SOU Waffles Can be Ordered...

[davefoxx]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Amendment_to_the_United_States_Constitution

I agree the Waffle car is great, hopefully the roof issue can be fixed on in-the-field models, I am enjoying mine, yes it was 30.00USD, a wee bit pricey.

I think in this forum constructive criticism is a good thing, I am an SP modeler and am ignorant of the subtlties of SOU prototypesm so I am glad there are people to deliver informed opinions on such matters.

Like the road # on the upcoming Backmann SP S-4 What the heck, they will not answer my emails or on the Backmann forum why it is a bad number....

Um, actually, if you read that Wikipedia information closely, you will clearly see that the First Amendment actually does not apply here.  It talks about the government infringing upon the right to free speech.  This is a forum run by private citizens.  However, that's not really important here, because I wasn't referring to constructive criticism, I was referring to unnecessary bashing.

DFF

[davefoxx]

Got my waffle yesterday with the door assist.

How's it look, Dave?  I hesitated on that model, because I was never a fan of the prototypes with the door assists.  So, I only bought two SOU "as delivered" waffles and one SOU "Claytor" Brown waffle.  Now, I wonder if I should have gone for one those.  Is there a date on that car?

DFF

[Bob Bufkin]

Date is 2/76 for that car.  Only got one since it's different.

[lock4244]

As stated earlier in this thread, I picked up a number of these cars. In fact only ones I avoided were the DME cars being out of era. They are very nice cars and I can't say any of mine exhibit any issues with the trucks... that said, I've no layout and they pretty much went right into storage (once I wiped off all the drool) on arrival due to the reno going on here. The door assist is a nice touch imo, and gives a little variety to an already unique car. I suspect that the next car ER does that I order will have a few more waffles tacked on.

[Dave V]

How's it look, Dave?  I hesitated on that model, because I was never a fan of the prototypes with the door assists.  So, I only bought two SOU "as delivered" waffles aKnd one SOU "Claytor" Brown waffle.  Now, I wonder if I should have gone for one those.  Is there a date on that car?

DFF

I'm on the road but I'll take a good pic when I get back.  I actually like the door assist because it's so late 70s.

[Kev1340]

Kev,

I appreciate your disappointment, but the effort to contact ExactRail and request new trucks is significantly more effort than just straightening the sideframes.  They're made of Delrin, so it's highly unlikely that you will break them by straightening them.  Once I realized the problem, it took me less than thirty seconds to fix the trucks and put the car back on the tracks.  I didn't even have to remove the trucks to correct the problem.  My three waffle boxcars have been running flawlessly for weeks without replacing the wheelsets or the trucks.  If the wheels don't spin freely, then bend the sideframes back out a little.  In no time at all, you will get the feel for it and have your cars running well and rolling great.

While on this subject, I must add that ExactRail has taken a beating from many people on the direct-buy issue, pricing, the roof, and now the trucks.  While these complaints may be legitimate, I'm am growing weary of the negative press and ER bashing.  I don't understand why everyone has been begging the manufacturers for a waffle boxcar for years, and then, when ER delivers, it receives nothing but flack.  In my opinion, this boxcar is one of the best looking freight cars in my fleet.  It blows away the MDC/Roundhouse cars I have, which had to be retired because they looked so poor in comparison.  Was the ER waffle boxcar pricey?  Yes, but it's a specific model that fills a void in my fleet well.  In other words, it's well worth the price to me.  Is the roof screwed up?  Yes, but ER has admitted the unintentional error and says it will provide replacements.  Is it a problem for me that I have to order direct?  No, I would have ordered it online anyway, so the likelihood of examining the model in person before purchasing was small.  So, I say let's knock off the defamatory remarks about ER.  If you don't like ER or its products, then vote with your wallet.  Otherwise, such negativity is what puts companies out of business, and that is not what I want to see happen to any manufacturer who provides high quality N scale models.

DFF

Dave,

Firstly I'd like to say I have been a supporter of ExactRail from their beginning, indeed I have taken a lot of flak on some forums for defending them against unwarranted criticism. I have also been on good terms with them in the past, having lengthy discussions with Blain regarding their reefers for many months prior to announcement and with regard to requesting they maintain some level of dealer discount for international stores.

With regard to the Waffle cars, I too have requested these from the day the HO model was announced and have eagerly awaited them. This has only added to my disappointment.

I am pleased you were so fortunate with your models and were able to fix them. I too have used the tried and tested 'trick' of pinching the frame sides back in many times over the years and I certainly have the 'feel' for it LOL! however these will not hold. I have bent them to the point the delrin in showing stress marks where it is about to crack and they still spring back too wide to correctly support the axles. I have often used this method to correct trucks from other manufacturers but this is the first time I've had trucks I consider unrecoverable.

No matter how much I want ExactRail to succeed, the whole point of buying these models is to run them. If they won't roll they are not fit for purpose.

I have given ExactRail the opportunity to respond and hopefully correct the problem. I'm fully aware of my ability to 'vote with my wallet', first time I've felt I may have to exercise it.

Cheers,

Kev

[ljudice]

If you want a REAL ONE !!!!   The DME cars are for sale - $15,000 each....   Also see photos of the inside of these cars!!


https://www8.cpr.ca/enetp72/snp/Pages/ViewTender.aspx?tender=2993

[bbussey]

How's it look, Dave?  I hesitated on that model, because I was never a fan of the prototypes with the door assists.  So, I only bought two SOU "as delivered" waffles and one SOU "Claytor" Brown waffle.  Now, I wonder if I should have gone for one those.  Is there a date on that car?

I'm on the road but I'll take a good pic when I get back.  I actually like the door assist because it's so late 70s.

The door-opener wheel looks good.  It is more delicate-looking than the brakewheel.  The service date on both versions of the Southern "Green Light" scheme is February 1976.

[davefoxx]

Are those dates correct?  Was the door assist option available on new cars or were they added later?

DFF

[cv_acr]

Are those dates correct?  Was the door assist option available on new cars or were they added later?

DFF

New.

http://canadianfreightcargallery.ca/cgi-bin/image.pl?i=sou528600&o=sou

[Kev1340]

For those with concerns, you might be interested to know I received an e-mail response from ExactRail acknowledging that there is a problem with the trucks and apologising for the inconvenience. They are working on a solution and promised to contact me in due course.

Good after sales service always scores highly with me.

Cheers,

Kev