How I Make Realistic HO Scale Coal Loads
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 ก.ย. 2024
- How I make HO scale coal loads in about 10 minutes per load. Really easy and the cost is almost free, most expensive thing is the scrap foam.
Step 1: Make a jig slightly larger (1mm) than the size of the hopper you want to fill.
Step 2: Use jig to draw outline on foam and cut it out using hacksaw.
Step 3: Carve foam insert using power sander/rasp/file or whatever. Test fit and touch up until it fits perfectly.
Step 4: Prepare the material you are going to put on top. Totally depends what you are using. I used anthracite filter media which is too coarse so I have to grind it up to make it finer.
Step 5: Spread 50/50 white glue/water on the foam insert and sprinkle on the coal. Let dry overnight.
Step 6: Once dry, tap load on table to knock loose the coal that didn't adhere. Slightly press in edges to smooth out any coal that is protruding. Spray with finishing spray, I used Krylon clear matte. Let dry.
Step 7: Load in to hopper and haul!
Disclaimer: Caution! This is a messy process, make sure you have a place to work where you can make a mess. Safety first! Always wear a respirator or dust mask when working with dusty materials. Wear gloves, eye protection and hearing protection when using a power sander especially so close to your hands. Practice safe modelling and have fun!
I just use real coal that I collect from the local railroad. In fact because of the recent csx coal train derailment, I got a pickup truck load of coal for free. But I like having weight for the train to pull so I have enough cars for 2 trains. an empty and a full train .
I make my own coal loads from a big old chunk of bituminous coal (anthracite would have been easier to use but no railroads used soft coal). I smash it with a hammer on an old piece (about 12 inches) of rail I got from the Central of Georgia (120 pound rail - mainline). I use the really small pieces for HO gauge and the larger pieces I save for my Lionel 027 gauge. I usually make my own weathering chalks. I use the kitchen grater I got at a dollar store. I grind up some white chalk and mix some food coloring in a communion cup (great little cups for mixing paints). I then add my chalk and stir it up with a tooth pick. I then pour it onto my cutting mat and wait for it to dry. Then I use a single edged razor blade to cut it up as if you were cutting out a line of cocaine. :-) Then I put it back into the communion cup for storage until I need it. For trucks, wheels, freight car bodies and locos to add rust I use REAL rust. I take a roll of fine steel wool and put it into a quart jar and fill it up with white vinegar and set it on a window sill so the sun can shine on it. After a month or two, I pour the liquid out into a stainless photo tray from my darkroom (10X14). After it is completely dry I use a single edged razor blade scraper and scrape the rust out of the tray. It usually comes out as a fine powder. I then store it in a snuff container. Depending on how long you leave the steel wool in the vinegar my batches come out with different colors of rust, i.e., some are orange and others are a deeper colored red. When I get ready to use it I put several scoops of my rust into a plastic communion cup (neat little cups for mixing paints) and add some alcohol, Elmer's white glue and a dab of water soluble glycerin. Then I just brush it on. If I want an area where the rust has eaten through the metal (plastic) I use my X-acto knife and make some gouges in the sides of a car and fill it up with my rust. To seal the rust I usually topcoat it with a flat acrylic clear coat. It looks very realistic 'cause it is REAL rust! Happy Railroading! W Rusty Lane in eastern Tennessee
One suggestion: to keep the foam from deteriorating over time, you should coat the whole piece of foam with Elmer's glue as foam will start to deteriorate almost immediately. Cheers - TN
Very nice video, well edited. I saw a neat trick, as you may want some empty loads at one point, so placing a magnet in the foam could make it easy (easier) to lift out your load,
Great vid thanks for sharing! Another handy tip is for when you want to unload the car and run empties, is to hollow out the back side of the foam and put a metal washer. That way when you want to remove the load from the coal car you can just use a magnet and not fiddle around trying to get the load out and possible damaging the load.
That's a great idea! Thanks for sharing! Currently, I use a pin that is bent like a tiny hook to reach in the side and pull them up from one end. But I have to be careful with it because it is possible to damage the top of the coal load.
BArailsystem No problem! Its a simple method that makes things a lot easier, plus it also ads a little weight to the load.
Nice job again Ben!, the Fein Multimaster is a great machine!, I use mine foor all sorts of cutting and sanding jobs on the layout.
Cheers Gregg
Thank you Gregg. I agree completely. There are so many uses for the Fein saw especially in model railroading.
Nice tutorial, and looks pretty good with those NARC hoppers. Nice easy little project for when mine get in...
Thanks Notabob!
Hi Ben, nice job. Funny, I use the same techniques for my coal loads too. Only it takes a bit more shaping to get the foam into a bathtub gondola. Last thing I do too is paint the foam flat black with latex paint. Coal used is from Roberts Bank. Nothing looks better then real coal. :)
Thanks Greg! I know that I am doing something right then if this is how you make yours. Your the second person to mention painting them black. That is a great idea. I have just been using a sharpie to touch up the little dings but giving them a coat of black may avoid that all together. I have to agree with you about the real coal too, it looks awesome!
BArailsystem, let me know if you'd like some real coal. I'll make a trip out to Roberts Bank and I'll mail up to you.
WestCoastRails Now how can I say no to that!? :P
I take little gravel rocks and paint it black.
a good made, clear video whish is very helpful. thank you! :)
+19scamps92 Thanks!
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Same to you!
Nice vid...well explained. ..
Thanks! I am glad you enjoyed it.
Ben
Very nice! I need to do this with some of mine
Thanks K4JW, it's very easy, once you do a couple and get the hang of it you'll be making them in less than 10 minutes/load.
Great video, thanks much!!
Thank you for the comment and no problem.
very nice job and vid...
+Joe Durso Thanks!
Can you do a how to on how you would make a coal load for the bethgon coal cars considering they have the extra bracing inside them
Cool, for loads for modern cars like these what I do is just scratch the foam lightly with a wire brush and paint it black, the small bumps give it just enough texture without looking "chunky". Could you repeat the name of the material you use for coal?
+Steven Michael That's a great idea, thanks for sharing. I mention in the video that I use a filter media I found which is Anthracite coal.
Yeah I heard that, just wasn't sure what it was. Thanks for the quick response.
Thank you for the great video! I have a question for you. I would like to use your same process for O Gauge Trains and make ore car loads. Do you have an idea of what media I could use for the ore or taconite? I would like to use something not too expensive.
Thanks David. You could try sifting dirt, gravel or sand and see if you can come up with the desired consistency. Then just follow this process with it but at the end paint the top of the loads the colour of the ore you are modelling.
Thank you for the quick response. I will try what you suggested and let you know, how it turned out. It probably will take me a couple of tries.
Are you using actual coal? Love the fast fwd. More people should do that
Yes Andy its real coal. Glad you like the fast forward, I try to make my videos as quick and to the point as possible. It can also be kind of funny when it skips between slow and fast. Look at how fast I am with that marker.
Haha great job, looking fwd to the next one
#Amazing!
Looks like a lot of work and a lot of time. What about sifting some saw dust and dying it, then baking it?When it's dry you can just fill your cars. If you really have skill make a real coal loader that fills you cars automatically. Also when your coal is loose it makes a really cool mess when your train derails! Then you can put that video on you tube!
It took me a little less than 6 hours to make 28 loads which is not too bad in my opinion. You definitely could use saw dust but if you are going to have live loads why not use real coal? I've seen live coal load derailment videos on TH-cam, fantastic stuff! However I think I'll stick to my static loads for now :) Thanks for the comment.
Ben
can u use charcoal , what bbq uses?
I don't see why not, do a little experiment and see how it looks.
are u adding water to the glue?
Yep, I mix it 50/50 with water.
BArailsystem
no wonder I havn't found any glue with 50/50
Really --- gloves with a hack saw ???????? Knife with replaceable blade is good and has much less mess. Eliminate sanding and use a hot wire. I made a bench for about $20 and it cuts all sizes of foam with out any mess. No messy sanding.
Where I work you don't do anything without gloves so it's force of habit, plus for younger modellers its a good idea in my opinion. That's smart to use a hot wire to eliminate the sanding, I may have to try that next time I make some of these! Thanks.
why not just fill the whole thing with the sand.
That could get messy if you have a derailment.
BArailsystem you could soke it in with a 50/50 mix of glue, and water.