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Passenger Cars Chair Car Click on the photos to see larger photo. Click "Back" to return.
Chair Car 3900(1) Introduction This Z scale chair car was built in a set of four cars all built together. Two of road number 3900 was built with the intent of giving one to a friend and keeping the others to build as a fleet of passenger cars for personal use. The first several attempts to construct this and other types of passenger cars end in failure as I learned construction techniques. The reference material used to construct these cars is "Passenger Cars 2, Streamline Cars", page 156 by Hal Carstens.Construction Construction of this Z scale model is in three parts. One part is the deck, which include the underbody details, truck assemblies and body-mount couplers. Another part is the roof which has rounded edges that merges into the sides. Another part is the sides which are a series vertically and horizontally laminated dimension styrene. Approximately 189 individual pieces make up this model passenger car. The deck is a set of dimension styrene assembled so that a cavity for lead weight is made.
The lead weight is 1/32 inch thick cut to approximately ¼ inch by 2-1/2 inch. The underbody details are various dimensions of styrene, some strip and some round stock. Also embedded into the cavity is a bolster cut from purchased car decks.
The roof is made from dimension styrene strip and quarter-round styrene.
The sides are constructed on a jig made of a six by twelve inch by ¼ inch plywood board using 1/64 inch plywood as the guides for holding the horizontal styrene strips in place.
The side doors were pre-assembled from .020" styrene strip.
These doors are the first component to be set into the jig. Then the horizontal styrene strips are laid in place.
Detail The details making up this Z scale passenger car consist of approximately 189 individual pieces. Please see the list of materials at the end of this write-up. Many models were started and then scrapped as the construction process was figured out. This was very difficult and time consuming but now that the construction process is worked out, the difficulty is reduced to a very tedious and time consuming process. Decals are used to create the effect of the fluted top and sides. Transparency material is used to create the red and blue color stripes that identify Amtrak passenger cars. Microsoft Access, Excel and PowerPoint were used to create the decals and the artwork for the red and blue color running along the windows. The underbody detail is made up of more than 20 individual pieces of dimension styrene.
Conformity The reference material used to construct these cars is "Passenger Cars 2, Streamline Cars", page 156 by Hal Carstens. Plans were scanned and then reduced to Z scale so that dimensions of materials could be worked out. Some variance occurs due to the use of standard dimension styrene. Although this is a Heritage car, no attempt was made to show the markings of the previous car owner. Finishing and Lettering The Z scale car body has a base coat of Lt Gray primer and a "Stainless Steel" paint finish. The car body is then covered with three decals that give the fluted appearance. A transparency is used to create the red and blue stripes. Note that the white is actually clear and the white styrene make the white stripe. Also note the car is identified as "Chair" and has the road number assigned. Microsoft Access, Excel and PowerPoint were used to create the decals and the artwork for the red and blue color running along the windows. The underbody has a base coat Lt Gray primer with a Grimy Black finish. Scratch Building Detail plans and diagrams are in the accompanying project binder. The reference material used to construct these cars is "Passenger Cars 2, Streamline Cars", page 156 by Hal Carstens. Plans were scanned and then reduced to Z scale so that dimensions of materials could be worked out. All of the approximately 189 individual are scratch built. These include the exempt trucks and couplers. List of Materials Roof Assembly (1 each per model car)
Side Assemblies (2 each per model car)
Side Door Assemblies (2 each per model car)
End Assemblies (2 each per model car)
End Door Assemblies (2 each per model car)
Deck Assembly (1 each per model car)
Dining Car Click on the photos to see larger photo. Click "Back" to return.
Write-up is similar to the Chair Car Sleeper Car Click on the photos to see larger photo. Click "Back" to return.
Write-up is similar to the Chair Car |
After
all of the vertical strips are cemented in place the excess material is trimmed
of to make a left and right side. The sides and ends are cemented to the roof.
