Greg,
I never seem to find everything on your website.
Has Ted ever done the USAT 40’ and 50’ boxcars?
Craig,
What the hey! Your second post on 6/25 says you want everything right. Now you say you don’t care if the roller bearing caps rotate. Caps that don’t rotate ain’t right!
Okay, okay you got me on that one. Would it be nice to see rotating caps? Sure, but not a deal breaker.
Actually this thought process has gotten me quite frustrated at all of the fictious paint schemes manufacturers come up with. I’m not quite ready to break out gallons of 91%, but the thought does cross my mind.
Heading back to my work bench to get more modeling done, and less thinking.
Isn’t prototype modeling fun? That copy of my 1970 ORER is starting to get worn out.
I put ball bearings in my USA woodside reefer cars, and that has showed me that what I thought was level, is not. Them darn cars will wander off in search of a low spot with little to no encouragement. The prototype cars would have the breaks set, so they wouldn’t roll off, but I don’t have that appliance on my cars. I can see where switching them buggers could be quite interesting.
Craig, you have to realize that in the menu, EVERY line of text you see is a “page”, so when you go to a menu, and it also expands, you may be missing the “main page” if you “jump” right to the expansion.
I would also guess you have not read the NAVIGATION text on the home page , or probably have even see this page: https://elmassian.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=625&Itemid=801
Here’s how to find the answer to “had Ted ever”:
- Hover over LS Trains menu at top…
- It will pop open and expand… WAIT until it does… and then click on “Ted Doskaris’ Vignettes” DO NOT EXPAND FURTHER, DO NOT GO OUT TO THE RIGHT.
- you should now be on this page: https://elmassian.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=626&Itemid=803
- You now see a master index of almost EIGHTY articles… if you cannot take the time to read this simple page (sigh) then use your browser search for “40” or “50” in the page.
I don’t know how much simpler I can make a site with over 750 pages be… there’s a overall search function, and the entire menu system is available on the upper left, and I explain this on the main home page and the main Large Scale page and in bold and red. I am indeed trying to make it as simple as possible, but this much information needs a “system”
If you have suggestions that can make it better, I am all ears. It’s very difficult to make so much data available in an organized manner.
I suspect your issue is that you never looked at any of the index pages for Ted’s vignettes…
Anyway, let me know…
Greg
Greg,
I have read the page you linked and used the menu/index.
I tend to access it on my phone, so often times its hard to scroll down/across to the side menus.
And yes, I have read a lot of Ted’s pages. That’s actually where I went first looking for information about roller bearing trucks. I remembered seeing a side by side photo and measurement of axle spacing. However that’s about all I could find in terms of comparing to prototype information.
Maybe I missed it, but I never saw or have seen a page that has a prototype drawing of said trucks and a detailed description/comparison to model trucks. Mostly what I saw was how to fix problems related to the trucks/coupler installs.
For prototype roller bearing trucks, though dimensions are not provided, see page 75 in December 2003 Model Railroader, article title:
“Modeler’s Guide to freight car trucks”
-Ted
RE: Prototype Freight Car Truck Dimensions
I have several books, portions of which have information and dimensions of prototype trucks & wheels; however, there is one book that shows many in one publication:
For dimensions of many freight car trucks, including roller bearing types, see book, title:
“The Best of Mainline Modeler’s Freight Cars, Volume Three”, ASIN: B004RXKXC6
by Phoenix Publishing, P.O. Box 3260 Harbor, Washington 98250
Having reviewed the book, brief excerpts are shown below:
Example PS 4750 hopper car wheel base dimension:
Example APL Intermodal car End truck and Articulated Truck:
For roller bearing type trucks, the more current image I have is shown below:
For Friction bearing trucks, click on the more Current Friction Bearing Truck Image
Both roller bearing and friction bearing images are in “vignette”, title:
Kadee Coupler Body Mounting Considerations: Car Height & Attitude, Floors, Trucks, Wheels & Prototypes
I hope this is of help,
-Ted
Ted,
Thanks for the link for the book. I think I may have to order it and add it to my growing collection of reference material. I need to get a copy of the Car Builders Cyclopedia as reference as well.
Ted,Craig,
Double post
Ted,Craig,
I was curious about the 5’-8" and 5’-10" wheel spacing. In the following link it does mention there is a difference in spacing on the 70 ton and 100 ton trucks. Could that be the answer?
http://www.spookshow.net/trucks/barbers2.html
Also found this. It was an answer someone posted on another website to the question of wheel spacing.
I don’t have any information on old trucks, but the present standards are:
5 1/2 x 10 bearing (50 ton) - 66" with 33" wheels
6 x 11 bearing (70 ton) - 68" with 33" wheels
6 1/2 x 12 bearing (100 ton) - 70" with 36" wheels
7 x 12 bearing (125 ton) - 72" with 38" wheels
I don’t have the numbers for a 6 1/2 x 9 bearing, but I would guess they would be the same as the 6 1/2 x 12.
So my guess at this point would be that the 70 ton truck should be 5’8" and the 100 ton truck should be 5’10".
Paul,
Thanks for that link. I was wondering the same thing myself about wheel base length, but hadn’t had a chance to research it. If I remember correctly the 1970’s saw a rapid growth of car weights. I can’t remember the exact year but Southern release the “big John” hopper car and I think I want to say it was 100 ton capacity? Anyway some of the DR’s got upset because it could carry more weight. More weight = less cars. Somehow or another Southern got challenged in court and ended winning. It was after that, that car weights really shot up.
Making an implicit rather than explicit judgement when looking through many books I have, a freight car’s truck wheel base and spring configuration is determinate of a car’s load capacity for both friction bearing and roller bearing type trucks.
Paul,
Bearing sizes not withstanding, I came to similar conclusions (except for the 100 / 125 ton) when I did the vignette on “Kadee Coupler Body Mounting Considerations” for Freight Car Truck Selections.
-Ted
The USA ones look odd to me, with that concave top edge. The Aristo and Kadee look more like the ones I see on the trains that run around here.
Apparently prototype S-2 Barber trucks did have a little dip in the top center, but not as much as the USAT model has in my opinion:
Just to get nit picky, it would seem that Aristo 100 ton hoppers are on 70 ton trucks.
Just like Aristo to short us 30 tons ha ha (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-cool.gif)
Sounds about right.
I guess I need to find myself a pair of Aristo roller bearing trucks so I have a 70 ton truck… As if they are so common that everyone has extras. (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)(https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-tongue-out.gif)
Craig,
You really need a set? I will sell you a set cheap if you want to come down and pick them up. I have quite a few stashed away. Metal or plastic wheels.