IM "Value Line" 50' High Cubes

[peteski]

You know it says something that this is even an expectation nowadays.  It was only a few years ago that Wheels of Time and ESM first introduced models with extended draft gear.  A lot of Atlas and Athearn models that ought to have them still don't.  This is of course IM's 'value line', too. 

I think what surprises me most is that after all these years we still don't have an extended draft gear offering from Micro-Trains that would just be a screw-off, screw-on replacement for 1015s or 1023s.

While that is true, MTL has been for years simulating extended draft gear on their boxcars by equipping them with extended coupler trucks.  Yes, the coupler is truck-mounted, but it extends beyond the end of the car.

But now that MTL is starting to use body-mounted couplers on their new models, there might be hope that they will produce the type of coupler you are suggesting.  Or maybe they will just integrate the extended draft gear coupler box into the plastic spines of their underframes?  In that case we won't get a separate body-mount extended couplers.

[cjm413]

Those are holdovers from the LBF days.

True, but those two hole would come in handy if someone shrunk Moloco's draft gear down from HO to N...

https://www.molocotrains.com/collections/parts/draftgear

[mat82]

I've used a lot of the shapeways boxes for my tank cars...

https://www.shapeways.com/product/HFYQCT9W9/extended-cushion-draft-gear-box-n-1-160-10x?optionId=58482406&li=shops
This one for example.
There are also versions for MTL 1015 and in different length.

You might just remove the coupler from the car and insert the spring and the two parts of the coupler into the new box..
I can post a pic if someone interested in...

--
Marc

[tehachapifan]

Those are holdovers from the LBF days.

I'm still confused by this. If this car is from the old LBF tooling, how did it end up being longer?

[cjm413]

I'm still confused by this. If this car is from the old LBF tooling, how did it end up being longer?

Longer Built Freightcars!

[Missaberoad]

I'm still confused by this. If this car is from the old LBF tooling, how did it end up being longer?

These have dreadnought ends where the old LBF/Hubert releases had non terminating ends...

LBF had alot of unreleased projects so its hard to say if this is intermountain tooling or if it was in LBF's "vault"...

[ChristianJDavis1]

I'm still confused by this. If this car is from the old LBF tooling, how did it end up being longer?

Maybe it was a little colder where LBF was making them compared to intermountain?

[basementcalling]

Maybe it was a little colder where LBF was making them compared to intermountain?

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[tehachapifan]

Picked up a 3rd car, which is a faded Golden West renumbered as an SP, to go along with my SP and SSW cars. Really like how the Golden West looks! Fading is just right. Really compelled to by a long string of these things (if I even still could) but I'm going to try to stick with just these. Too many cars as it is!

[basementcalling]

Picked up a 3rd car, which is a faded Golden West renumbered as an SP, to go along with my SP and SSW cars. Really like how the Golden West looks! Fading is just right. Really compelled to by a long string of these things (if I even still could) but I'm going to try to stick with just these. Too many cars as it is!

Ditto on this scheme. Mine arrived today and like it a lot, though I am curious why the faded blue and the patch for the reporting marks match so closely. Gonna have to find proto photos before I weather these, which is definitely in the future of all the 8 cars I got (UP, BNSF, GWM, & SP and SSW)