Notes on Designing, Building, and Operating Model Railroads
A hobby adventure
I’ve been busier than expected the last couple of months. The lead photo is where I left off on the gondola models. Progress has moved forward to expand the freight car fleet.
Continue reading “Workbench Update – October and November 2020”
I recently came across this 1926 image featuring a couple of boxcars on the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western railroad in New Jersey. Let’s take a good look at the weathering on these cars. They have obviously seen some mileage as the lettering is faded. Some streaks are visible from water and a little dust is apparent. But there’s much more here that we can model. Click on any image here to review a larger size.
The images on this blog post were originally taken by William B Barry, Jr., in his service as a DL&W company photographer. Thousands of historic DL&W photographs have been scanned my NPS Steamtown and can be found through the Erie Lackawanna E-Mail List Photo Archive.
Since moving to metro-Nashville several months ago, I’ve met many local model railroaders. Recently, I had a few email exchanges about weathering with a couple of modelers. Questions and answers went back and forth. After a few messages, I volunteered to lead an informal weathering demonstration.
There is great satisfaction in completing a freight car kit that was started nearly a decade ago. This Reading composite mill gondola was recently decaled and weathered. Funaro & Camerlengo produces this HO scale resin kit with decals for Reading or Central of New Jersey owners. The kit supplied Reading decals reflected a late steam era presentation. As I model 1926, this gondola has been used in an undecorated state for awhile. Click on any image here to review a larger size.
Seven box cars were sent through the weathering factory recently. The effects of man and nature add to the appearance of the models and the Wheeling Freight Terminal layout. I enjoy working weathering into several different layers. Everyone seems to enjoy reading about the weathering processes, so let’s take a look at each of these models.