivory black oil paint which toned down the grey wash. The final results can bee seen in the photos.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The unit was been renumbered post 1968, so the numbers on the cab side received less weathering than the rest of the unit. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VSy-Ee1YX7I/X9-KeYwafDI/AAAAAAAAC5Y/sfrdcuFDZu8RZ6cUT_Q_EXpxNHfttvhdACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2731.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="481" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VSy-Ee1YX7I/X9-KeYwafDI/AAAAAAAAC5Y/sfrdcuFDZu8RZ6cUT_Q_EXpxNHfttvhdACLcBGAsYHQ/w641-h481/IMG_2731.JPG" width="641" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The unit will be assigned to either the ballast train or switcher duty at Nelsonville or North Pierce. While the weathering didn't turn out exactly as I had hoped, it's good to have a unit on the railroad in the pre-1967 F3 paint scheme.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-82603233598032956642020-12-09T07:49:00.001-05:002020-12-19T19:00:57.275-05:00Freight Car Redo- 1<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><b>For the past six months or so, Bob Fallowfield has been going back over his fleet of cars with an eye toward updating and/or redoing the weathering on them. I've been following his progress on his Galt Sub of the CP Facebook page. Bob models the late 1970's- early 1980's so a lot of his freight cars are of interest to me. He does some really beautiful work, and I've learned a few new tricks from him. But what I've really taken away from watching his progress is the desire to go back and do the same thing with my fleet. The first to go through the program is C&O 619112.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>This is one of the Walthers RTR cars that came out in the mid-1980's. I removed all of the cast on grab irons and replaced them with Details Associates wire grabs, replaced the stirrup steps with A-Line parts, and replaced the roofwalk with an etched metal one. It was a lot of work. Once the new parts were on, I masked off the rest of the car and sprayed over the ends and the ends of the sides with Scalecoat II (I think- it was a long time ago!). I painted the trucks a rust brown color and then weathered the car with a light dusting of Floquil Grime. The weathering was based upon a color photo that appeared in Rail Model Journal back in the day. Satisfied with the results, it went on the railroad.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>At some point in the not-too-distant past, I came across a photo of one of these cars and noticed that the bottom was blue. Sigh. A quick check of other cars in this series showed that all of the bottoms were painted Chessie Dark Blue, as were almost all of the covered hoppers painted in the Chessie scheme. So I grabbed the old car, looked at the bottom, and realized it would be a chore to mask it off and repaint it. So it sat a while longer.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>A few weeks ago, it occurred to me that I could brush paint the bottom. It certainly didn't have to be perfect. I could just mix up a blue that closely resembled the Chessie paint and have at it. I could also redo the weathering which I had never really been satisfied with. The photo below shows the results of the paint job.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8DglkdqhWZk/X76AGYte0iI/AAAAAAAAC3s/kKwOy_rN-JE_zjzSubM28PxrBLt-gEKqACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2712.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="469" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8DglkdqhWZk/X76AGYte0iI/AAAAAAAAC3s/kKwOy_rN-JE_zjzSubM28PxrBLt-gEKqACLcBGAsYHQ/w625-h469/IMG_2712.JPG" width="625" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>When new, the trucks on these cars were painted the same blue color as the bottom. I thought I could capture this look with some artist's oil dabbed on with a cosmetic sponge. It wasn't a one shot fix as I had hoped. I ended up going back over the trucks with a wash of artist's acrylic burnt umber and then finished it off with Pan Pastel highlight.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The final step was to add some wheel splatter to the ends and touch up the coupler pockets. The results can be seen below.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0EF-Rc6j7Zo/X76BK3YX1OI/AAAAAAAAC34/hbJ45TSJR4Y1KVwqIGI9vOYczc0IWjMKgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_2711.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="472" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0EF-Rc6j7Zo/X76BK3YX1OI/AAAAAAAAC34/hbJ45TSJR4Y1KVwqIGI9vOYczc0IWjMKgCLcBGAsYHQ/w630-h472/IMG_2711.JPG" width="630" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>It's nice to finally have this car looking more like the prototype. Given all the time and effort I had put into it back in the day, I really didn't want to abandon it. Will the crews notice the improvement? Unlikely. But at least I won't be inclined to turn my head away every time I see it!</b></span></p><p><br /></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8777066647675257012.post-85292547870211344192020-12-07T20:41:00.002-05:002020-12-07T20:41:34.854-05:00Diesel Paint Schemes- Part 1<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>In January of 1947, the Mechanical Department of the Chesapeake, Wheeling & Erie Railroad placed its first order for diesel locomotives. For a railroad that depended upon the shipment of coal for its livelihood, indeed its very survival, this was a difficult decision. But recent reports from other lines of the incredible performance of diesel locomotives versus their steam counterparts made the decision inevitable. Management owed it to the stockholders to at least evaluate the potential of these new machines.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>In mid-1947, the first six of a total order of ten EMD NW2s arrived on the property. These units were assigned to the large coal loading facilities at Hunters Bay, VA and were used primary to shuttle coal between the massive coal storage yard and the loading wharves. This job had been handled by the railroads venerable Class S 0-8-0 switchers that were purchased from Alco in the mid-1930's. These locomotives were showing their age and the increase in post-war coal movements required additional power to handle the tonnage.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The paint scheme for the NW2s was the product of the designers at EMD. With input from management, the talented individuals at EMD selected an overall color of Pullman Green with a yellow stripe on the hood. The railroad's name was spelled out in white Railroad Roman letters on the hood above the yellow stripe and the CWE herald was placed in the stripe on the cab side. The locomotive number was placed above the stripe on the cab.</b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6P3sdTiQ0Tg/X87Vpze3a_I/AAAAAAAAC4k/F2uLPtEOl8wbh0QsmnY-kBPh8IzTtSlxACLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BNW2%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="317" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6P3sdTiQ0Tg/X87Vpze3a_I/AAAAAAAAC4k/F2uLPtEOl8wbh0QsmnY-kBPh8IzTtSlxACLcBGAsYHQ/w633-h317/CWE%2BNW2%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" width="633" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Impressed with the performance of this first group of locomotives, the railroad ordered a handful of additional switchers from its long time steam locomotive partner, American Locomotive Company. The first two Alco S2s arrived in June of 1948 and were assigned to the coal operation at Hunters Bay along with the NW2s. The S2s were painted in the same scheme as the NW2s but with the road number below the yellow cab instead of above it. </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EUIu9yp_sVc/X87YZfQnA-I/AAAAAAAAC4w/rVhNmi1cVkod3NnzzRUO84w_IjG6KCzKwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1440/CWE%2BS2%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1440" height="322" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EUIu9yp_sVc/X87YZfQnA-I/AAAAAAAAC4w/rVhNmi1cVkod3NnzzRUO84w_IjG6KCzKwCLcBGAsYHQ/w643-h322/CWE%2BS2%2BOriginal%2BScheme.png" width="643" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>By the end of the month, another three S2s joined the ten NW2s already at work keeping the coal moving at Hunters Bay. And the writing was on the wall- there would be no turning back. Dieselization of the railroad was inevitable. The first handful 0-8-0s were sent to Richmond to be scrapped in August of 1949.</b></span></p>Tom Pattersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04787028891178734529noreply@blogger.com0