Some time back I asked a question “What’s on our Trains”, blog post March 2019. In short loading on a train can be different due to direction of travel. In another blog post I commented on the ratio of box wagons to open wagons on my layout. Of cause, this will change given the goods/freight types carried in a given location. Plus, the makeup of some trains calls for a select type of rollingstock for partial traffic where wagons could be in sets etc. I think era also played a part it this, in later years with palletise loading and easy loading methods, more goods/freight was loading into box wagon.
For some time now I have felt the layout was a bit short on open type wagons. Over the years I have purchased several “H” type wagons from various manufactures. All have been different in some way, some had inside details, and other didn’t. Even kits from the same manufacture were different at times. All needed some adjustments of some form to fit in with other rollingstock on the layout. They were at the same size at 32 ft long. This allowed the kit to be used as “H” and “HJ” wagons subject to bogie type. Only the later “H” wagons were 32 ft. long, most “H” wagons were 30 ft. long with a number of shorties at 21 and 26 feet. All the wagons in the class look much the same at a glance, as they say, the devil is in the detail.
26 ft. H wagon
H wagon with door stops on the end doors and a spring mechanism on the
centre door.
This H wagon with two spring mechanism. Door stop pads are square and on
other wagons they could be at 90°.
H wagon with door stops on all doors.
During 1969 the painting of goods/freight wagons was changed from black and red oxide to grey.
Coupled to this, many of my loads are fixed into the wagons with securing equipment in place over the sides, hiding the lack of inside detail. Returning the wagon empty on a train is out of the question. Scratch building a few wagons allowed me to have a few wagons with different lengths and some empty wagons. A plus was the side door thickness was more prototypical.
Looking at photos taken by various photographers over a number of years as above, showed up quite a few differences which gave me the opportunity to provide some different wagons. Some the differences include the length and type of the door stops. Doors of wooden wagons are quite heavy and generally they were knock open from inside with the door falling down freely. The door stops prevent the dropping doors damaging the axle boxes. In the reverse, two guys were required to close the door, some locations forklifts were used. Some wagons had a springing mechanism on the middle door to assist in closing the door. Pads on the doors to protecting the timber where the dropping doors hits the doorstops are in two different positions. Some wagons had securing rings, others didn’t.
Models
All
wagons were constructed from styrene sheet and Evergreen strip and rod. Wood
grain was added by rubbing wet & dry paper backward and forward along the
styrene sheet in the direction of the scribing for timber boards. In other
words, grain to run along the boards, not across.
21ft. H with load, concrete gang on the move to the next job.
PGC Kit with farming machines. Implements (disc & stump jump plough) were scratch build using photos located on the internet.
A PGC HJ wagon Kit with tank and pipe fittings from a Wathers Kit. Cotton
from the wife’s sewing room has been used for the securing equipment.
Both wagons were scratch built, decals rivets used on the strapping.
26ft. H wagon scratch built.
The wagons were painted using PGC Acrylic Lacquer Red Oxide and weathered with Vallejo paints.
The next batch of five wagons were built in a similar way and were painted using the same paint. At this stage, school is out on whether the models will be weathered.
As an experiment, the rivets were made using a styrene goo made up with scrap styrene and solvent. The thickness to the goo is governed by the amount of solvent added to scrap styrene in the bottle. Acrylic paint was added to give the goo colour, without the paint it is white onto white. The colour helps to highlight what you are doing. The goo was added to the model using 8 thou brass wire as the applicator. A drop of goo is place on a scrap piece of styrene with a tooth pick, the wire is dipped into the goo drop and carried to the model. You need to be quick as the goo drop can dry quickly.
The
wagons were fitted with the new Wuiske bar frame bogies, these bogies have an
injected moulded side frames, the wagons are 6 grams lighter than the wagons fitted
with white metal bogies I generally use, reducing the overall weight of the
wagon. I intend to run these wagons empty, I see how they will measure up with
my style of operations with lots of pushing and pulling during shunting.
A number of wagons were fitted with the centre door spring mechanism
Most wagon were fitted steel door stops which were made from brass mini-strip. The hand brake levers were made up using the same material.
The goose neck air hoses on the end and queen posts are Queensland Railway Miniatures brass parts. Buffers are Caintode Flats CFD 1.
The
question often comes up from time to time about the colour of the wagon inside.
Looking at wagons in museums, which modellers often used as a reference, most
are painted. This next photo taken in 1967 showing some were unpainted and were
bare timber.
Mackay sugar season, Benholme – Gargett section climbing up to The Gap.
Acknowledgements.
QR Plans
Trust you find the information helpful, and it can assist you in your modelling projects.
Merry Christmas
and a Happy New Year.
Stay safe until
we catch up next time in the New Year.
Be sure to check
out the YouTube channel to see the wagons at work on the layout.
Arthur H.
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