by Bruce Petty
Here’s a few freight cars that run on my Los Angeles & San Fernando Valley Railroad.
Finished this Wine Tank car 10-21-2011, by modifying an Athearn Chemical Tank Car.
The single dome was removed from the tank body, hole filled and sanded smooth.
I casted six domes from one found in the junk box that belonged to a 1950s
all metal Thomas wine car. Also added metal stirrup steps and wire grab irons at the tank ends.
AT&SF; 40′ Box Car. Athearn with cotton bales and weathered with wood stain 40 years ago.
UP 40′ Flat Car. Athearn with wooden deck added and wire grab irons, weathered with wood stain 40 years ago. It runs in train ahead of the camera car.
SP 50′ Gondola. Athearn car with added grab irons and stirrup steps, wood stain weathering 40 years ago. This is one of four gondolas used for scarp iron service.
SP 50′ Flat Car. Varney metal repainted. Lumber load is removable using thin refrigerator magnet material. This is one car of six Varney’s flats I’ve painted and decaled.
SP General Service Gondola. Made by Ulrich in 1950s. Weathered with a brown Latex paint wash. Loaded with sorted volcanic ant rock.
SP 40′ Box Car. Made by Accrurail Co. Weathered with a brown Latex paint wash.
Tank Car. This old Athearn car was weathered with a gray wash. It hauls fuel oil to an orchard smug pot fuel destrubitor.
Erie 40′ Box Car. Athearn metal, made 1950s. Found at a train show in 2006. I’ve seen older box cars on the prototype looking new like this one, and I really don’t want to weather it.
50′ Standard Hopper Car This is one of the latest cars from Athearn with scale grab irons and thin metal roof walk. I weathered this car using a wash of white Latex indoor paint to look like it has been hauling potash. You may notice that I have sprung trucks on most of my rolling stock, this is because they seem to track better.
NP 50′ Box Car. This old AHM car is most likely from a train set. It’s been detailed with metal stirrup steps and a new roof walk.
Coca-Cola, 50′ Box Car. This car has got to be the ugliest model train car ever. It came from our model railroad clubs junk box and as a challange, I’ll try to do something to make it look better. Most likely heavy weathering and leaking cans of Coca Cola rusting through the car sides. Personally I don’t drink the stuff!
