Scratchbashing an HOn3 Reefer

[cnrglen]

I will see what I can do. I might be able to shorten the coupler box in the rear. This is the first time I've worked with these smaller style couplers.
I sprayed primer on both the Boxcar and reefer today:

I'll have to wait a bit before continuing with their painting. They will both be getting White Pass and Yukon schemes so the reefer will have yellow sides and boxcar red ends and roof. The boxcar will be completely boxcar red. In the meantime I'll start working on this:

I found it at a swap meet this past June. Interestingly enough the WP&Y bought a number of these hoppers from the East Broad Top in 1969 to be used as ballast cars.
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I'll just revise history and say they got them ten years earlier as I model 1959 (loosely)

I'm not sure how old the kit is but the details are rather crude compared to some standard gauge hoppers I've built. However the kit comes with the trucks and East Broad Top decals. As the photos from the above mentioned link provide it doesn't look like the YP&Y ever repainted or added logos to the cars so other than weathering the paint job look pretty easy.

The ladder rungs and end bracing look huge so they'll have to go. I'm planning to carve them all off and replacing them with either thin styrene rod or brass wire. I'll probably also add a ballast load as well.