Tag Archives: railroad

Modeling a Southern Extended-Height Twin Hopper in HO Scale

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Southern Extended Height Twin Hopper - Athearn Offset Finished

One of the things I love most about modeling coal-hauling railroads is the variety of hoppers employed by all the railroads. Each line seemed to have their own unique preference for sizes and mixes of cars, and the manufacturers made them in so many varieties. The 1960s and ’70s were especially eclectic as railroads engaged in hopper rebuilding programs to extend the lives of otherwise obsolete cars, especially 50-ton twin hoppers that were the mainstay of coal hauling for most of the 20th century. This is an easy kitbashing project to bring one of the more distinctive modifications in Appalachian coal hopper history to your layout.

History of the Southern’s Extended-Height Fleet

Rebuilding programs often involved increasing the capacity of … Read more →

Weathering Old Coal Hoppers

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CofGa 50T Offset Hopper

It should come as no surprise that someone who runs a site called “Appalachian Railroad Modeling” loves modeling coal hoppers! While unit trains dominate the rails today, a few decades ago it was common to see coal hoppers of all different vintages running together, and the condition of cars ran from “nearly new” to “how is this thing still on the rails!” Last year I wrote a shorter article on weathering a specific hopper using some of the same techniques, but in this article, I’ll go through each technique step-by-step because modeling variety in your hopper fleet requires the combination of many weathering techniques. Not all hoppers get every technique, but most hoppers get most techniques, especially those that … Read more →

Book Review – Pittsburg & Shawmut in Color

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By Kurt Reisweber and Brad Esposito
Morning Sun Books 2015
ISBN 1-58248-449-X

5star

 Review by Dan Bourque

Book Pittsburg & Shawmut in Color book reviewPittsburg & Shawmut in Color chronicles this colorful, coal-hauling Pennsylvania short line from the 1970s through the end of its corporate life in the mid-1990s. This book is packed full of exceptional color photos (many by co-author Kurt Reisweber) covering nearly the entire railroad with rich and information-packed captions … Read more →