02-12-2021, 04:39 PM
Yeah, the Santa Fe car is definitely LifeLike (proto-no-thousand). I picked-up three of those for a buck apiece off the "used" table at a now long gone hobbyshop.
After stripping off the too-heavy paint, I added a few details, then repainted them as ice-service cars, delivering ice from a storage facility to various along-the-line ice and coal dealers...
Later, it occurred to me that such cars would have had their end ice bunkers removed, as the ice was stacked in the cars, not loaded into the bunkers, so I decided to remove the original roofs, with their hatches and hatch platforms...
The 2305 was a more recent acquisition, sitting somewhat damaged in a box of parts, but I was able to repair it, then give it an upgrade, too.
Here's a LINK to the long, drawn-out process.
I also had one of those Tyco reefers, and after stripping off the factory paint, was surprised at how nicely-rendered the board detail was, although it doesn't show-up very well in the photo below...
After that, I watched for more on that "used" table every time I visited that store, and managed to get three more at the same $1.00 price. They were cleaned-up and got similar details as the first one, but I opted to letter them for my freelanced Grand Valley Railroad's GVEX (Grand Valley Export Ltd.).
Some years later, I noticed that the floors of the Tyco cars were sagging. I could have simply cemented the floors in-place, but I don't usually like to seal-up a car, in case I need access in order to add or secure weight.
I decided to take a somewhat different tack, and here's the result...
Here's a LINK to the entire tedious step-by-step process.
Wayne
After stripping off the too-heavy paint, I added a few details, then repainted them as ice-service cars, delivering ice from a storage facility to various along-the-line ice and coal dealers...
Later, it occurred to me that such cars would have had their end ice bunkers removed, as the ice was stacked in the cars, not loaded into the bunkers, so I decided to remove the original roofs, with their hatches and hatch platforms...
The 2305 was a more recent acquisition, sitting somewhat damaged in a box of parts, but I was able to repair it, then give it an upgrade, too.
Here's a LINK to the long, drawn-out process.
I also had one of those Tyco reefers, and after stripping off the factory paint, was surprised at how nicely-rendered the board detail was, although it doesn't show-up very well in the photo below...
After that, I watched for more on that "used" table every time I visited that store, and managed to get three more at the same $1.00 price. They were cleaned-up and got similar details as the first one, but I opted to letter them for my freelanced Grand Valley Railroad's GVEX (Grand Valley Export Ltd.).
Some years later, I noticed that the floors of the Tyco cars were sagging. I could have simply cemented the floors in-place, but I don't usually like to seal-up a car, in case I need access in order to add or secure weight.
I decided to take a somewhat different tack, and here's the result...
Here's a LINK to the entire tedious step-by-step process.
Wayne