Got a bit of energy last night and finished up the pattern for an SP Ore Car. I still have to do the molds this evening and get the brass drawn up, looking forward to having a string of these behind my new SP GP35's! Once I get all the other stuff on this, it ought to look real busy. I'll post shots of the molds and castings sometime tomorrow. Cheers Joe MTL
Joe, Looks great! Didn't Conrail have some ex PRR cars that looked like these? Good to see a "company man" can get his hands dirty and scratchbuild. How long till you do some 1950's era equipment? and do you take bribes
Those look great Joe, and a string of them would look fantastic! I can use some of the ones NP used, behind an NP GP9!
Awesome Joe. Too bad I am not into ore or woodchip. How about doing 60' flat car. I know, next months release.
Ore Car I have a photo of a 60' flat car with one of these mounted to it. I understand it wrecked someplace near LA and was taken back to the shops in Sacramento for repair...so you can use one of my shells on our new flat...see how things work out!! Joe MTl
50's stuff Conrail and a few others had cars about the same..in a pinch they would work fine...cut the additonal part off the top and you got a 90ton unit. Actually once I get all this wood chip and ore stuff done I want to do some War Emergency box and gons for my MOW service. Stay tuned. Joe MTL
Ore Jennies! cool. Someday, maybe MT can follow your lead. Look good Joe. Chris, Yes, CR did have some quite similar that started life as Pennsy G-39 series: http://www.bowser-trains.com/hocars/stew_ore_jenny/STEW_ORE_JEN.htm Dan S.
Nice to see your not at work designing new stuff for us. Rather see you doing this. Very intersting car ! Excellent proto work there too.
Looks like a great project. I'll second what jeff said, nice to see you doing this work and posting here, thanks for sharing.
Yes I got the packet yesterday, Thanks, and it's everything I could hope for. Woodchip hoppers are ON! Wait till you get a load of my next woodchip train!
Joe, That is some work esp. if you are manually cutting and gluing styrene, and very symmetric and square for manually manual built one. How do you plan to weigh them with load? Or cast the car in metal?. Kim
Ore Car Pattern Hi Kim, Thanks. Old School Model building...got my start when I graduated from College bulding models for Architects and Special effects. I was part of the team at Scale Models Unlimited in Menlo Park that developed the laser for Model Making applications...those were the good old days ) So, I had to learn using hand tools, but once the laser was up and running it changed the complexion of the whole industry. At Disney I had my desk with a computer, and to the right, a 12X18 Universal Laser and behind me my work bench. Built a ton of models using the Laser as my X-Acto Knife. Now days I work with Styrene on my kitchen table....nicer pace that's for sure. Anywho...here is a shot of the first half of the mold. I will glue vents on the corners and add a new box and fill the second half. This way I can pour the resin in one corner and have the pressure of the liquid pushing the air up through straws on the corners. This all happens in my Pressure Pot. A little clean up and you are rolling. This is the first pass pattern. I take the castings, 3-4 and ding them up and give charactor to the outer surface. Then I have 3-4 unique looking patterns that once molded again and cast will give me a string of cars that don't all look the same. I also distort the art on the brass to look like bent ladders and stirups...make them all a bit different for variety. As for weight, I need to keep it low so I will pour some resin with Brass powder mixed in and lay a 1/8" layer in the bottom. This will finish off the inside for display...since it will be difficult to tell that the bottom is not where it is supposed to be. The load will be thin and cast using an ultra light resin I have so I don't get all topsy... More later. Cheers JOe MTL
Here is a shot of the mold boxed up with vents attached to the corners of the pattern. I used 1/8" tubing because this works best for the Cocktail straws I use as vents. In one corner after the mold is poured and set, I use a small funnel that is placed in one of the holes...then I insert straws in the three others making sure they are taller than the funnel. Once I pour the resin in I wait to see the resin flow into the straws..then I know I have all the bases covered. I also tilt the mold a bit with the funnel side up. Between the pressure in the Autoclave and the pressure of the resin in the funnel, most, if not all air should be driven out of the casting....keep your fingers crossed!! Joe
Looks Good! Joe, Your mold looks great! Please post photos of the top section and casting when finished. I do have a suggestion or two in your mold making techniques. Some things I have learned thru trial-n-error. Never know! Post photos Joe!!!! Hobo Tim
