Whalebelly progress status. Four bodies and etchings have been produced for final testing and evaluation. See attachment. Click on the image to enlarge and view with this summary. The "a" body is white acrylic with a black primer. The "b" body is white acrylic with a white primer. The "c" body is black acrylic with no primer. The "d" body is white acrylic with no primer. We will produce car “c” as it will be easiest to paint. It weighs 0.4 oz. The GREEN arrow points to the truck bolster pin socket which is exactly 1.5mm or 0.061in. (+\- 0.001”). Trucks' retaining pins fit snugly with a gentle pressure and torque. The Coupler pocket top contacts the bolster’s outside cross member, (PINK arrows) which supports the end ladder and walkway structure, and interferes with correct operation. The cross member is exact to the ACF specification and drawings for this car. Trucks without couplers must be used with this model, and a facility for the required coupler will be developed quickly. As the coupler must be at standard height, this may require fixed body mounted couplers and modification to the cross member which will be a compromise in prototypical replication. The ORANGE arrow indicates the ladder rungs which will immediately be resized to 0.003” (2/3” scale) to match the railings. The YELLOW arrow indicates how one should not fall in love with one’s skill (Translation: there is not enough space between the part and its fret to enter a blade for separation.) The Red arrow shows where the walkway tread will become continuous rather than the presently partial. We expect these changes to occur within the next three weeks. Will keep you informed. Jim
Jim, I would think that one of the white bodies would be easier to paint since most whalebelly cars are white rather than the typical black of general service tank cars. Randy
