While i was milling wood for the Challenge work caboose, I went ahead and cut enough to do 3 cars. Next on the bench is a simple 30 foot flatcar. Nothing fancy. I’m going to use it to practice weathering and find something I like before I finish the weathering on the caboose. I’m also 3D printing a few more parts on this car just to see how they look for future builds. So, I guess this is sort of a prototyping car . Not sure if I’ve shown them before, but while I was working on the archbar side frames for the caboose, I modeled the Andrews side frames. They will be used on the flatcar. Here is the car in its current state.

And the Andrews trucks.

Other than the trucks and bolsters, I’ve printed the end beams with integral coupler pockets. I’m printing everything in orange so that when I’m done I can post a photo or two and you’ll be able to see everything that has been printed. I’ll cover it up during the painting and weathering phase.

Notice the holes for the trussrod NBWs. Actually the end beam in the photo is scrap. The holes were a little high. I’ve adjusted them on the beams on the car.

I’m using Kadee 1906 #1 couplers.

Hopefully, I’ll get the flooring on tonight and maybe mount the queen posts. Thanks for following along.

Looking really good Dan, I like those printed end beams.

You do a great job combining natural materials (like really nice wood) with 3D printed details. I like it. Someday I would like to get into the 3D part so I can get some more of just the right details for my builds. Very cool.

Rick and Jim, thanks for the kind words. I do like using nice hardwoods for my building projects. I pickup scraps anytime I come across them. What a lot of other people see as waste wood, I see as modeling projects. There will be some mahogany cars in the near future. I had a guy give me some 12 foot solid mahogany doors he took out of building he was working on a couple days ago. I’m going to cut them down to a standard door size to use in my home, but the cutoffs will be used for modeling (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif). The 3D modeling and printing provide a means to get some detail parts that I otherwise would have to buy or not use and I really enjoy the process of creating the 3D models.

Decking and stake pockets installed.

Hmmm … Mahogany would make a great trestle… for any shelf queen…

Sean, you have a point but I would need a layout now wouldn’t I? One would think I’d resolve that little issue (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

Thought i would show you my little jig for the placement of the stake pockets. I initially thought about measuring and marking each one but that would be too logical, so I decided to make it more complicated and designed a jig that I could clamp to the side sill that would allow for the gluing of each pocket. My printer is limited in size so I had to make one that would allow me to put on half of them beginning from one end and them move it to the other end and add the remaining ones.

Now, you might ask … how in the heck are you going to get it off with all those clamps? Well, fortunately I thought about that during design and made sure that it would fit between the top of the pockets and the inside top of the clamp so I could slide it out.

When all is said and done, it looks like this.

I’ll add the queen posts, trussrods and brake wheel and call it done except for paint and weathering … oh! and lettering(https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

Cleverness abounds…(https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

That’s looking great Dan. I like the Andrew’s trucks they turned out great. And clever idea on the end beams. Its going to be a very nice csr

Dan This is what I was thinking

you could build it into a diorama just like Devon…

That’s a cool trestle, Sean. I would love to do a diorama but I just don’t have room to put one inside. Momma’s the boss of inside space. Outside is a different story, I just need to get off my butt and build a couple sections of the layout and put some track down.

Pizza oven… layout… layout … pizza oven… build cars to look cool on layout when it gets built… the decisions are yuge!!! Get a assemboy line going like Dave Taylor did in the Challenge and you can knock them out in no time. Then the pizza oven gets finished then we can all come help build layout while beer and pizza are consumed!!

Dan Hilyer said:

That’s a cool trestle, Sean. I would love to do a diorama but I just don’t have room to put one inside. Momma’s the boss of inside space.

You could build one and have it as a test track ( that is what you tell her )

Pete Lassen said:

Pizza oven… layout… layout … pizza oven… build cars to look cool on layout when it gets built… the decisions are yuge!!! Get a assemboy line going like Dave Taylor did in the Challenge and you can knock them out in no time. Then the pizza oven gets finished then we can all come help build layout while beer and pizza are consumed!!

Pete, the pizza oven work will recommence this weekend, weather permitting. We have been in this cycle of rain the last couple months and it’s hard to apply insulation that must stay dry in the rain (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-yell.gif)I know, I know … excuse, excuses (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

Well we all want good pizza, so it the insulation is supposed to stay dry then by all means wait for dryness. Wouldn’t want it to explode or something and ruin a pizza, or worse knock over our beerz

Hmmm … Held up in design, insulation was wet … he is creative !

Creative excuses are much more believable than lame excuses (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-tongue-out.gif)

Hey Dan, there has been a huge misunderstanding that Sean is perpetuating. I am NOT building a diorama. I am building a book case up on which I will set a diorama. Big difference when it comes to getting permission. Its all in how you present it. See I look her in the eye and clearly say I am building a bookcase, then look down and away and mumble about the diorama part.

And Dan is going to build a test track …(https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

Dan Hilyer said:

Pete Lassen said:

Pizza oven… layout… layout … pizza oven… build cars to look cool on layout when it gets built… the decisions are yuge!!! Get a assemboy line going like Dave Taylor did in the Challenge and you can knock them out in no time. Then the pizza oven gets finished then we can all come help build layout while beer and pizza are consumed!!

Pete, the pizza oven work will recommence this weekend, weather permitting. We have been in this cycle of rain the last couple months and it’s hard to apply insulation that must stay dry in the rain (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-yell.gif)I know, I know … excuse, excuses (https://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)

But in the one post you had a tent over the thing, so you could work dry in the rain. So I don’t buy your excuse.