First batch of Intermountain 3281 Covered Hoppers are on the water

[mu26aeh]

@GaryHinshaw thanks for making the stirrup file available.  Also, thanks for pointing the messed up ones out because I never really took notice to them.  Now they stick out like a sore thumb.  So I deleted the coupler pocket and have a plate of the stirrups getting ready to print now.

[GaryHinshaw]

Great.  I need to print out a bunch more myself for a big batch of 3281s and 5161s.   Post some photos when you get a chance. 

[ridinshotgun]

Man Gary you weren’t kidding those washers are horrible. I pulled both wheel sets off just one of the cars I got and the washer hoe isn’t even centered and the punch left burrs on both sides.

Can you tell us where you got the shim washers you used?  I can’t find anything with that thickness and hole size in my internet sleuthing.

[mu26aeh]

I printed off 3 plates worth of stirrups, knowing I'm going to break some.  I imagine most of my first batch will be junk because I printed them with the stirrups facing the build plate, so the supports are attached to the stirrups.  Very fragile and most will probably not survive.  So I rotated everything so that the supports are on the base of the stirrup.  Now to go thru and see how many I can salvage.

[GaryHinshaw]

I printed mine at 45 degrees off vertical with two supports on the snap-off tab and one on the extension post as shown:



I glue them to the bottom of the frame with PVC cement which dries flexible but still strong.  I have yet to have one break off, but they're easy to replace if I do.

For the replacement washer, I have been using some metal ones that came on a run of 5161 hoppers (front-right in the pic above).  Once those run out, I will print ones as needed (one of my favourite uses for my printer).  You could likely source similar washers from a place like Ali Baba.  The form factor is the same as an MTL washer (~2.6 mm ID, 4.5 mm OD, but 0.25 mm thickness instead of MTL's ~0.45 mm).  Hope this helps.