I still like the narrow gauge tank cars with bold CONOCO logos on their sides, but there are virtually none available in any scale. The one exception is the AMS model that fits CONX 5 relatively nicely. But CONX 5 was a "lone wolf" so to speak. There was none that was alike, at least after the tank had been mounted on a C&S flat car after the original frame had collapsed. And it is this version that one sees offered in both HOn3 (as a kit) and in On3 by AMS. But as this On3 model is the only CONOCO model commonly available, one can find it with lots of CONX numbers plus a variety of other liveries as well. A clear sign for a need for other CONOCO tank cars in any scale. The few brass models change hands for rather crazy amounts. And if one finds one at all, its rarity and costs are precluding having a prototypical short string of them. There is one other "lone wolf" that can at least be done with reasonable efforts. CONX 8 has a fairly close match in the readily available narrow-frame UTLX models. CONX 8 is depicted in NG Pictorial IV on page 132, and a number of UTLX types can be compared with it in the same book. The fine Slim Gauge Cars book (2nd edition) by Chris Lane also shows this car on page 51. And that book even shows that the car came with and without dome boards. Thus both types of UTLX models can be used for the conversion. I have reported here on my HOn3 conversion some years back: http://www.trainboard.com/highball/...-car-made-from-a-blackstone-utlx-model.57685/ But as I model both HOn3 and On3, the idea of doing a CONX 8 in On3 as well has long been on my radar. Fortunately, decals for such a conversion are available from Thinfilm in On3 as well. I'll report on some difficulties with the decals later on. For my HOn3 project, I had used an undecorated Blackstone model with dome boards/walks. This time, I decided to go the easier route by using a model without such dome boards. However, San Juan Car Company, the easiest source for a RTR model, has not produced undecorated narrow-frame types. So one has to start with an already decorated car which makes the start more tedious. I'll report on the progress of this project in future installments.
For my On3 conversion, I got a CYCX 63 from SJCC that had to have its lettering removed first. The first three pictures show that I struggled a bit getting that lettering off. Well I tried a few solutions but soon tried MEK that worked, but it worked a bit uncontrollably. I did a short test at the bottom first, and it seemed like it was not going to be a major problem. But when I intensified the application to get the thick white paint off (especially those bold 63 numbers), the plastic suddenly got soft! So I now have that rougher patch as seen on the second and third picture. I then resorted to applying some MEK but quickly diluting it a bit by adding some regular paint thinner (white spirit). As I did not want to risk much anymore, I left the whitish smear knowing that a coating of black would cover all of it well enough. And so it was, as seen in the fourth and fifth picture. The large number shines through, but that’s no problem due to decals and matt coating in the end.
The next picture shows the car fully lettered, but only the frame has received its matt overcoat. I had to take the car apart for this job as access to the in-between areas was too difficult otherwise. This meant taking the brake wheel assembly apart. Getting that together again will be the final challenge, I think. But it will also allow substituting that brittle brake wheel rod by a piece of sturdy wire. I’m not that far yet, but have had to fight with the probably too old age of the decals already. Some small chips of decal paint kept coming off right away, so I had do substitute some letters of the large logo. I had mentioned before that I used the Thinfilm decals that come for CONX cars both in HOn3 and in On3. The large CONOCO logo is not exactly correct for CONX 8. This logo differs to some degree between the various versions of CONX cars. I think the spacing of the large letters is correct for the more common wide-frame cars, or at least for one of those types. But for CONX 8, the letters need to be placed farther apart. I had to deal with that on the HOn3 car as well. So each letter had to be cut on its own, and that also allowed for easy substitution of those with chipped-off parts. Fortunately, there are enough of these letters as the decal set would allow lettering four cars with those large letters. What I could not avoid, however, was the fact that those letters that go over uneven surfaces started to crack. I managed at least to keep the cracking in check as the two pictures show. I’ll coat this first now with matt clear lacquer before I try to do some cosmetics with diluted white paint. In this way, I hope to have better control of where how much paint needs to go. Without the coating, I fear that some paint might leak under the decals where I would no longer be able to control it.
I managed to finish the assembly today, including a semi-prototypical adaptation of the tank-frame clamps and the tricky reassembly of the brake-wheel installation. The first two photos show the result of the touch-ups on the letters of the large CONOCO logo. That's after having received a final matt overspray with clear enamel lacquer. I admit to being extremely pleased with the result. The third photo shows the two frame-clamps under the tank. I used a bit of Evergreen StripStyrene material (still unpainted to make it visible), and the original attachment has been shortened to fit at both ends. Picture four shows the reassembled brake-wheel installation where I used a metal rod (also still unpainted to make it stand out). It's the brake-wheel rod that I consider to be absolutely inacceptable in the original SJCC model. The plastic used for the rod just can't take the slightest bit of strain. In order to replace it with a metal piece, both attachments to the tank had to be drilled through which meant they both came off in the process. I'll still have to reinforce the present attachment and will have to apply some matt black paint with a fine paint brush. All the detailing is only possible with a magnifying aid. The final picture shows the fully assembled model that still needs some details being painted as mentioned above. But the over all impression is as desired and I'm happy with the new car. Wish Thinfilm or San Juan Decals would come up with a slightly finer printing of the decals. It's mostly the numbering on the left with the two horizontal white lines that is a bit too thick as comparisons with the prototype photos show. But that's complaining on a rather high level.
Here is a final set of pictures of the finished CONOCO CONX 8 car. The first photo shows the detail of the shortened tank-frame clamps, now painted after having first received a bit of additional volume by applying some glue (it had to dry before painting it, of course).
Thanks for the feedback! I might add that all the spray painting (I used enamel paint) was done with spray cans. The glossy black (excellent for applying decals) looks a bit crude on those last two pictures in post #3. But in the end, thanks to the matt clear paint, things turned out as desired. I also forgot to mention that the trucks had some lettering as well that I had to remove. That was no big thing though. Maybe that lettering is only on the CYCX cars? I'd suggest a regular UTLX car now, the thick white numbers on the CYCX models are not optimal when it comes to removing them for the conversion. Plus, the CYCX cars have lettering on the domes which the other models do not have.
