Grain Train - Covered Hopper Obsession

[Tompm]

As proof of my hopper obsession my son and I had an operating session involving all the covered hoppers I have. We called it the Grain Train. It is moving covered grain hoppers from the Midwest to the Yettobebuilt Grain Silo.

The lead locomotive of the Grain Train is an Athearn Penn Central U33C.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aig.jpg

Providing extra power is a Bachmann Spectrum Reading SD-45. As you can see the locomotive still needs some detailing such as the railings installed.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aih.jpg

The first car of the Grain Train is an Accurail Penn Central ACF hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aii.jpg

Next car is an Athearn Penn Central 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aij.jpg

Now coming is the Athearn Rogers Grain Co. 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aik.jpg

Next is the Athearn Farmers’ Co-op 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/ail.jpg

[Tompm]

The fifth car is the Rail Runner/Athearn Seaboard System 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aim.jpg

Following that is the Bev-Bel/Athearn Peavy 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/ain.jpg

Then along comes the Walthers/Athearn Albert City 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aio.jpg

Car number 8 is the Athearn New York Central ACF hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aip.jpg


Car nine is the Bev-Bel/Athearn Ralston-Jefferson ACF hopper. After a few trips around the layout this car had to be cut out of the train and placed on a siding due to the fact that the internal weight had come loose and the car was subject to rolling over.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aiq.jpg

Next is the Athearn Farnhamville 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/air.jpg

Now we have the Roundhouse Farnhamville 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/ais.jpg

This followed by the Roundhouse Klemme Co-op 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/ait.jpg

[Tompm]

Which is followed by another Roundhouse Farnhamville 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aiu.jpg

And another Roundhouse Farnhamville 54’ P/S covered hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aiv.jpg

Then we have an AHM Illinois Central ACF hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aiw.jpg

Car number 16 is an IHC Lehigh Valley ACF hopper.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aix.jpg

And bring up the rear is an Athearn Penn Central Wide Vision Caboose.

http://www.railimages.com/albums/tommcintyre/aiy.jpg

[CP&E 3207]

loosk good, I have about 15 covered hoppers, and have recent modified them all with metal wheels and McHenry couplers. They roll like a dream.

[Alan]

Neat idea Tom. smile.gif I like the varied weathering on the cars.

[HemiAdda2d]

Cool weathering!
I have about 40% of the rolling stock fleet in covered hoppers. I run 2 grain trains, each with at least 25 cars. But then, I'm in N scale, so I don't need a warehouse to hold the layout! graemlins/222.gif
http://www.railimages.com/albums/N/acs.sized.jpg
http://www.railimages.com/albums/N/acp.sized.jpg
http://www.railimages.com/albums/N/aco.sized.jpg
http://www.railimages.com/albums/N/acm.sized.jpg
http://www.railimages.com/albums/N/aaa.sized.jpg
http://www.railimages.com/albums/layout/aal.sized.jpg

[Ho Modeler]

Hey Tom
I was just thinking about this. You have so many grain hoppers. Do you have any builings or switching centers for them. I was also wondering how big your layout is because you obviously have quite a few train cars.

[ak-milw]

Good going Tom, Now I can see what the cars you have been weathering for about the last month look like!!!!!!

[Tompm]

Thanks everyone!

It is my daughters fault. A few years ago she came a cross the pink Ralston-Jefferson and Klemme Co-op hoppers and had to get them for daddy’s birthday.

HemiAdd2
You have a nice collection there yourself.

Ho Modeler
My current layout is too small. It is a temporary set up with two 4x8’s in an L shape. I am using it so I can run trains while I am getting around to doing some modules. At the present I don’t have any buildings for them. I do have the Walthers Farmers Cooperative Rural Grain Elevator still in the box. One day I will get it built.

[HemiAdda2d]

Thanks, Tom.
I have about 80-90 grain hoppers in my fleet. Most need MT's! Many are similar, but not nearly enough of them in BN to make a unit BN grain train....

[Mellow Mike]

Tom,

You DO know that your 4-bay centerflow cars are not grain cars, right?

Even if the manufacturer put Ralston Jefferson on them, etc, in error.

For starters - check the outlets. If they have the pneumatic discharge (like the Athearns) they are for non-edible dry commodities, like plastic pellets, etc.

Secondly - 4 bays in general were designed so that the angles of each bay were steeper (than in the same body style having 3 bays), allowing such dry materials to slide to the chutes faster. The pneumatic discharge is also for facilitating unloading of said materials.

If one were to railfan a grain train... you would not see the Athearn type 4-bay ACF's in them.

Exceptions to 4-bays would be the Canadian style cylindrical covered hoppers. Those are dual purpose. Grain or dry non-edible materials.

[HemiAdda2d]

Welcome, Mellow Mike!!!

Ok, I am gonna be a smart-aleck here...
There were ACF 4-bay hoppers in grain service... Just not the pneumatic-discharge type.. As a GN fan, I think you would know what I am gonna post before I show the pic...
Feat your eyes on this:
From the Fallen Flags Archive
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/gn/gn171252ajs.jpg

[Mellow Mike]

Damn!

An exception to the rule of thumb!

Is that a doctored-up photo, Jeremiah...?

(Just kidding)

But you see the chutes below. Probably a special order by GN.

[Derek]

Hoppers are one of my favorite model trains because they aren't rediculously oversized and they're more interesting looking than, say, boxcars.

Next time I get home I'll take a picture of my 25-car HO hopper string. :D

[HemiAdda2d]

There's always an exception to the rule!!
graemlins/222.gif
Prolly was a special order, with delivery of only 200 cars.