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Post by sd40dash2 on Oct 4, 2018 5:54:42 GMT -8
For all you old time MILW modellers:
Announcement 9/28/18
Coming Soon Milwaukee Road Rib Side™ Boxcars
www.accurail.com/accurail/3900.htm
Kit will include:
•Separate Roof, Ladders, Roofwalk, Underframe and End Details
•Accumate® Magnetic Couplers
•Delrin (Acetal) Trucks and Wheels
•Steel Weight & Instruction Sheet
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Post by SOMECALLMETIM on Oct 4, 2018 6:34:53 GMT -8
Is this the kit previously produced by someone else that Accurail purchased or a new model? It looks like a nice kit.
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Post by dti406 on Oct 4, 2018 6:50:44 GMT -8
Is this the kit previously produced by someone else that Accurail purchased or a new model? It looks like a nice kit. This is the old Ribbed Side Models kit, but their kit had had separately applied grabs rather than cast on, at least they are not including cast on ladders.  Here is one of the old Ribbed Side Model kits I built. Rick Jesionowski |
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Post by riogrande on Oct 4, 2018 8:51:01 GMT -8
Is this the same box car ExactRail released a few years ago, now out of stock? I picked up one if the ER ribside at the time.
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Post by dti406 on Oct 4, 2018 9:31:09 GMT -8
Is this the same box car ExactRail released a few years ago, now out of stock? I picked up one if the ER ribside at the time. I don't know for sure, Ribbed Side cars made several different versions of the ribbed side car which are accurate for the the different versions that the MILW produced, and since I had several of the ribbed side car kits I was not interested in the Exactrail car especially at the difference in price between Exactrail and Ribbed Side cars. Rick Jesionowski |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 4, 2018 9:46:11 GMT -8
Is this the same box car ExactRail released a few years ago, now out of stock? I picked up one if the ER ribside at the time.
Not an exact match, but both are based on earlier series ribside cars with the 5-5 dreadnought ends. I believe it was in '44 or '45 that Milwaukee changed the design to improved 4-4 dreadnought ends (Intermountain's cars). As Rick said, there was a lot of variations in these especially when they started getting rebuilt in the early 60s.
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Post by simulatortrain on Oct 4, 2018 11:11:22 GMT -8
Cool! Those were pretty decent kits, I hope the other variations follow.
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Post by edwardsutorik on Oct 4, 2018 12:19:30 GMT -8
This is the old Ribbed Side Models kit, but their kit had had separately applied grabs rather than cast on, at least they are not including cast on ladders. The Rib Side kits I've got have cast-on grabs. Just like the Accurail kit. Ed |
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Post by riogrande on Oct 4, 2018 14:09:13 GMT -8
I recall paying about $26 for my ER rib side MILW box car from mbk back when they had them. Not too bad for a nice car.
I wonder if Accurail bought the Ribside tooling or tooled this totally new.
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Post by GP40P-2 on Oct 4, 2018 15:10:04 GMT -8
It was reported a few months ago, probably in MRH, that Accurail had bought the Rib Side Car tooling. More recently, Accurail is disposing (will there actually be a buyer??) of the autoracks and trailer flats.
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Post by craigz on Oct 5, 2018 5:50:59 GMT -8
The Rib Side kits I've got have cast-on grabs. Just like the Accurail kit. Ed There were different versions of the Rib Side Car kits...some had cast on grabs, some didn't. |
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Post by roadkill on Oct 5, 2018 5:58:41 GMT -8
Hmm, interesting, that looks like a nice base for one of the later rebuilds that had lower side patch panels.
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Post by nightmare0331 on Oct 5, 2018 14:10:38 GMT -8
The first run of these is a 3 pack for Trainfest. These are the cars that JG Schmidt made under the the Rib Side Cars line before he passed away. Accurail picked this tooling up and made some repairs, modifications and tweaks to it. If the 40 foot version does well, they may bring out the other versions that were tooled up. Enjoy! Kelley. www.dufordmodelworks.com |
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Post by fr8kar on Oct 5, 2018 14:30:52 GMT -8
Always nice to see Accurail expanding their lineup. The kits I've built are well engineered, consistently molded free of flash, easy to assemble, easy to upgrade and best of all inexpensive. Looks like another winner to me.
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Post by The Ferro Kid on Oct 5, 2018 21:44:29 GMT -8
[SNIP] If the 40 foot version does well, they may bring out the other versions that were tooled up. [SNIP] I'll be buying enough of the 40-footers to help that along. Hoping one of the other versions is the 50-footer. |
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Post by riogrande on Oct 6, 2018 5:06:28 GMT -8
Always nice to see Accurail expanding their lineup. The kits I've built are well engineered, consistently molded free of flash, easy to assemble, easy to upgrade and best of all inexpensive. Looks like another winner to me. I agree; Accurail seem better engineered than most of the other similar kits (Athearn, MDC, E&C etc). I've picked up a few 40' box cars in the past year to fill in a few since 1970's they were still around. |
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Post by fr8kar on Oct 6, 2018 5:48:05 GMT -8
This past March I bought a PS 4750 on a lark thinking I'd see what kind of kitbash opportunities it might present for Ingalls and Trinity 4750s, both of which are very similar to the PS 4750. I ended up liking the Accurail model so much I bought an additional 15 more since, just to build as intended. Yes, I replace the wheels and couplers and sometimes the trucks, but so far I've been leaving the rest of the kit alone. It's pretty doggone good as is.
Is it as good as the Tangent 4750? Nope, but it's a long way from older Athearn, MDC, Intermountain and Walthers hoppers. In terms of how fine the details and the overall presentation of the model is concerned, I'd put it up there with the P2K covered hoppers. Not as detailed as that kit, but the fineness of the running boards, stirrups and ladder rungs is about the same.
There's nothing wrong with super detailed models from Tangent, Exactrail and Scale Trains. I love them and I have lots of them. But I came up in this hobby building kits and kitbashing and upgrading with Plano parts. When I get the itch to build something, it's fun to use a thoughtfully designed kit as a starting point.
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Post by nebrzephyr on Oct 6, 2018 7:14:24 GMT -8
. Yes, I replace the wheels and couplers and sometimes the trucks, I've been using Tangent trucks as replacements for the Accurail version.
Bob
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Post by dti406 on Oct 6, 2018 11:58:29 GMT -8
Hmm, interesting, that looks like a nice base for one of the later rebuilds that had lower side patch panels. Another interesting rebuild:  One of the ribbed side kits where I substituted a 10' YSD along with extended door tracks. The WP bought a few of MILW's ribbed side cars and outfitted them with loaders for servicing the Amana Appliance pool out of Amana, IA. Rick Jesionowski |
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Post by fr8kar on Oct 6, 2018 15:41:43 GMT -8
I would remove Intermountain from among Athearn, MDC and maybe Walthers. On a similar lark, I picked up an Accurail 4750 and just did a visual comparison to one of my Intermountain 4750's. The end cages are pretty close in fineness between IMRC and Accurail, but the rest of the IMRC car had more detail, the roof has finer roof parts, supports and see though roof walks. IMRC 4750 has the edge over Accurail rather than the other way around, but it should at roughly double the cost msrp. My point is that Accurail is sometimes thought of as a dinosaur manufacturer stuck in the shake-the-box era, hence the comparison to similar models from decades ago. The PS 4750 is not just another MDC or Athearn kit. I lumped the Intermountain kit in there not because it's a shake-the-box kit - far from it - but because it's a much more complex kit that has been superseded by the Accurail kit. It's true, Intermountain has altered the model since it originally came out to include one-piece trucks instead of the self-destructing equalizing trucks and etched running boards. I had the original kit in mind when I compared it to the Accurail kit: both are kits, both have plastic running boards, etc. I agree that both Accurail and Intermountain did nice end cages. Only those models with wire ladder rungs are better. Accurail did some things better than Intermountain and vice versa. On the ends it's a wash. Underneath Intermountain has separate shaker brackets and they're nicer than Accurail. But Accurail did a better job on the center sill. They represent two different styles of center sill, but Intermountain omitted the details. Also, the hopper bays on the Intermountain car appear to be slightly larger than the bays on the Accurail and Tangent models. I don't have drawings to compare this to, so I don't know who got it right (I'm leaning toward Tangent). This forces the hopper gates to be wider on the Intermountain model. Probably not much of an issue since it's difficult to see under there. I modify or replace the gates on all my Accurail and Intermountain hoppers anyway. Edge goes to Accurail. Intermountain's gimmicky opening roof hatches are clunky and oversized. Accurail's one piece hatch looks better, but you only get the stamped hatches with no option for the smooth parts (Tangent to the rescue?). On those Intermountain models with plastic running boards the detail is extremely close to the Accurail car. Edge to Accurail. The Intermountain model infamously has an issue with the side stakes. If you think of them having a hat shaped section, the brim of the hat is far too wide on the Intermountain model and they're all the same way. That probably sounds really insignificant, but once you place decals between the side stakes it becomes apparent (those pink co-op hoppers come to mind). It's an error that jumps out at me. Anyway, Accurail got the alternating width "brim" of the side stakes right. Accurail all the way here. In terms of assembly they aren't even close. Accurail's approach to the end cages simplifies the assembly and gives you a great looking end in one piece. Securing the weight inside between the end sheets and floor part is a great innovation that makes the kit easy to assemble and prevents you from having to open it up later to fix a loose weight. The assembly process is far easier on the Accurail kit with fewer parts for the same or better result in detail in many areas. So in the end, Accurail kit vs. the Intermountain kit, Accurail has the edge for me. If I'm going to spring for an RTR PS 4750, I won't even waste a thought on the Intermountain model when I can get the far superior Tangent model for a similar price. But for a kit that builds up to a good model with little effort with parts that fit each other well, you can do much worse than Accurail. This hobby demands manufacturers like Tangent exist and I count myself among those who love their products. But this hobby also needs manufacturers like Accurail. The fifteen year old me remembers cutting lawns for money to spend on blue box kits and dreaming of one day having a high end model like those in the brass case at Bobbye Hall's Hobby House (there were no high end plastic models then). If I were a kid today I'd be thrilled with Accurail for what they offer. |
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Post by riogrande on Oct 6, 2018 15:56:42 GMT -8
Thanks for the education; the more you learn, the more you "enjoy" the rolling stock you bought.  |
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Post by fr8kar on Oct 6, 2018 16:10:17 GMT -8
Thanks for the education; nice to know my money on the IMRC cars was somewhat of a waste. I wouldn't go that far. I kept the ones I have where the ribs don't affect the lettering. It was a state-of-the-art kit back in the day. I'm not posting here to bash Intermountain. Intermountain has added value to those older kits by replacing the trucks and running boards. Instead, I'm praising Accurail for doing more with a shake-the-box kit than an older kit of the same model that was considered high end. It's Accurail's innovation that allows them to produce an inexpensive, easy to assemble kit with accuracy and fine detail. |
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Post by milgentrains on Oct 6, 2018 17:05:07 GMT -8
A few of these Accurail kits would make a neat addition to my 40 ft boxcars. Not having to remove roofwalks is a plus.
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Post by simulatortrain on Oct 6, 2018 18:25:32 GMT -8
I appreciate the 4750 commentary- I've gone Tangent all the way as far as the 4740s and 4750s I have, but due to the cost I've considered the NW grain trains that ran over WM plain out of the question. Recently I had been wondering about the Accurail (haven't had a chance to inspect one yet) or IM kits, as maybe I can live without all-out detail for a unit train. I can still justify the expensive cars for anything in my general-service fleet, but there's just no way 40 or 50 of them makes sense short of a lottery win.
Ryan, what detail work do you typically do on the Accurail cars? Whose outlet gates do you use for replacements? I'm thinking I could come up with a cheap and good-enough solution for better roofwalks for Accurail.
Now we need a good entry-level 4740... Is there any saving the Athearn car?
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Post by ssw on Oct 6, 2018 19:10:53 GMT -8
Have already asked my dealer to pick up 2 of the 3 packs from Trainfest, and I will probably get some more after they're out. Like Ryan, I've enjoyed assembling the 4750's from Accurail (I probably have two dozen now) and I'm a glutton for rib side boxcars. If you model the Milwaukee, you can never have enough! I hope Accurail brings out the rest of the line, I missed the Rib Side Cars kits when they came out (wasn't aware of them) so would like to be able to add to my rib side collection, and retire the old MDC models to the sentimental display case.
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Post by wp8thsub on Oct 6, 2018 21:02:29 GMT -8
My point is that Accurail is sometimes thought of as a dinosaur manufacturer stuck in the shake-the-box era, hence the comparison to similar models from decades ago. Their stuff is highly variable. Some of the newer models, like the PS4750 and the 40' gon, can easily fool the viewer into thinking they're better than they are. Unfortunately they won't attempt most multi-color schemes (they'll paint a car one color when it shouldn't be), and larger lettering is too often poorly executed. The price point is kept lower by including the awful one-piece plastic wheelsets and Accumate couplers that most of us discard. I missed out on the original Rib Side kits, so I'm looking forward to messing around with at least one of these. |
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Post by stottman on Oct 7, 2018 3:31:00 GMT -8
While I would agree that the IM 4750 is eclipsed, don't forget that it is almost 25 years old. The closest thing at the time was Athearns 4740 "54' covered hopper".
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Post by fr8kar on Oct 7, 2018 4:17:17 GMT -8
Unfortunately they won't attempt most multi-color schemes (they'll paint a car one color when it shouldn't be), and larger lettering is too often poorly executed. The price point is kept lower by including the awful one-piece plastic wheelsets and Accumate couplers that most of us discard. All true. The Illinois Terminal car I picked up awhile back was missing the red paint! It's a pretty significant feature in that particular paint scheme. Fortunately, the way the kit assembles it was easily corrected. As far as the plastic wheels are concerned, I keep referring to Accurail as shake-the-box kits. They're a little more advanced than that, but they aren't nearly as complex as the Intermountain and P2K models. But as simple as they are they are reminiscent of kits from Athearn, MDC, Walthers and so on. Those old kits all had plastic wheels that got replaced, too. It's been awhile, but I believe the self destructing trucks from the Intermountain kits had plastic wheels as well. While I would agree that the IM 4750 is eclipsed, don't forget that it is almost 25 years old. The closest thing at the time was Athearns 4740 "54' covered hopper". No question it was a state-of-the-art kit at the time it was released. When it came out I was finally able to unload some of the Athearn 4740s I'd been using as stand-ins. I did the same thing with Athearn 5250s modified from four bays to three to represent 4650 cf cars. I have since replaced all those with Accurail 4600s and Atlas and Intermountain 4650s. Speaking of the 4650, I've replaced all but three of my Intermountain cars with Atlas. Something about the Atlas car just looks better to me than the Intermountain car. |
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Post by fr8kar on Oct 7, 2018 4:49:31 GMT -8
I appreciate the 4750 commentary- I've gone Tangent all the way as far as the 4740s and 4750s I have, but due to the cost I've considered the NW grain trains that ran over WM plain out of the question. Recently I had been wondering about the Accurail (haven't had a chance to inspect one yet) or IM kits, as maybe I can live without all-out detail for a unit train. I can still justify the expensive cars for anything in my general-service fleet, but there's just no way 40 or 50 of them makes sense short of a lottery win. And here is the context of how I came to own so many of these cars recently. I don't model MKT per se, but since it (former Rock Island) runs parallel to the Santa Fe from Fort Worth to Saginaw and then parallel to the BN from Saginaw to Hicks Field, it needs to be represented if only by passing trains. The train I'm building with these cars is exactly that, so I'm not concerned with the detail the way I have been with my BN grainer or beer cars or autoracks. For this purpose the price point is more of a concern than highly detailed fragile cars. Given the context I'm using the Accurail cars in, the only thing I do is trim off the full track of the outlet gates to sorta kinda match photos of the prototypes I'm modeling. Alternately you could replace the outlet gates with Tangent parts. I have a Katy car I'm going to be working on soon and it will get the late larger bolster/jack pads commonly associated with the Trinity/PS cars. Plano makes these parts as their part number 10828. These will have to be modified slightly by shortening them vertically. These parts are also available from Tangent as part of a sprue containing shaker brackets and air hoses, but alas it's sold out. The Plano website mentions their etched running boards don't fit the Accurail car. I wonder if you could just use their big etched sheets to modify the existing sets. I'll probably just rely on weathering to make the running boards look better, though I am tempted to replace the plastic parts on my Santa Fe cars with Gypsum pattern etch. Uff da, that Athearn 4740 is pretty bad. Turn it over and compare it to a Tangent car to see how oversized the bays are. I have one that I decided to keep for old time's sake and try to upgrade it to fit in with the nicer models. It's okay... fortunately the prototype was itself a real beater. I can't believe Athearn still churns those things out. I guess somebody is buying them. I have to go with the Tangent 4740 in this case. I scored several undecorated kits at a train show awhile back. This was long after the four undecorated kits I bought when they were first announced, so I've got enough for myself for the foreseeable future anyway. |
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Post by riogrande on Oct 7, 2018 6:22:02 GMT -8
Yes, ug, Athearn still churns out their 4740 hoppers regularly and they seem to sell. No thanks. I've sold off what few I still had a couple years ago and began buying Tangent 4740's. At present, nearly all of the Tangent covered hoppers are 4740's simply because the only alternative is the Athearn very outdated clunky model. At least for 4750, there are IMRC and now Accurail to choose from if the cost of Tangent restricts purchases.
I've never researched 4750 covered hoppers vs. prototypes in-depth so I didn't know IMRC had the issues Ryan pointed out so that was a little disappointing, and I have a probably around 20 or so of them as well, mostly RTR and a few kit built.
I don't have the time or desire (or skills) to do up a bunch of Accurail 4750's to have blocks of D&RGW cars while IMRC has done mulitiple runs and numbers of both the 1974 and 1979 built D&RGW 4750's, so I'll have to over look the flaws I never noticed for the foreseeable future. Hopefully those issues on the IMRC cars won't be apparent enough to compel eventual replacing - but the D&RGW Tangent cars are sold out and no where to be found, and budget isn't really there right now even if they did show up to buy.
In an ideal world I'd have all Tangent covered hoppers but especially in the first few years that Tangent was offering 4750's my financial situation was much worse and they were simply out of by price range. Thankfully I have been able to back-fill a bunch of the Tangent D&RGW 4740's purchased from a person who bought them 8 or 9 years ago.
For the Accurail car, isn't the roof walk molded on like the 4600 covered hopper? So it would be a good deal work and time to upgrade the Accurail car with an etched metal roof walk, renumber or even repaint (as Rob pointed out). With the home improvement jobs I have little to no hobby time for the past year and a few more months as well so lots of kit building, modification, upgrades etc. are just not something I can plan on - which is why I've been leaning a lot of RTR models. Even when I eventually do get more hobby time, layout construction will trump working on models much.
But lack of modeling time is partly where Accurail's advantages come in, because they are well engineered kits, and some of them look pretty decent and don't require a lot of time or dexterity or find skills to get on a layout.
I've looked through the list of road names on Accurail's site for 4750 hoppers and don't really see many that I am in need of; that said, they represent a hopper that is very very common and for those needing numbers, provides a lower cost option of building a fleet of good looking models depending on what you need. Renumbering, it appears, would be needed at minimum, along with the requisite metal wheel and Kadee couplers additions.
And speaking of 5250 covered hoppers, here we are in late 2018 and still no company has stepped up with a high fidelity version yet. Can one be far off now?
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