NSC 53' well car kits now available

[GaryHinshaw]

N Scale Kits now has single-unit National Steel 53' well car kits available for purchase:

http://www.nscalekits.co.uk/NWF13.html

The prototype units run either as single cars, or as 3-unit drawbar-coupled sets.  (Drawbars would have to be supplied by the modeller.)  This car has been #1 on my top-5 list for a long time!  I have ordered 4 kits for starters and I'll post a review when I get them assembled.  There are a number of other modern intermodal sets in development as well:

http://www.nscalekits.co.uk/nkitsnew.html

Thank you Peter!

[Lemosteam]

Sometimes* I wish I modeled modern.  Those look like fold up etchings, but there is nothing on the website indicating this, is that what they are?

*Disclaimer, "sometimes" is a relative term and in no way requires me to relinquish mt SPF card. 

[Scottl]

Those look great!  I have some of his other kits and they went together well and are nice and heavy so they track well.

[GaryHinshaw]

The well car kits have cast pewter sides and ends while the floors and walkways are stainless steel etchings. 

I'd love to see you take on a modern model kit some time, John. 

[James Costello]

Seems like a good time to finish the 48' NSC kits I have and procure some 53s. Thanks for the heads up Gary.

[jereising]

I also ordered four - I think I'll drawbar three and do one as a stand alone...

[Jbub]

Sometimes* I wish I modeled modern.  Those look like fold up etchings, but there is nothing on the website indicating this, is that what they are?

*Disclaimer, "sometimes" is a relative term and in no way requires me to relinquish mt SPF card. 

You could always create an alternate reality with the Pennsy taking over the east coast and has a heritage fleet like UP

[Scottl]

Yes, I ordered four as well.  I have a lot of those great Scale Trains 53' cans to fill them.

[Lemosteam]

You could always create an alternate reality with the Pennsy taking over the east coast and has a heritage fleet like UP

@eric220 has that market locked!   

Just understood your comment, wait, do you meant they didn't? 

[jagged ben]

Seems like a good time to finish the 48' NSC kits I have and procure some 53s. Thanks for the heads up Gary.

Lol.  Ditto.

[GaryHinshaw]

Seems like a good time to finish the 48' NSC kits I have and procure some 53s. Thanks for the heads up Gary.

True.  I want to figure out how to chop my 48' kit down to 40' wells, like this rebuild.  I also still have a (nearly-10-year-old) project to lengthen a 48' spine set to 53'...   

[James Costello]

True.  I want to figure out how to chop my 48' kit down to 40' wells, like this rebuild.

Seems like a simple enough project for Peter to offer as a new product.

  I also still have a (nearly-10-year-old) project to lengthen a 48' spine set to 53'...   

Sigh. The state of 48' and 53' spines is just depressing. The conversions are needed for variety and every early 90s era guy needs a fleet of 48s. Personally I'd love a JAF53 to complete the SP fleet prior to merger.

[GaryHinshaw]

I recently returned from 5 weeks of travel to find my NSK kits waiting for me and I had a chance this weekend to start working on one of the NSC well cars.  While the build is still in progress, I thought I'd share a few observations.   I ordered 4 of these cars and I've inspected 2 of them so far and I have noticed some issues with the side castings.  In 1 of the 2 kits, the sides differed in length by ~0.050", as shown (note how the notches don't line up on the left side):



The shorter piece also had some holes in the pewter due to in incomplete pour:



The second kit was fine however, so I proceeded to build that one.  (I'm going to ask Peter for a replacement side for the first kit.)  To make sure everything is properly squared up and true, I found it helpful to make a form out of styrene strip (Evergreen 0.060" x 0.186" stock) that has the same width as the floor etching and is long enough to support then end castings.   I then clamped the sides to the form and proceeded to fit the end casting in place.  I had to file them slightly to get a good fit, but that was straightforward.  Here is an assembly shot:



and a shot of the assembled well, with floor etching in place:



I'm quite happy with how this is turning out so far.  A note on the etchings: the floor etching has fold-up ends, but the fold lines are not etched all the way across the floor as can be seen here:



This makes it virtually impossible to get a clean 90 degree fold of the ends, as can be seen in my attempt at it.  I ended up just cutting the ends off and I will glue them in separately.  (I will also ask Peter if he can fix this in future etch runs.)  Finally, the end walkways are nicely done:



...except that both handrail stanchions broke off because the fold line was too slight.  However, these stanchions are not quite correct for the prototype anyway, so I'm going to try devising a substitute somehow.

Despite a few issues, these will fill a huge gap in my intermodal fleet!

[EspeeGoldenState]

Looks great! I wonder if Peter is going to do the NWF13A version of this car, as that is the last one missing out of the three cars that I can't find in n scale that were painted pink by TTX for their On Track for a Cure in October.



Chris

[GaryHinshaw]

I'm not aware of any plans for the NWF13A series.  (If I understand correctly, the 13A cars have a wider rib spacing than the 13 series represented in this kit.)