When I look at the photo of the HO cars, I wonder how well the cars enable the classic "3 point suspension" that we use for non-articulated cars, where one truck is tightened so it only pivots, and the other is looser so it and the car can sway in slightly different directions.
For the articulated cars, the equivalent would be that the two joined cars would be able to sway somewhat independently of each other. Do the Athearn and Walthers joints allow that?
If not, it might make sense to slightly ease the joint - probably more the part of the upper connector that wraps around the lower connector, and not the hole in the upper connector itself. The trick here would be doing it so the cars stay connected, and each car is connected rigidly enough to one truck that it doesn't sway excessively.
Steve
View attachment 133518
I replied,
That doesn't look like any of my model rr articulated container car joins ?
Thought I might find something here,...but can't interpret this yet
https://www.trackopedia.info/encyclopedia/railway-vehicles/types-of-bogies
...from another forum. When I look at the photo of the HO cars, I wonder how well the cars enable the classic "3 point suspension" that we use for non-articulated cars, where one truck is tightened so it only pivots, and the other is looser so it and the car can sway in slightly different directions.
For the articulated cars, the equivalent would be that the two joined cars would be able to sway somewhat independently of each other. Do the Athearn and Walthers joints allow that?
If not, it might make sense to slightly ease the joint - probably more the part of the upper connector that wraps around the lower connector, and not the hole in the upper connector itself. The trick here would be doing it so the cars stay connected, and each car is connected rigidly enough to one truck that it doesn't sway excessively.
Steve
I have the Walthers 40', the Kato 53', and Athearn 57" spine cars to name a few. The Kato are plastic and metal.Do you have some of these metal framed Wathers 40 foot container cars?
https://modelrailroadforums.com/for...r-car-tracking-derails-etc.33629/#post-505743
Can you back them thru a Peco curved turnout with no problems?
In regards to the container cars. I add weight to all of the containers that I put on the bottom. I use pennies and add 14¢ to each 40' container. That works out to 1.25 oz per container. In practice I only use 40' containers on the bottom of a well as that's what I usually see on the intermodal trains out of Alliance Yard north of Ft Worth. I do not add as much to longer containers which I put on top to avoid making the load top-heavy. 20' containers get seven pennies each as I only see short containers on the bottom, mostly. The extra weight so low down in the well cars sure makes a difference in tracking.
Disclaimer: I do not have an intermodal yard and only run my well cars (64 total) back and forth between staging yards, primarily on the main, 30"-32" radius minimum, or occasionally the passing sidings of 26"-30" radius. I do sometimes back them into passing sidings through Atlas #6 switches without incident.
rgeiter: If you have Gunderson types with the high ends, let me know. My era is pre 74 so the newer ones would not work.I’m going to get rid of all my intermodal stuff since I don’t use them anymore. They’ve been stored for so long and moved around so much that most of the cars are damaged or missing parts. Maybe I’ll see if anyone here wants them.