Athearn announces tri-level autoracks in HO, start sending your letters.

[sirenwerks]

Here's the link to pics of the the Milwaukee Road car.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/trains-n-trucks/albums/72157612698935534


Jason

Jason,


Is that it's original state?  I am having a hard time figuring out how they got the cars onto the second level with those two cross-braces in the way, let alone move the ramps since they seem to be under both braces (ok, maybe the ramps can be moved by hand).

[wcfn100]

Jason,


Is that it's original state?  I am having a hard time figuring out how they got the cars onto the second level with those two cross-braces in the way, let alone move the ramps since they seem to be under both braces (ok, maybe the ramps can be moved by hand).

I hadn't noticed that before.  If you look at the largest image which I think this is, you can see pins holding the lower parts of the bracing so I would assume from that, that it's removable.


Jason

[jagged ben]

N scale please!! I got several of the bilevels these are really nice autoracks Athearn has produced. Adding ESM vandal panels to some of them also

You got ESM vandal panels?  Where?

[unittrain]

Will be adding them when available should have said it differently

[ChristianJDavis1]

Today, I would agree with you.  I don't think I've seen one rack, in a general merchandise train, since the fully enclosed version took over.

Actually, back in 2012 I saw an NS train with just a single autorack on it. I do not believe it was loaded, and j do not know the train symbol.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3268193

Sorry for the poor quality of the picture, but it was before I actually got a decent camera. This was back in 2012, but you can see the top of the autorack a few cars behind the engine. Not sure how common it is, but I just wanted to show that it does happen.

[Mark5]

Ok, info on the N&W Tri-levels:

RTTX 913049 "Date Applied" 1/66 Rack # 1266 Rack made by WK
RTTX 913075 "Date Applied" 1/66 Rack # 1216 Rack made by WK
RTTX 912125 "Date Applied" 5/65 Rack # 638 Rack made by WK

This info is from the N&W Equipment Guide as of Jan 1, 1969 (reprinted by the N&WHS).

Let's hope Athearn brings these to N scale eventually.

Mark

[Missaberoad]

Missaberoad, you are probably correct on the ownership of the car, but I know the SP data is correct. There are more photos in the Volume 1 Morning Sun Guide, as well as the SP freight car series flat car book, both authored by Tony Thompson. It looks like SP converted almost all of their Clejan/G-85 flatcar to autorack service during the 60s. I hope to figure out a way to model some of these.
Albert Spor

I wasn't trying to question the SP info, and thanks again for filling in the holes, had no idea the herritage of those cars.

[Missaberoad]

Ryan, any idea when these Alaska Hydro cars came into being?

No idea when the SP style cars were acquired, they show a build date of 5/64, but may have been acquired second hand.
ARCX also had Bethlehem Steel cars built in the early 1960s

All the cars were retired in the early 1990s

Heres an undated Bethlehem ad.
http://www.alaskarails.org/fp/autorack/autoracks.jpg

[jagged ben]

Having a random single autorack in a mixed manifest (or a pair of them, or a few that aren't hitched together) has never been such a rare thing.  It didn't take me long to find plenty of examples in my collection.

http://www.railpictures.net/photo/339395/
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/53894/  (I hadn't noticed the Vert-I-Pac before).
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/442788/  (Dig it!!!)
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/569707/
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/104469/
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/545282/
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/161044/ (Don't give up, you'll find it eventually.)
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/295523/ (I know, right?)
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/442275/
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/141113/
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/525005/

I suspect that in the more recent photos with single cars, those are bad ordered cars that got repaired somewhere and put back into service but are getting shuttled to somewhere they can be useful again.  In the older photos I'm not so sure, seems like more autoracks just got handled in manifest drags.

Of course if you want to model something like this instead, that's your prerogative too.   
http://www.railpictures.net/photo/508838/

[wazzou]

I didn't look at them all but the first link has another 9 cars behind it. 

[jagged ben]

I didn't look at them all but the first link has another 9 cars behind it. 

As I said: "or a few that aren't hitched together".  Also it's 10 cars behind.   

[wazzou]

As I said: "or a few that aren't hitched together".  Also it's 10 cars behind.   

Semantics.  9 cars separate them. 

[nkalanaga]

Jason and Ryan:  Thank you.  I'm not used to seeing relatively clean BN cars that late, so never thought of the modern stencils.

On the other hand, a week or so back, in a local NS grain train, there was a BN FMC covered hopper, built in 1977, still in its full original paint, including the late 70s consolidated stencil.  It even had the CAPY line, and had never been reweighed.  That's a survivor!

Mark5:  The COTS on the N&W car says 1977.  That's the same one Athearn seems to use on all of their autoracks, so I wouldn't trust it.  If the rack is suitable for 1974 I'm satisfied, and it appears that the car's NEW date is correct, or close enough for me.  Thank you, too.

Christian:  It may even have been empty on its way to the shop for repairs, but even so, it IS a single rack, and it IS in a merchandise train, which means it's prototypical for modern railroads. 

[sirenwerks]

Just for the hell of it, more TOFC autoracks...


[size=78%]https://www.flickr.com/photos/carhaul/5154381295/in/datetaken/[/size]


[/size][size=78%]https://www.flickr.com/photos/carhaul/5154381173/in/datetaken/[/size]
 

[prbharris]

[size=78%]https://www.flickr.com/photos/carhaul/5154381295/in/datetaken/[/size]

[/size][size=78%]https://www.flickr.com/photos/carhaul/5154381173/in/datetaken/[/size]

The latter available from N Scale Kits - the former will have to be a kit bash of the another auto Trailer from N Scale Kits! Now with decals too.

Peter

Peter Harris
N Scale Kits
www.nscalekits.com