What to do with a cheap un-decorated bulkhead flat car.

[tct855]

Hi all,
       The backstory for this car is:
This car started life on the Milwaukee road in early 80's then sat for a while after Milwaukee was dissolved, then the car was used for a while in the next merger, then was showing it's age/rusting and poor treatment from poor forklift operators damaging some of the ratchet side brackets and sat once again waiting to be repaired and eventually sold to it's current owner CGTX and now I hear it's still waiting to be repaired properly and the rumor is, it might be sold soon again to a local lumber company.

Below:
1) Starting with a HO scale undecorated Walthers opera bulkhead flat car. I started by taking a deep breath and asked myself (why did I buy a one piece model)? Oh yeah!, because I have modelers disease...   

2) All details (lack thereof really) provided (including the trash can fillers horn hook couplers and plastic wheels). Ok, enough B****in'!

3) Side view of car. Humm??? First order of business is to give this car some character.  First I painted on the base rust color because I want this car heavily weathered. (sorry I forgot to take pictures of the added brass details before I painted the base color).

4) First I cut off every molded on (flat) cable spools and replaced with drilling holes in side of each bracket and installed a brass rod for the cable wires. Next I drilled every cable slot hole (two different drill sizes to achieve the tear drop design). This process only took me 5 extra minutes...after a whole day. 

5) I couldn't leave the molded on grab irons, so I cut them all off and drilled new holes and brass wire to the rescue. Also I took the time make from scratch to small quick end grate platforms. (this was mostly because I did away with the plastic long long swing shank and installed a long shank metal kadee couplers w/draft gearbox.

6) I felt the underside needed some details as well (why not right) so I added air hoses, air lines, brake hangers & rods, brake piston chain, main butterfly bracket and piping & metal Branch line wheels. (for the rivet counters I knowingly didn't run air piping to where it goes properly). I just gave the flavor, I don't count rivets anymore (getting old I guess).  I did however, had to add a lot of weight (cerrabend) to bring this car up to NMRA standards.  (modeling a M.T. car that runs well is harder).

[tct855]

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7) Next I decided to paint this car white (because I saw a prototype Milwaukee road picture of a similar car). I decided to weather this car with the hairspray paint chipping technique first.

Next I used oil paints for the next layer of weathering. Then I decaled the model and sealed.

9) Now for the fun part (of eye hand coordination), I threaded all the ratchet brackets and tie loops (yes one long piece of thread) I have a disease, I'm not a nut, remember I don't count rivets (cables but I did take the time to weather the cables differently as well).

The following pics are simple detailed shots of the finished car.

[tct855]

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[tct855]

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[tct855]

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27) & 28) With lastly after shimming the trucks, the couplers meet the NMRA standard height gauge.

[tct855]

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Glad I only had one of these cars and not a fleet. Hope this pictorial gives inspiration on either some ideas of what to do or not to do.
Thanx Thom...

[Zephyrus52246]

Nice looking car, Thom.  A silk purse out of a sow's ear.

Jeff

[GPdemayo]

Excellent work on the car Thom.....

[ReadingBob]

Love me a rusty, weather beaten piece of rolling stock of any variety.  Well done!!!