11-22-2009, 05:13 PM
Great-looking results on that car, Gary. 
I especially like the open door and your technique for modelling the inside face of the closed door.
Depending on the locale, many 40' cars were still in use long after they were impractical for most applications - the lightly-built branch lines on the Canadian prairies are an example of this: with track too light to support 100 ton covered hoppers, shippers continued to use 40' boxcars well into the '80s.
In other instances, many 40'-ers were nearing the 40 year service limit on their frames by the '70s, so were simply scrapped rather than have the ladders modified to match the current standards.
As for braking, my understanding of the procedure is to use dynamic braking (where available) in conjunction with both the locomotive's independent brake and the automatic air brakes on the cars. Hopefully, someone with practical experience can expand on this.
Wayne
I especially like the open door and your technique for modelling the inside face of the closed door.Depending on the locale, many 40' cars were still in use long after they were impractical for most applications - the lightly-built branch lines on the Canadian prairies are an example of this: with track too light to support 100 ton covered hoppers, shippers continued to use 40' boxcars well into the '80s.
In other instances, many 40'-ers were nearing the 40 year service limit on their frames by the '70s, so were simply scrapped rather than have the ladders modified to match the current standards.
As for braking, my understanding of the procedure is to use dynamic braking (where available) in conjunction with both the locomotive's independent brake and the automatic air brakes on the cars. Hopefully, someone with practical experience can expand on this.
Wayne