Wayne Spence - myLargescale.com

Scratch-build a 1:20.3 scale 29’-6” Flatcar
Chapter 1 – Building the frame and decking
By Wayne Spence
Brisbane, Australia
Please take the time to refer to the following link, in which Dwight Ennis describes his approach
to scratch building his Backwater Water Tank. This fine water tank construction article takes you
through all the steps required to build a 1:20.3 structure that would complement any narrow
gauge inspired garden railroad. It also highlights the safety requirements associated with use of
power tools required to produce strip wood needed to build this flatcar.
Dwight explains the need to select the right lumber required for this project. The choice of
lumber will determine whether your flatcar is suitable for 'all weather' running or must be only
used during fine conditions. As most of my scratch-built rolling stock is made from white (clear)
pine and glued together with white carpenters glue, this makes them unsuitable for all weather,

all year round exposure. If your flatcar were to be exposed to the weather, your choice of
construction materials would have to take this into consideration.
Large-scale lumber will have to be resistant to the weather by either using proven timber such as
redwood or cedar and applying a preservative or painting the model. Here in Australia we have
several species of timber suitable for model making, including hardwoods, but I prefer to use
white pine, the reason being that in my case, its free. This pine is leftover off cuts from a
furniture manufacture. It is similar to basswood, same color and easy to work, but doesn't seem
to have that "fuzz" that basswood produces. Don't forget to use a waterproof glue to assemble
your rolling stock.
http://www.mylargescale.com/articles/articles/WaterTank/Watertank02.asp
This flatcar project will be constructed in four parts.
Chapter 1 - Building the frame and decking.
Chapter 2 - Adding the details to the frame.
Chapter 3 - Trucks, couplers and brakes.
Chapter 4 - Painting and decals.
The Model
It is proposed to build a 29'-6" 3' narrow gauge flatcar, primarily from lumber, as used by the
prototype. The car's construction loosely follows the designs used by the D&RGW, RGS, C&S,
and several other NG roads, but is not of any particular prototype, rather a design suitable for
'first time' modellers.
This car can be built from any suitably available lumber - you chose the type of trucks and
couplers. The photo at the head of this chapter has had three additional longitudinal planks added
to both sides of the deck. This flatcar was built, as a heavy-duty flat, suitable for transporting
large pieces of machinery, like tracked logging dozers. This additional decking will be optional
in this project. Note the rusty chain tie down eyes mounted on the deck.
Downloading the Drawings
Each chapter in this series will have links to 1:20 scale full sized drawings listed below. I made
sure these would fit on a standard 8-1/2 x 11 piece of paper, and I've converted each to an Adobe
Acrobat PDF file. To open/view these files will require that you have Adobe Acrobat Reader
installed on your system, a free program used to share documents and drawings. If you don't
have the Acrobat Reader, you can download it here. Once you have the Acrobat Reader
installed, download the drawings and print one or more copies of them. The PDF files are
designed to print 1:1, to make sure the Shrink to Fit box is unchecked!! The following drawings
are for all 3 chapters:
Detailed Materials List
Sheet one - 1:1 scale template drawings.
Sheet two - 1:1 scale template drawings.
Sheet three - 1:1 scale construction plan, left-side view.
Sheet four - 1:1 scale construction plan, right-side view.
Sheet five - 1:1 scale construction plan, decking.
Sheet six - ½ scale flatcar plan.
Download All Drawings - 411K

Let's Get Started!
The above is the 10” bench type table saw that I used to rip the side sill beams, centre beam sills
and end beams. Use feather sticks to guide the stock through to cutting blade.
The above is the small bench band saw I use to rip the smaller sized lumber lengths.

The digital calipers are one of the best
modelling tool investments that I have
made over the years. They're great for
marking out repetitive measurements and
checking lumber sizes.
Gentlemen Start Your Saws!
Once side sills have been cut to length,
mark out area to be checked out and using
the band saw, make a parallel cut to the
line, 7mm from the end - as shown, using
the preset guide fence to cut both ends of
both left and right side sills.
Remove saw fence and crosscut saw
remaining cuts to remove cheek, using the
saws mitre 'T' guide for accurate square
cuts. If not using a band saw, these two
cuts can be made with a fine tooth
handsaw or razor saw, making sure that
the cuts are square. The flatcar end beams
will be located in these side sill checks.
Cut the 115.5x10x7 end beams from your
stock timber.

Use a razor saw or hacksaw blade to add
some 'grain texture' to the outer side edges
of the side sills and to the exposed sides of
the end beams.
Side sills and end beams have had 'grain
texture' added, usually only one pass of
the saw blade is sufficient.
Lay side sills (check up) on a flat surface
and wood glue beams in place. Beams
should 'overhang' sills by 1.5mm at each
side. Use scrap wood lengths cut 96.5mm
long to use as spacers to maintain sill
spacing until glue dries. Check with
square to make sure sills and beams are at
right angles.

Notice that the End Beam overhangs the
side sill by 1.5mm. Set aside to dry,
approximately 1 hour, if using white glue.
Set guide fence on your table saw or band
saw to cut decking from stock wood. I use
stock about 1200mm long to cut my
decking planks from. Cut strip wood to
2.3mm widths first, then cut these 2.3mm
lengths to 9.5mm stock (2.3mm x
9.5mm). The decking really has to be cut
with a power saw or purchased precut
timber decking. As always, use caution
when cutting small size lengths like this.
Use 'push sticks' to guide wood though
saw blade.

I pack the 9.5mm x 2.3mm lengths of
decking stock that have just been cut, into
2 rows of 10 (20 pieces) and using plastic
tape, wrap tape around pack at about every
100mm. Mark decking for 112mm lengths
and cut into bundles, as shown in the
foreground of the above photo.
Note the stop block fixed to the right-hand
side of the saw deck. A table saw or band
saw could also be used to cut the decking
bundles to length. This multi pack cutting
saves a lot of time measuring and cutting
individual deck planks.
Add the decking..
OK, time to fix the decking to the frame.
Turn the car frame over (side sill and end
beam flush at the ends). Apply wood glue
to about the first 100mm of both sides of
the frame and the top of the end beam.
Start laying down the deck planking,
check for square every eight or so planks.
Don't try and push the planks too tightly
together. You want the boards to appear
as individual planking after the deck is
sanded. Install remaining decking.
Use scrap spacers to maintain frame width
as the deck boards are glued into place.

At the other end, glue a full width plank to
the end beam, if required, cut down a
plank to complete the deck. Note the
1.5mm overhang, over the side sills.
You’ve completed the decking..
After the glue on the decking planks have
dried, turn car deck over and mark
positions on the bottoms of the end beams
for the installation of the centre sill beams.
Spread glue on to one edge of the centre
sill and clamp in place. Repeat with the
other centre sill beams.

Beams fixed in place, note spacing pencil
marks on the underside of the end beam.
Set aside to dry.
Once frame and decking timbers are
completely dry, sand back any high planks
on the deck.
To speed up the sanding process, I use
several passes of the frame over a bench
sander..

After sanding, highlight the individual
planks by scribing along each joint. My
scribe is an old sharpened screwdriver.
(Not my hands, but my wife, Carol,
helping with the photos)
Lightly draw a pencil line along the full
length of the both sides of the deck. Dead
centre over the side sills. Notice the
highlighted planks on the left-hand side.
Using your scribe punch two 'nail holes' at
each end of every plank. Sand off pencil
line after all the embossed 'nail heads'
have been punched.

As I run some of my flatcars empty, I like
to add some extra weight to help the car
track better. If you also wish to weight
your car, cut two 400mm lengths of sheet
lead to fit between outer and inner centre
sills. Lead can be cut with a sharp knife,
similar to cutting styrene. Lead is approx.
1.5mm thick.
Using a glue gun is a quick way to fix
down the lead to the underside of the
deck.
Cutout the needle beams from the
template on sheet 2. If full brake rigging
is to be modelled, it is advisable to locate
and drill brake rod clearance holes, prior
to installing the needle beams to the
frame. Glue beams to frame and clamp.

Install end sill to end beam at both ends of
car frame (32x10x7), making sure that
they are centred on the end beam. Clamp
with rubber band till glue bonds.
Now we are ready to cut and install the
bolster, to which the trucks are mounted.
A bolster white metal or brass casting
could be used to be more prototypes in
construction, but for simplicity, I will use
a 96.5mmx15mmx4.5mm wood bolster.
Mark the centre hole position and drill a
1/8" hole in each bolster. Insert a 4-40
blind 'T' nut in each hole and tap home
with a small hammer or squeeze together
in bench vice.
Glue bolster into position., make sure that
the 'T' is on the bottom, i.e.: facing the
decking.

For added strength, I drill through the
bolster and insert two wood screws into
two of the centre sills. Check to see that
the screws are flush with the top of the
bolster. If they are protruding, they may
interfere with truck swing, once the trucks
are installed.
Test fit trucks, if using Hartford Products
trucks, place two small washers between
the bolsters and truck frames. I find that
small 'fender' washers work best - 2x
12mm washer with a 1/8 hole. Use a 4-40
x ¾ socket head screw to mount the
trucks.
Well folks, that concludes Chapter 1.

On completion of chapter 2 your flat will look similar to this.
Happy modelling,
Wayne

Scratch-build a 1:20.3 scale 29’-6” Flatcar
Chapter 2 – Adding details to the frame
By Wayne Spence
Brisbane, Australia
This second part of the “Build a flatcar” project will describe the fitting of most of the detail
parts to our previously constructed frame.
As with all brass and white metal castings, the manufacturing process leaves a film of mould
release on the finish part. It is advisable to pre-wash the parts in warm soapy water and air dry
them prior to installation or painting. This mould release, if not cleaned off, will prevent the
paint making a positive bond to the casting.
Before any of the cast details can be installed on the model, you will have to decide whether your
car is to be painted or have a stained timber car body. If you chose to stain your car, it is
advisable to either paint the castings first or treat them with an oxidising blacking agent such as
“Blacken-it” before attaching to your flatcar. As my model will be painted D&RGW red oxide, I
am going to install the pre-washed castings directly to the car frame and paint the complete car.
As I will be assembling parts of dissimilar properties, ie: metal to wood, the adhesive I plan to
use will be 5-minute epoxy. I find that this adhesive will bond to most materials, as well as
allowing the parts to be moved into place, fixes in a few minutes and once cured, creates a good
strong joint. In the past I have used CA (super glue) to attach detail parts, but found that over
time, the adhesive tends to become brittle and the parts will require re-gluing.

Please note that the details listed in the “parts list”, are only a guide to the parts required. Many
of these details are available from other suppliers not listed and of course if you are skilled at
casting your own parts, this would be an advantage.
Now to continue constructing your flat...
Here I have used Ozark Miniatures brake
cylinder casting. The kit contains five
pieces: the cylinder, piston rod, a tree of
nut/bolt castings and two mounting plates.
Orientate the mounting plates, as shown in
the above photo and use 5-minute epoxy
to mount the cylinder to the plates. Once
the glue has cured, install the completed
assemble to the frame with epoxy and
drilling small holes, install the nut/bolt
castings supplied in the kit. Using the
under floor drawing as a guide, install the
eight 12” queen posts. The centres of the
queen posts are to be positioned to the
outer edges of the centre sill beams. I use 12” queen posts for that “lows-lung” look, 9” posts
would be more prototypical. Set aside to dry.
The installation of the truss rods is the
most difficult part of building this flatcar.
For this project I use relatively cheap
1.5mm welding rod, available from
welding supply shops. Brass rod (0.06”)
can also be used. Two 2’-0” length’s or
1250mm will be required. Cut 4 rods
285mm (11.22”) to length. To bend the
rods, measure 100mm (3.94”) in from
each end and mark. Place the rod across 2
of the queen posts, the marks on the rod
should be over the centres of the posts.
Now remove the rod and using a pair of
pliers, gently bend the rod down, using
the marks as a guide to the bending point. Test fit the rod across the queen posts. The ends
should just touch the underside of decking without lifting off the queen posts. Keep adjusting the
rod till all 4 contact points are making contact with the car, as pictured. Bend the other 3
remaining rods to shape. Note: the 2 inner truss rods may have to be trimmed to allow for the
thickness of the lead weight, if installed. With all the rods bent to shape, place a small amount of
5 min. epoxy in the “u” shaped part of the queen post brackets and drop the newly formed truss
rods into place. Make sure that the ends of the rods are hard up against the centre sill beams.

How do you attach the truss rod ends to
the frame? On the prototype, the rods
continue between the bolsters and deck,
passing through the end beams where they
are tensioned, using truss washers and
nuts. I have used several methods of
anchoring the ends of the rods, in
modelling, taking them through to the
beams is difficult and the results are
somewhat disappointing. I have also bent
the ends of the rods at right angles and
inserted them into predrilled holes in the
centre sills, but this requires very accurate
measuring and bending to get it right. The
easiest and most effective method is to
simply just dribble some 5-min. epoxy or
hot glue directly onto the truss rod ends,
which in turn bonds the rod to the frame.
Once the underside of the car has been
painted, these lumps of glue are hardly
noticeable and will be totally invisible
when the car is in operation on the track.
While waiting for the truss rods to cure in
place, now would be a good time to cut
the mounting block for the Accucraft
couplers from 10mm ply and glue in place
(see drawing sheet 2). If you plan to use
another type of coupler, leave out this
step. Coupler installation will be covered
in chapter 3.

Using a drill press to keep the hole square,
drill a 1/8” hole through the centre of one
end of the end beam for the brake staff.
This hole is measured in 30mm from the
outer edge of the side sill beam. (See
drawing on sheet 5). Temporally insert a
short length of the welding rod into the
hole to act as a guide to fixing the bottom
bracket in place. Remove the rod once the
bracket is secured to the frame.
Referring to the end beam drawing on
sheet 1, mark the position of the truss rod
washers and nuts, drop grab irons and fix
into place using 5-minuit epoxy. Drill a
hole part way through end of the side sill
and end beam and install nut-bolt-washer
castings. On the prototype, the head of
this bolt is hidden under the first deck
plank. Repeat installing the end beam
hardware to the other end of the car.
Refer to sheets 3 and 4 for locations of the
6 per side cast stake pockets. While
supporting your car on its side, epoxy the
stake pockets in place, they should rest up
against the decking planks. Continue
installing the pockets on the other side of
the car. Mark the position of the four-side
sill mounted steps, as shown in the above
photo. Depending on the manufacture, the
steps may have nuts and bolts cast on the
mounting ends of these steps. These
Ozark strap steps only have pre-drilled
holes for nut/bolt/washer separate
castings. As these steps are subject to
unavoidable accidents, I have replaced
two of the NBW castings on each bracket with brass bolts for extra strength. This is an option
only.

Here are 3 examples of side-mounted steps with cast on NBW detail.
Time to add those great looking
turnbuckles to the truss rods. These are
very visible on a flatcar and I think they
are worth installing, as they add that
interesting “lows-lung” detail that I love
on narrow gauge cars. Take four of those
left over deck planks and temporary
clamp them across the truss rods as
shown. These clamps will help keep the
rods in place while they are being cut to
allow for the installation of the tensioning
turnbuckles. Using a felt-tipped marking
pen, mark the centre of the truss rods, i.e.:
centre point between the queen posts.
Mark the section to be removed, 4.5mm out each side of the centre line mark for cutting. Using
side cutting pliers or a cutting wheel in a Dremel tool, cut the outer rods only. Leave the centre
rods straight through for now, this helps to keep the rods in alignment.
Next, apply 5-min. epoxy to both ends of
the cut truss rod and slide the Ozark
slotted turnbuckle into place. When you
are satisfied with its location, squeeze the
ends closed using thumb and forefinger
pressure only. Cut the other outer rod and
install the turnbuckle. Make sure that all
the slots line up with each other. When the
epoxy has set up, cut the inner rods and
repeat the turnbuckle installation. The
reason I only cut 2 rods at one time, is that
the rods tend to flex out of alignment if all
4 rods were to be cut at once. The
turnbuckles are very visible and must be
installed as straight as possible. Latter on, we will slide a length of lumber through all of the
turnbuckles, in real life, this practice prevents the turnbuckles from vibrating loose. The plank is
usually wired in place.
Note: Hartford Products, Trackside Details and others, also offer turnbuckles in varying styles.

All four turnbuckles installed, notice how
the slots line up with each other!!
Once the epoxy has cured, the truss rods
will retain almost all of their original
strength.
Top view of completed rods and queen
posts.

Underview example of locking turnbuckle
board. Note full brake detail on this car.
(C&S cinder car)
Test fit trucks to check clearances from
truss rods.
Inner rods may need to be bent slightly to
increase clearance, if required.
Turn your car over onto its test trucks and
check clearances with the car mounted on
a section of track. Using a small knife
blade or file, cut a section of the decking
away from the stake pockets, as shown in
the photo above. This will allow stakes to
be installed in the pockets, if required.
Normal stakes are usually 4”x4” posts,
tapered at the base.

Referring to drawing sheets 3 and 4, drill holes for the bolster to side sill mounting bolts and glue
in eight NBW castings, as shown.
That's it for this chapter. The next chapter will include:
Selecting and installing trucks.
Selecting and installing couplers.
Installing brakes and rigging.

Scratch-build a 1:20.3 scale 29’-6” Flatcar
Chapter 3 – Installing Trucks, Couplers & Brakes
By Wayne Spence
Brisbane, Australia
The Trucks
For this flatcar project, I will be using as my preference, Hartford Products cast white metal truck
kits. I find that these trucks have excellent detail and because of their weight, track very well
over less than perfect track. There are many other manufactures building prototypical cast trucks,
which can purchased as detail parts, so I will leave the type of truck you wish to use as your
personal choice. I will also show how the “standard” Bachmann truck can be used with body
mounted couplers and be fitted with brake beams.
HP-T001-26
Archbar trucks with 26”
diameter trucks
HP-T003
D&RGW 3’-7” trucks
HP-T004
Carter Brothers swing motion 4’
The Couplers
Most narrow gauge Colorado roads use a ¾ size knuckle coupler, with the exception of the
D&RGW who choose to fitted all their rolling stock with standard gauge size knuckle couplers.
This chapter will describe how I fit body-mounted couplers to the flatcar. Body mounting
couplers will require a minimum track curve radius of four feet. The couplers I will be using for
this car will be Accucrafts 1:20.3 knuckle type. An option for installing Kadees #1 gauge 820
series or “G” gauge 830 series can also be installed on this car.
Bachmann’s truck mounted couplers will be able to be used if consideration is given to the
clearances required from the body-mounted details, such as the brake valve and air hose.

The Brakes
Adding brake beam detail to Hartford Products and Bachmann trucks
If you choose to use Hartford’s Carter Brothers swing motion trucks, the end beams are included
in the kit. Car brake details will include, brake wheel & pawl, hoses, pipes, air cylinder castings
and limited under car rigging.
Make 4 cut-lever mounting eyelets by
cutting approximately 10mm of fish
hooks or bend 1.2mm brass wire into
eyelets. We will be using large paper clips
or 1.2 brass wire for the cut levers, so test
the fish hook eye size by inserting the
wire though the eye for a snug fit. Select
suitable sized hooks.
Drill suitable eyelet mounting holes in
the end beam as shown and epoxy into
place, making sure that the eyes are
parallel to each other. Insert a scrap
length of wire through the eyes to
maintain the right position until the
epoxy sets up.
Note: the centre eyelet hole is drilled at
an angle of approx. 45 degree’s into the
end beam, rather than into the deck
plank.
Epoxy brake pawl into position, using the
brake staff to line up the pawl with the hole through the beam and the lower brake bracket. Refer
to sheet 1 for position of cut lever eyes.
I like to use large straighten out paper
clips for the cut levers. These clips seem to
be softer to bend to shape than brass rod
and are a cheap alterative, just keep
bending clips till you have the right shape.
Bend up the “handle” (outer) end first,
insert the lever through the eyes, and then
bend the other end at right angles. Don’t
trim the lever excess till the couplers have
been installed. The end of the lever should
be directly over the top of the coupler trip
pin. Repeat the cut lever installation to the
other end of the car.

If you are using the Hartford or Ozark
brake wheel casting, you will need to
make a brake staff. Cut a 65mm length of
the same welding rod that was used to
make the truss rods. Clean out the
mounting hole cast into the under side of
the brake wheel and epoxy into place. Cut
a small collar of brass or styrene tubing
and glue into place about 38mm down
from the brake wheel.
This collar will prevent the brake staff
from falling completely through end beam
and make it easy to remove the staff for
painting or for transporting the completed car, without damaging the brake wheel.
Test fit the completed brake staff into the
pawl and lower bracket.
The brake staff should protrude about
3mm below the bottom of the lower brake
bracket. The staff can be secured in place
by slipping a small slice in PVC cable
insulation over the bottom of the brake
rod.

Installing body mounted couplers
Instructions on installing Accucraft couplers to our flatcar.
Remove the four nuts and bolts from the
coupler faceplate, only the bolts will be
required latter. Remove the vertical bolt
behind the faceplate; this bolt and nut
won’t be required. Using the coupler
pocket as a drilling template, position the
coupler on the end beam and mark the four
mounting hole positions. Drill four 1.5mm
holes in the end beam.
Using a suitable socket driver, screw the
supplied bolts though the faceplate
directly into the wooden end beam.
Now turn the car completely over and drill
a 1.3mm hole through the bottom
mounting plate into the end beam, taking
care not to drill into or through the deck.
Install a suitable length screw through the
coupler body into the end beam. Check
the knuckle for maximum horizontal
swing.
Note: I install a small washer between the
knuckle shaft and coupler body to
minimise “knuckle droop”.
On completion of the next step (installing
truck spacer blocks). Check coupler-mounting height – centre of knuckle to railhead. 1:20.3 =
32.5mm.

Make two small coupler lift rings by
winding a length of brass wire around a
drill bit. Cut the wire to form to rings.
Open up the ring slightly and slide on
about six links of light chain. Loop ring
through top of coupler lift pin, close ring
with pliers and add a drop of solder to
secure the joint in the ring. Next trim the
chain to length, and then slip the last link
of the chain onto the lift bar. The link can
be soldered to the bar or bend the bar over
the chain link to form a loop.
The Accucraft coupler installation is
completed.
Instructions on installing Kadee couplers to our flatcar.
#830 or #820 type.
Assemble the Kadee coupler box as per the
instructions. As I don’t use under track
magnetic coupler operations, I cut off the
couplers “air hose” and file the pin
smooth. Mount the coupler box directly to
the end beam with two 15mm round head
wood screws. Use wood or styrene shims
to maintain correct coupler height.
Check coupler-mounting height – centre of
knuckle to railhead. 1:20.3 = 32.5mm.
Two wood screws secure the coupler box
to the end beam. The third centre screw is
not accentual, but can be inserted into a
short piece of timber glued in between the
two inner sills.

Brake Details
Attach the brake valve to the bracket
(these are part of the Ozark brake hose
set) with epoxy. Mount the bracket to the
underside of the end beam. This fitting is
normally located on the opposite side to
the brake wheel. The bracket can also be
alternatively attached to the vertical side
of the coupler block, but if this location
is used, make sure that the valve is
rotated 45 degrees on the bracket. Epoxy
the bracket to the beam and insert two
NBW castings. The plastic hose and
glad, hand supplied in the kit, can be
installed last before painting, to reduce
accidental damage to the valve assembly.
If you are installing Hartford Products
trucks or similar, styrene spacer blocks
will be required to be mounted to the
wood bolsters. From 2mm styrene, cut a
centre spacer 16mm x 12mm and weld a
1mm layer on top to form a 3mm thick
block. Note that 3mm styrene can be
used, but this sized styrene maybe hard
to find.
Fit
the 4.5mm mounting blocks to only one bolster, in positions 2 and 3, as shown above. The
other bolster will only require the centre truck-mounting block fixed in position 1. I have found
that using this three-way set-up reduces the amount of car “wobble” on uneven track and
maintains a level car ride through the curves. The truck at position 1 allows the truck to follow
any undulating track and the truck at the other end (position 2/3), supports and holds the car in a
level position.

Test fit the trucks. Tighten the mounting screws to just firm, then back off the screws by about
half a turn. Check that the trucks are free to rotate on a short length of test track. There should
only be a very slight side-to-side movement when the car is rocked. Later when the trucks and
the car deck have been painted, the truck mounting screws will be fixed in place with Loctite
222.
Next we will add brake beams and cast brake shoes to our trucks.
Using Hartford Products HP-T001-26 archbar trucks
If you want to add brake beam details to
the Hartford Products trucks, I have
successfully modified the trucks to
incorporate this detail. Cut out the four
brake beams from wood, using the
template found on sheet 1. Or use
Hartford Products kit HP-P079 (includes
4 sets of wood beams & brake shoes).
Using a wheel set as a spacing guide,
epoxy the eight brake shoes to the four
brake beams.
Use Ozark or Hartford Products HP-P040
brake shoe castings. Cut four lengths of
K&S 1.13mm (.039”) music wire @ 120mm each. Drill wooden brake beams for music wire
support rods. (32mm centres). Insert wires into one of the end beams, epoxy into place and allow
enough hole length at the outer beam for a small NBW casting. Epoxy two small lengths of brass
or styrene tubing to the under side of the truck centres (32mm spacing). Slide steel wire though
tubes, slide on other brake beam, trim wires to length and secure with epoxy. The wire rods are
not epoxied into the tubes, rather left free to automatically adjust to axle spacing.
Detail brake beams with appropriate NBW castings. Steel music wire is far more ridged than
brass rod and will not droop or bend like brass would tend to do.
Check clearances of brake shoes and
wheels before securing the final brake
beam.

This is an alternative method of attaching
the steel rods to the bottom truck plate.
The plate will be required to be removed
from the truck frame, then mounted in a
bench drill vice and accurately drilled
squarely through the plate. This method
can be difficult to maintain square and
parallel wire rod holes. This is an
alternative method of attaching the steel
rods to the bottom truck plate. The plate
will be required to be removed from the
truck frame, then mounted in a bench drill
vice and accurately drilled squarely
through the plate. This method can be
difficult to maintain square and parallel
wire rod holes.
Using Hartford Products HP-T003 D&RGW 3’-7” trucks
If you plan to use Hartford Products
D&RGW trucks, a different method of
supporting the brake beams will be
required. I cut out the wooden brake
beams and attach the brake shoes as for
the previous archbar trucks, but the music
wire holes in the beams will not be
required. Cut a length of 5mm wide brass
stock longer than the support bracket
required, about 160mm. After bending to
shape, the length will be trimmed. Bend
the centre of brass strip to shape so as the
strip sits in the truck bolster frame, as
shown in the photo above. Solder a small
brass-reinforcing washer under the bracket. Drill out brass strip to the same size hole as the
washer. Temporarily secure the bracket tightly into the truck frame. While holding the brake
beams under the ends of the support bracket, mark the centre pivot holes. Drill clearance holes in
the support bracket, trim bracket to length and round off ends. Attach the beams to the support
bracket with small wood screws, checking spacing between shoes and wheels. Beams should be
free to turn on the support bracket to prevent brake shoe bind. I place a spare coupler pocket
spring under the head of the truck-mounting bolt to maintain pressure on the brake beam bracket.
This allows the truck to swivel, but keeps the support bracket in alignment.

Top view of Hartford Products truck
showing brake shoes close fitting to
wheels.
As before, add NBW castings to end
beams.
Modifying and installing Bachmann plastic trucks
The Bachmann truck on the left is a
standard freight car truck with the coupler
bracket sawn off at the bolster. The
Bachmann truck on the right is the
modified truck with added brake beams
and the wheel flanges have been turned
down to a lower profile, similar to the
Sierra Valley wheel sets found on the
Hartford Products trucks.

Close-up of the modified Bachmann truck.
Note the low profile wheel flange and
wooden brake beam.
Make
two brake beam assemblies as shown on the drawing above. Glue the beams to the music
wire
only after the brake shoes have been fitted to the beams and test fitting of the bracket while
mounted
on the truck. Solder short lengths of brass tubing to brass bolster strip.
Bracket
painted and ready to be installed
to
painted truck.

Completed brake assembly installed on the
Bachmann
truck, using the original
securing
screws.

Modifying Bachmann truck bolster
Using
a razor saw, remove the coupler
bracket
from the truck bolster.
I cut three lengths of telescoping styrene
tubing
approximately 10mm long and
cemented
them into the existing bolster
pivot
hole. The standard truck mounts
onto
a cast on mounting post on the
Bachmann
freight car. The styrene spacer
tubes
reduce the diameter of the existing
hole
so as a 4-40 bolt can be used to
secure
the truck to the flatcar frame.
Under car brake rigging
“Why add detail that for most of the time you will never be able to see it?”
For instance, installing doors and windows on to the back wall of a scratch-built building that
faces the backdrop of an indoor layout. I have done it, but I would have rather spent that time
and resources adding more detail to areas that could be normally viewed. When scratch-building
or kit bashing rolling stock in smaller scales other than Large-scale, under car details are seldom
modelled due to the fact that they can only be seen when the car is physically picked up and
turned over. In modelling large-scale (Fn3), I have found that the circumstances are different,
these models are substantially larger, and so more detail is visible. This is one of the reasons
many of us have moved through the smaller scales and decided to build large-scale models so
that we can add all those great looking details that are missed on something like HOn3.

As my track work is elevated off the ground, the under car detail becomes even more visible due
to the fact that the car is being viewed at near eye level in some places.
How much brake detail should we add below the deck?
It depends on what the modeller plans to do with the model, is it --------
To be placed on a shelf as a static display model.
Built to enter photo or show competitions.
Used occasionally, too delicate to be switched on your railroad.
To
be added to your roster for regular all weather running. Very few of my freight cars have
anything
close to a full braking system.
As far as brake fittings are concerned, I think the
installation
of the cylinder/valve is a must,
as it hangs quite low beneath the deck and can be
readily
seen from most angles, other than directly
overhead. The addition of related rods,
brackets,
chains and piping is really
up to you as to how much time and effort that you are
prepared
to spend building this car. As most
of my models are “one offs”, I make at lest some
effort
to represent the braking system. If I were to build a “fleet” of gons or boxcars etc, I would
only install the cylinders and forgo the other detail.
Most of us will be satisfied with the illusion
cars deck.
This is not my work, but shows the level
achievable in modelling brake rigging
of at least some basic brake equipment beneath the

The above is a 1:20.3 model of a C&S cinder car that I have recently built from scratch. The
brackets
are cut from sheet brass. (or can be made from 1mm thick styrene) The rods connecting
the
lever brackets are welding rod attached with steel dressmaking pins. The airlines are bent
from
copper wire.
Insert
the Ozark plastic air hoses and
metal
glad-hands to the brake valves. The
hoses
shown on the photo above are
attached
to a scratch Fn3 D&RGW boxcar
using
the same “platform” as used to build
our
flatcar.

Time to add a short piece of brass chain
between the coupler lift bar and the
Accucraft coupler. You only need four or
five chain links, this depends on the size
of chain you have on hand. The chain
links I used are slightly on the small size,
so I will solder them to the lift bar. I
would normally prefer to slide the top link
over
the end loop on the lift bar. (See
boxcar lift bar in a previous photo). The
ring through the coupler lift pin was made
from brass wire. Wind several wraps
around a ¼ inch drill bit shaft and cut
rings
from brass “spring”. Pass the ring
through the bottom link of the chain and
the coupler lift pin, and then solder the
ring closed. Just make sure the chain
length is kept to the minimum for smooth
operation.

The under car airline pipe is formed from 1.65mm
aluminium welding rod. This aluminium rod,
that I just happen to have on hand, is very easy to bend to shape and weights almost nothing.
Brass rod would normally be used for these air pipes.
The tee to the cylinder was made from
soldered copper tubing, with the
aluminium rods epoxied into the tubing.
The pipes are held in place with brass
“staples” made from small diameter brass
wire.
Cut
a short length of copper or brass
tubing
to connect the brake rod clevis to a
length
of welding rod. Epoxy together,
trim
rod to length and install the brake
piston
rod, through the needle beam, to
the
cylinder. From brass stock, cut a
length
of 4mm x 0.5mm about 50mm
long.
This is one of two brake levers
required.
Drill four holes in the lever for
the connecting rods. I used small brass
pins to connect the rods to the levers. Add
a drop of solder to the underside of the pin
and trim.

From the same brass stock, make the “U”
shaped support bracket (the top of the
bracket to be level with the top of the
needle beam) and secure to the centre
beam with brass pins. Make the 4mm x
0.5mm brake lever, about 35mm long, drill
three holes, as shown and connect to the
“U” bracket. Set the two brake levers at
about 25 degrees off square and install the
main connecting rod. This rod can be
made from 1.65mm copper or brass rod,
hammered flat at each end. Drill a
connecting pinhole at each end and
connect with brass pins. Clevises can be
used on each end of the main rod instead of flatting out the ends. I just happen to have run out of
clevises
at the time.
From the clevis hole, near the piston clevis
on
the main brake lever, run a length of
0.8mm brass wire to the brake wheel
bracket. About an inch from the bracket,
cut the wire and form a loop for the brake
chain. Install a short length of suitable
brass brake chain. This chain will latter be
fixed to
the brake wheel staff, between the
brake
bracket and end beam.

Cut and install two steel or brass 1.0mm
rods from the ends of the brake levers to
the trucks. It is not practical to fit the
brake connecting rods to the trucks, so I
cut the rods so as they just past the truck
bolsters and leave them sitting on the top
of the bolsters. Once these rods are
soldered to the brake levers they can’t
drop below the bolsters.
Lastly I made two non-prototypical
brackets to support the
airlines at each end
of
the car. These brackets are strips of
4mm
brass with a short length of tubing
soldered to the underside. I slipped then
slipped the brackets over the airlines and
secured them with NBW castings to the
frame. I used striped PVC cable insulation
as flexible hoses between the airline pipe
and the brake valve.
This
is a photo of the completed underside
of
the flatcar showing the brake rigging
and
airlines. This is a basic attempt to
represent
the details found underneath a
typical
flatcar. Extra detail would include
air
pipe flanges at the bends of the lines,
clevises
on all brake rods etc.
We now have a scratch built flatcar, with I think,
a reasonable amount of detail.
Next
chapter we will paint and decal our flatcar

MLS Car Shops - chapter 4 ?
(Posted: 08 Jul 2003: 23:31:40)
G'day all,
Sorry, it's all my fault; I don't think that
indicated towards the end of chapter 3.
there will be a chapter on painting the flatcar as
Both Shad and I thought that the flatcar article
was getting too long and contained too many
photos for a relatively easy
project.
I thought that the final painting chapter would be fairly short, but there are so many different
methods
of painting, including brushing, spraying on wood, metal, styrene etc, that it would be
hard
to cover all the possibilities in a short chapter.
As
everyone has their favorite method of painting models, I thought that I would describe how I
paint my rolling stock.
In the past I used to spray the wheels and
axles with an airbrush, but wasn't too
happy trying to remove the overspray
from the wheel treads. Now it only takes a
couple of minutes to paint 4 axles using a
brush, with the wheel and axle chucked in
a battery drill.
Don't forget to add a little grease to the
axle ends before the trucks are assembled.

The finished truck prior to weathering.
The finished flatcar was
painted D&RGW red (Holts red auto primer from a spray can) and a
little
light weathering using a airbrush.
The weathering paint was thinned to about
30% paint/70% thinner, using a tan/mud
color and weathered black.
Here are the side and end boards that I
made
to fit into the flatcar stanchions, the
planks
are 10x2's and the posts are 4x4's.

I will try to get chapter 4 up on-line, even if like you say, only the way that I personally finish
my wood cars.
As I normally use white pine for constructing my rolling stock (it's free), I find that the timber
decking can be finished very realistically by using a wash of diluted black paint tint.
I take along a small pill bottle to the local house paint shop and for a small charge they will fill
the bottle with paint tint that is normally used to tint large cans of house paint.
I 1/4 fill a small jar with mentholated spirits (denatured alcohol) and add a few drops of the black
tint. Brush the stain on with a medium soft brush along the length of the planks, not across them.
Let the first coat dry, about 15mins, recoat if a darker shade is required, I miss a few planks on
the second coat to give the deck an uneven look.
Once
dry, in about an hour, the wood will have a "black powdery" look, now to bring out the
grain
in the timber, lightly sand along the lengths of the planks, this gives the wood an "aged
silvery" appearance. The sanding stage of weathering the deck is a must.
If it doesn’t look dark enough, just repeat
the process till you get the effect that you want.
Regards
Wayne

Addendum From Various MLS Topics
(Courtesy: Vance Bass’ Live Steam Web Site)
Proto dim.
Inches
Scale dim.
Inches
1:20.3 fractional wood equivalents
Closest stock
Inches
Fractional
Inches
Variance Tolerance
0.5 0.025 0.031 =1/32 26.88% 0.662%
1 0.049 0.047 =3/64 -4.84% -0.239%
1.5 0.074 0.078 =5/64 5.73% 0.423%
2 0.099 0.094 =3/32 -4.84% -0.477%
2.5 0.123 0.125 =1/8 1.50% 0.185%
3 0.148 0.156 =5/32 5.73% 0.847%
3.5 0.172 0.172 =11/64 -0.31% -0.054%
4 0.197 0.188 =3/16 -4.84% -0.954%
4 0.197 0.203 =13/64 3.09% 0.608%
4.5 0.222 0.219 =7/32 -1.32% -0.292%
5 0.246 0.250 =1/4 1.50% 0.369%
6 0.296 0.281 =9/32 -4.84% -1.432%
6 0.296 0.313 =5/16 5.73% 1.693%
7 0.345 0.344 =11/32 -0.31% -0.108%
8 0.394 0.375 =3/8 -4.84% -1.909%
8 0.394 0.406 =13/32 3.09% 1.216%
9 0.443 0.438 =7/16 -1.32% -0.585%
10 0.493 0.500 =1/2 1.50% 0.739%
11 0.542 0.531 =17/32 -1.96% -1.062%
12 0.591 0.594 =19/32 0.44% 0.262%
13 0.640 0.625 =5/8 -2.40% -1.539%
14 0.690 0.688 =11/16 -0.31% -0.216%
15 0.739 0.750 =3/4 1.50% 1.108%
16 0.788 0.781 =25/32 -0.88% -0.693%
17 0.837 0.813 =13/16 -2.98% -2.494%
18 0.887 0.875 =7/8 -1.32% -1.170%
19 0.936 0.938 =15/16 0.16% 0.154%
20 0.985 0.984 =63/64 -0.08% -0.082%
21 1.034 1.031 =1 1/32 -0.31% -0.323%
24 1.182 1.188 =1 3/16 0.44% 0.523%
30 1.478 1.500 =1 1/2 1.50% 2.217%
36 1.773 1.750 =1 3/4 -1.32% -2.340%
42 2.069 2.063 =2 1/16 -0.31% -0.647%
48 2.365 2.375 =2 3/8 0.44% 1.047%
60 2.956 2.938 =9 15/16 -0.61% -1.817%
72 3.547 3.563 =3 9/16 0.44% 1.570%
84 4.138 4.141 =4 9/64 0.07% 0.269%

Precut Scale Strip Wood
Suppliers
(Courtesy MLS Member: Don Smith)
Kappler Mill & Lumber Co.
Metric Cross Refere nce
Imperial Cross Reference
Item # Metric dim.
Dec. / Fractional
Inches
1:20.3 Flatcar
Callout KP1157-G P24 4.521mm x 15.80mm 0.178” x 0. 622” 4.5 x 15.0mm Bolsters
KP1166-GP24 4.775m m x 7.137mm 0.267” x 0. 400” 7.0 x 10. 0mm
End Sills
KP1168-GP24 6.782mm x 13.54mm 0.267” x 0. 533” 7.0 x 14. 0mm Side Sills
KP1180-F P24 9.042mm x 18.06mm 0.3 94” x 0.788” 10.0 x 20.0mm Coupler Pocket
KP1197-OP24 6.350mm x 10.59mm 0.250” x 0. 417” 6.5 x 10.5mm Needle Beams
KP1371-P24 2.388m m x 9.525mm 3 /32” x 3/8” 2.3 x 9.5mm Deck Planks
KP1431-P 24 3.962m m x 6.350mm 5/32” x 1/ 4 “ 4.0 x 6.5mm Brake Hangers
KP1499-P 24 5.944m m x 9.525mm 16 /64” x 3/8” 6.0 x 10.0mm Center Sills
(Courtesy MLS Member: Lou Malandra)
Northeastern Scale Lumber Company
Basswood Strip Wood & Sheets
Dec. / Fractional
Item # Metric dim.
Inches
1:20.3 Flatcar
Callout
4.5 x 15.0mm Bolsters
7.0 x 10.0mm End Sills
7.0 x 14.0mm Side Sills
10.0 x 20.0mm Cou pler Pocket
6.5 x 10.5mm Needle Beams
2.3 x 9.5mm Deck Planks
4.0 x 6.5m m Brake Hangers
6.0 x 10. 0mm Center Sills

(Courtesy MLS Member: Lou Malandra)
Midwest Products
Co.
Basswood Strip Catalog
Dec. / Fractional 1:20.3
Flatcar
Item # Metric dim.
Inches
Callout
4049 N/A 1/8 ” x 1/2" 4.5 x 15.0mm
Bolsters
4068 N/A 1/4" x 3/8” 7. 0 x 10.0mm
End Sills
4069 N/A 1/4" x 1/2" 7. 0 x 14.0mm
Side Sills
? ? ? 10.0 x 20.0mm Coupler Pocket
4068 N/A 1/4" x 3/8” 6.5 x 10.5mm
Needle Beams
4038 N/A 3/32” x 3/8” 2.3 x 9.5mm Deck Planks
4055 N/A 3/16” x 3/16” 4. 0 x 6.5mm
Brake Hangers
4068 N/A 1/4" x 3/8” 6.0 x 10.0mm Center Sills
Notes: On next car will substitute Item #4051 (1/8” x 3/4") for Bolster.
Item # Metric dim.
(Courtesy MLS Member: Lou Malandra)
Micro-Mark
Basswood Strip Wood
Dec. / Fractional 1:20.3
Flatcar
Inches
Callout
81287 N/A 1/8” x 1/2" x 24” 4.5 x 15.0mm Bolsters
80057 N/A 1/4" x 3/8” x 24” 7.0 x 10.0mm End Sills
80058 N/A 1/4" x 1/2" x 24” 7.0 x 14.0mm Side Sills
? ? ? 10.0 x 20.0mm Coupler Pocket
80057 N/A 1/4" x 3/8” x 24” 6.5 x 10.5mm Needle Beams
80032 N/A 3/32” x 3/8” x 24” 2.3 x 9.5mm Deck Planks
81290 N/A 3/16” x 3/16” x 24” 4.0 x 6.5mm Brake Hangers
80057 N/A 1/4" x 3/8” x 24” 6.0 x 10.0mm Center Sills
Notes: On next car will substitute Item #81288 (1/8” x 3/4") for Bolster.