I'm looking for guidance and/or ideas on modelling ACL heavyweight baggage cars in HO. The two doors on either side of the cars are noticeably closer together and further from the car's ends than any models I've seen on the market. Does anyone know of a source for accurate (non-brass) models, or reliable methods of scratchbuilding? Thanks for your help.

-- Mark V. Huband (mark.v.huband@convergys.com), December 21, 2000

Answers

I have a partly finished car,by splicing BCW sides.I had to use a total of three sides.I think I had one side with two splices and the other with three.I think that the bigest problem,is the doors are not in the right place.Are any of you going to be in Cocoa Beach next month at the modelers meet?I will have it there.

-- Joseph Oates (jlosal@mindspring.com), December 21, 2000.

Hey, Mark,

I'm addin' to what Tom wrote.

It's kinda hard to tell if'n any thins available in plastic 'till I know what car(s) you need. I have scratchbuilt several ACL heavyweight cars (exceptin' the trucks an couplers) out of Strathmore board and bass wood.

How 'bout e-mailin me a photo of the car(s) you like--or their ACL numbers--an' I'll see what I can do for yuh.

Wayne R. Long

Modellin' the ACL in 1950

-- Wayne R. Long (acl-wayne@web-right-now.com), December 21, 2000.

Mark - If you don't have a copy of the September 1985 issue of LINES SOUTH from the ACL/SAL Historical Society, see if you can obtain a photo copy. This issue has photos of and official diagrams of ACL baggage cars. Next send a SASE to Bethlehem Car Works, 263 Parkview Drive, Souderton, PA 18964, for their Catalog #10. BCW specialises in passenger car kits in H0. You may see something from them closer to what you want to start with. Baggage car doors are available as a seperate item from various mfgers(see back of Walthers catalog under Details. Other pass. car parts are available from Cal-Scale and Precision Scale. Start with a BCW kit, discard the sides and build the sides up from styrene sheet and strip, adding the doors in the proper locations as you build. Your sides can then be added to the BCW roof/ends/floor. You may have to compromise on the length a little, but you can use the "2 ft Rule"(If it looks good at 2 ft...). Shortening the roof and floor is easy, but making them longer isn't worth the hassle. Most of what you need as parts are available such as steam traps and other underbody parts, vents, diaphrams, etc. It's just a matter of finding them in Walthers or BCW cat's and ordering them.

-- Tom Underwood (tlunder@attglobal.net), December 21, 2000.