CP 1948-49 steel end cupola van scratch build in-progress

[edgecrusher]

Jul 31, 2020 6:23:39 GMT -8 sd40dash2 said:

Jul 31, 2020 5:43:06 GMT -8 riogrande said:

If the interior color convey's through the windows well enough, that may be good. From memory, it's normally a light mint green.

Correct on the mint green. Conveys? It will mostly be the cupola interior that is visible from the outside as the main body will mostly be dark. I suppose I could use my earlier, thicker custom mixed mint green inside the cupola if enough readers here think it's worthwhile.

I'd stick with what you have.  Once you get it all assembled you won't be able to see much inside.  Caboose windows aren't all that big, it'll be pretty dark in there.

[Christian]

Jul 31, 2020 6:56:02 GMT -8 sd40dash2 said:

Here's the interior green I made up for a previous build. What do you guys think?

With those big windows, it's probably worth digging out for the cupola.

[sd40dash2]

Thanks for all the earlier helpful comments.

Now the lead weight has been safely installed and painted for a projected total car weight of approx 4 ounces vs the NMRA recommended 3.5. Styrene braces have been marked for which sides and ends go where. Not painted as the white sections are where the glue goes and no white will be visible once car is assembled.

[sd40dash2]

Quick picture of all the major parts before weathering & just about ready to close everything up -- it will be tricky to ensure it all ends up square.

[simulatortrain]

Can't wait to see the end result! Paint and decals look really great as well.

I've decided to try building a different Clinchfield caboose than the one I mentioned. Not that I need it, but WM doesn't give me much variety in that department.

[sd40dash2]

Sides weathered, sealed and dried, upgraded metal slider windows installed. I love how the rivets are still visible underneath all those coats of paint and sealer. The dryrbrush weathering used here really helped highlight them.

[slowfreight]

Humming along! Is this thing done and the photos in the can, or are you updating us in real time?

[sd40dash2]

^ The photos are delayed somewhat but I am definitely not done! There are many reasons to stay inside these days and between those and the surprising amount of kind encouragement in this thread, the project has indeed hummed along. Lots of inspiration to keep this thread frequently updated and (apparently) interesting!

[sd40dash2]

Ends attached to chassis, sides tested for fit and ready for final alignment and installation.

[Colin 't Hart]

Really fast work, Manny! And looks good too!

[sd40dash2]

Sides and ends finally installed to chassis, everything is squared up. Ignore the apparently-misaligned horizontal styrene strip along the far well. It only appears that way because the lead weight was not cut perfectly square.

[sd40dash2]

The roof has now been detailed, painted, aligned, installed and initially weathered. The two roof sections were installed in conjunction with the cupola side wall braces in order to achieve prototype dimensions. Bit of a balancing act to achieve what you see here. Now have to set this aside and let it all dry.

[brammy]

This is just really fantastic work. Thank you for sharing all of this.

[sd40dash2]

Aug 3, 2020 14:01:46 GMT -8 brammy said:

This is just really fantastic work. Thank you for sharing all of this.

Much too kind -- I am really happy you are enjoying the thread. Thank you for commenting.

[sd40dash2]

Side braces painted, outer edge on the closer one is sloppily painted but that's where the glue goes. While the main body green is already painted and I decided to leave it, all cupola interior pieces will be painted mint green as discussed on page 4 of this thread. The next series of images will be a little less exciting than previous ones. Since edgecrusher stated upthread that he could not visualize my cupola assembly, my goal will be to show you the stages of how I constructed it through more frequent posts. If you guys get bored with the next several micro-steps please speak up and I'll skip ahead a bit.

[sgoti]

Aug 3, 2020 16:25:41 GMT -8 sd40dash2 said:

Side braces painted, outer edge on the closer one is sloppily painted but that's where the glue goes. While the main body green is already painted and I decided to leave it, all cupola interior pieces will be painted mint green as discussed on page 4 of this thread. The next series of images will be a little less exciting than previous ones. Since edgecrusher stated upthread that he could not visualize my cupola assembly, my goal will be to show you the stages of how I constructed it through more frequent posts. If you guys get bored with the next several micro-steps please speak up and I'll skip ahead a bit.

Details make the model, and details make the thread!

I know I don't mind a few visual several thousand words on how you are doing this.

[brammy]

You better not skip ahead.

[sd40dash2]

Here are just some of the cupola parts prepped and ready to install. This section of the car will need many pieces of strip and shim to make it all fit together. So far I've counted 57 pieces! Thanks NSWL Chopper II!

[sd40dash2]

Cupola corners installed, their insides will be painted mint green next. This is one of the more challenging aspects to this build, not only the engineering but also the alignment, glue then painting and waiting for it all to dry before proceeding. Most remaining work is tedious like this and has slowed me down slightly. But I'll keep posting here with the same frequency due to the interest in this thread.

[sd40dash2]

Insides hand painted mint green after each set of strips is installed and dry. Note the careful avoidance to add unnecessary paint to where the window frames will be.