I bought a pair of HO scale Chesapeake & Ohio 36-foot, double-sheathed ventilated box cars a few months ago. These are 3D printed models available from Yuma Car & Foundry (YC&F) through 3D Central.
I was excited to see this model produced. Dr. Dave Campbell, YC&F car designer, had been producing small batch resin kits for prototypes of the Teens and Twenties, but he was tired of kit casting work. Several Pre-Depression Era railroad modelers had been suggesting a move to 3D printing for the last year or so and Dr. Dave found a partner in 3D Central. This C&O ventilated box car is the first of what could be a string of interesting HO scale freight cars from an earlier era. The C&O installed 500 of these ventilated box cars in 1923, with 151 cars listed in a 1951 ORER.
Opening the box
My kits arrived in early November and I started by reviewing the castings before assembling anything. Each kit contains a one-piece car body, and underframe, several weights, coupler boxes, and screws. The door details are cast onto the one-piece car body. Grab irons, brake components, and trucks are supplied by the modeler.
NOTICE – If you have bought one of the early runs of these kits, please pay attention to my notes. The initial prints had some errors. The largest issue concerns the door placement, as it’s about 18-inches off center. Dr. Dave has made revisions to the print file and current production kits will have all the corrections.
A little modeling work is needed to bring the original printed car bodies up to date. A coupler screw anchor is on the inside of the car body ends on the early prints. This needs to be removed as it interferes with the underframe fit. I used an UMM saw to cut most of the way through, then I snapped it with a little pressure. Sanding sticks clean up the remaining so the underframe fits snuggly.
I found the car side ladder grabs are too narrow. These should’ve been set for 18-inch straight grab irons. To correct the side ladder issue, I plotted new holes with an awl along the next board groove just to the left of the left bolt heads.
I drilled new holes then removed the bolt heads and lightly sanded the area.
18-inch straight grabs fit these new holes. Tichy bolt heads were glued onto place as replacements after all the details were installed. I did not fill in the original holes in the print.
Late in the process of my kit build, I found the sole grab iron on the left end of the car side was slightly out of place. I plotted new holes, drilled the holes, filled the previous holes, and installed the grab in the proper location. Again, revisions have been made to the print file and current production kits will have the corrected door location and grab iron spacing.
I recommend drilling out the holes before installing anything. The 18-inch straight grabs fit all ladder locations, the single grab on the left end of the car side, and on the running board laterals. Be careful when drilling the holes on the end ladders. Parts of those delicate ladder stiles are not connected to the end. I broke a couple of stiles while drilling, as seen in the above photo. In one case, the small part flew into another dimension.
I used 2×2 styrene to replace the missing chunk after the ladder rungs were installed.
I drilled out the brake staff support and brake platform to install 0.020-inch diameter wire for the brake staff. I use a heavier wire for brake staffs as I don’t want these to bend easily if snagged. I was elated to find a dimple on the bottom of the end sill to drill for the brake staff base! A hand brake wheel is included but doesn’t seem to reflect the prototype hardware.
Underframe
I drill and tap the bolster and mount the couplers before installing the K brake details. Adjusting the coupler height is easier before additional brake details are installed. In this case, the coupler height was on target.
The K brake components follow a basic installation. I used Tichy brake components with 0.0125-inch diameter wire for rods. Straight 18-inch grab irons were used for the brake hangers.
Final details
The prototype uses a rotating uncoupling lever mounted on the end sill. I noticed the center anchor point was more of a U-shaped bar stock. Rather than using an eyebolt for that anchor, I bent some 0.010-inch diameter wire around the edge of an X-Acto knife blade. It looked almost like a cotter pin.
I drilled a hole at the base of the ladder and two holes just above the coupler box, then installed an eyebolt at the base of the ladder.
After bending the uncoupling lever, I threaded it through the eyebolt then carefully inserted the U-shaped anchor around the lever and into the two holes. A touch of CA affixed the details. The same installation was executed on the other end sill.
The sill steps and the bottom drop grab on the side ladder were the next details.
I installed Yarmouth Model Works (part 209) etched sill steps at the four corners following the prototype. These are surface mounted steps. Holes were drilled for short pieces of wire to hang the sill step parts. One leg of the prototype drop grab uses the same bolt as one leg of the sill step.
After installing the sill steps and marveling at the completed model, I realized I forgot to install the retainer line on the B end. I drilled holes in the end sill, under the retainer valve, and through the brake platform for the 0.008-inch diameter wire. I also drilled a hole near the center of the end for a J-shaped hook to keep the retainer line in place. I installed a Tichy hand brake wheel atop the brake staff and the model was now ready for the paint shop. The car rides on Tahoe Model Works 40-ton ARA trucks (TMW 115/215) and will be in service for my next operating session.
I am happy with the overall results. Repositioning grab irons and removing mounting tabs from inside the car body were a surprise but not beyond my skills. Someone asked recently if the slightly out-of-location doors were an issue. It’s not an issue for me as the solid and ventilated doors make it difficult to determine the door opening location. The photo above shows the unaltered early 3D printed car body below the recently completed model.
This is a fine model of a unique prototype and fills a glaring gap in available ventilated box car models. Dr. Dave Campbell (YC&F guy) has updated the print files so new versions have correct door and grab iron locations. These 3D printed models are available from Yuma Car & Foundry through 3D Central. Decals are also available at that link and shipped by a different vendor.
As I wrap this up, I notice the car ends need to have tack boards installed. It’s time to rummage through my box of spare resin kit parts and find a couple tack board castings to complete the model.
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