TLT Newsprint Cars

[Bob Bufkin]

Was the use of plug doors to keep the contents dry during transit?  Seems like a waste of extra money otherwise.

[Puddington]

Whoever thought separate wire on the doors was good idea needs to go LOOK at a door...

So; I'm looking at a door.............hell; I'm looking at a real one and model.....pray tell; what am I seeing ?

[Sokramiketes]

Right idea on the separate wire... but poor execution with thickness and having it stand off from the rest of the door so much.  At least I think that's what Robbman, the ace designer, is getting at.

[Puddington]

I do not think it is objectionable whatsoever...have a look at IM handrails on F units; have a look at many other n scale models. This is to current standard; and if you want to argue with the standard then that's another debate. Shall we go back to molded on....?

[wcfn100]

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So; I'm looking at a door.............hell; I'm looking at a real one and model.....pray tell; what am I seeing ?

I think the door on the BCOL car is the bigger offender, not the cars your using.




Those two handles on the door are supposed to be attached to those wires.  In this case the free standing wires serves no purpose but to add to the price of the car (and make the car look a bit ridiculous). If thats what separate details are going to look like, then yes, please, go back to molded.


Jason

[Puddington]

I would suggest that if one used a wee bit of finger pressure to press the wire in, it would all but contact the surface. I am sure that those added on pieces get jiggled a bit in shipping and handling. I don't have that style car but that is what it appears from the photo.

[wcfn100]

I would suggest that if one used a wee bit of finger pressure to press the wire in, it would all but contact the surface. I am sure that those added on pieces get jiggled a bit in shipping and handling. I don't have that style car but that is what it appears from the photo.

You know from your projects that wire doesn't bend at a true 90°. There is always a curve which will never allow the wire to sit flat (I think I also see some raised detail where the wire enters the plastic to make stand off even more).  Your cars have raised detail along the door which definitely makes it look better.

I just don't think this idea translated well to the other body/door style.


Jason

[lock4244]

I took the shell of an Atlas C630 last week. To my astonishment there was an electric motor where the miniature 251 should have been. The model also did not have an actual cab with operating controls, but rather a metal block with a worm gear in it. It was not 100% accurate, so I returned it. Sure, it was a good idea, but poorly executed.

[Brakie]

The ride height is scary nasty ain't it? While I "fixed" mine by switching floors this was the main reason I only bought 2 of these (despite heavy use of these by CP on the area I model during my time-frame). At the cost per car that ride height is.... well, not good.

Guys like me will need to inspect the car and decide if we want to spend the extra cash fixing up a high riding car that is touted as a "GOLD series" car...

I find that "high rider" is at best a look,see and think type car and that's exactly what I will do before forking over any cash.

[Ian MacMillan]

So, where on the east coast of the USA might these have been seen in 1973?

PC, B&M, MEC, D&H for the nothern NE states

[Puddington]

Darren Altbaum; owner of True Line isn't a train guy, by his own admission. (he's a "stuff that flys and drives" guy...space stuff too I believe) He's learning and I suspect; had he to do it again, the ride height would have been better. He's received a lot of good advice from some excellent people (Our own BCR 570, Greg Kennelly, Jason from Rapido etc....) and I am looking for some improvements with the next car he tools.

The paper box must have been a painful experience, what with the first release being something of a disaster. But, if there's a silver lining, he's taken the "slings and arrows", fixed the shell; released some nice paint schemes and hopefully will move on to the slab side hoppers and make them even better than his first releases...."Continuous Improevement"....?

I'm not "shilling" for TLT; I lead the critical reviews of the first car.  I do hope that they stay encouraged in an industry where it must be easy to get discouraged with the never ending internet bashing of all products...legitimately or not. If you're not used to the microscopic reviews (which are for the most part sage critiques) you might become discouraged very quickly.

[Brakie]

Darren Altbaum; owner of True Line isn't a train guy, by his own admission. (he's a "stuff that flys and drives" guy...space stuff too I believe) He's learning and I suspect; had he to do it again, the ride height would have been better. He's received a lot of good advice from some excellent people (Our own BCR 570, Greg Kennelly, Jason from Rapido etc....) and I am looking for some improvements with the next car he tools.

The paper box must have been a painful experience, what with the first release being something of a disaster. But, if there's a silver lining, he's taken the "slings and arrows", fixed the shell; released some nice paint schemes and hopefully will move on to the slab side hoppers and make them even better than his first releases...."Continuous Improevement"....?

I'm not "shilling" for TLT; I lead the critical reviews of the first car.  I do hope that they stay encouraged in an industry where it must be easy to get discouraged with the never ending internet bashing of all products...legitimately or not. If you're not used to the microscopic reviews (which are for the most part sage critiques) you might become discouraged very quickly.

It is good that manufacturers listens to the praise as well as the complaints and then takes time to improve their product.This makes it a win/win for both the manufacturer and their customers.

That is a nice looking car and there's no doubt about that.

[Robbman]

I do not think it is objectionable whatsoever...have a look at IM handrails on F units; have a look at many other n scale models. This is to current standard; and if you want to argue with the standard then that's another debate. Shall we go back to molded on....?

For starters... the rods on the doors aren't handrails, or grabs, they don't have bends in them... and they don't stand off from the door frame.  So using the 'current standard' for handrails and grabs, which are nicely simulated as they do stand off from the body, and they do have bends in the for something that is neither is going to lead to some criticism.  If you want more criticism, the YSD on the TLT car is missing the upper center linkage...

[Puddington]

Well; as you asked  I do not really want to hear anymore of your criticism....but thanks for asking.

Maybe others do; can't speak for anyone but myself.

[DKS]

I do not think it is objectionable whatsoever...have a look at IM handrails on F units; have a look at many other n scale models. This is to current standard; and if you want to argue with the standard then that's another debate. Shall we go back to molded on....?

I don't quite know what exactly you mean by "current standard." Just because something was added on doesn't make it better; added-on can look crude and needlessly add to the price of the model. I suppose it comes down to marketing; "separately added on details" has become the siren call of manufacturers looking to draw in more discriminating modelers, but unfortunately the effect doesn't always live up to expectations. I happen to think in some cases, if they're done well, molded-on details actually look better, since they can be made much finer than they could if molded separately. I think that the IM handrails on the F units look oversized, as do most all of the IM N scale add-on details, partcularly on their freight cars.

Some add-on details can work; for example, recent N scale steam is enjoying the benefits of good tooling, and some of the details are startlingly good. Unfortunately these advances have not spread to all quarters. Is it cost-prohibitive to make finer add-on details? Probably. But I think more significantly it comes down to better decision-making; just because one can make add-on details doesn't mean one necessarily should. In the case of the rods on these boxcars, it might have been a neat idea, but I think it works to their disadvantage. Better execution might have helped, but that might have pushed the price point too high.

Bottom line, IMO it looks crude. The ladders on the ends don't look so great, either, especially the ones that have warped. The brake wheel looks funny, and the step under it must be a half-foot thick. And what about those massive stirrups? They make the model look like it was tooled in the 70s. Not to mention that the area where the upper door rail was shortened looks like it was gouged out with a knife. Sorry to sound so harsh; I'm just being honest. I don't think this model is representative of the current standard, especially when you compare it to a BLMA hopper, for instance.