I ordered a couple of Walt's Borden Milk Cars, and started on them, and while researching prototype photos for decals, I discovered they rode on Commonwealth Express Reefer Trucks. I was not sure they were the same as regular 4 wheel passenger trucks until I looked them up in my trusty 1940 Car Builders' Cyclopedia of American Practice, and they are considered passenger trucks, but are for head end express cars: So the closest trucks I could find are the Nn3/Z MTL 904 passenger trucks, which can easily be modified by a snip here and there: The MTL trucks are hard enough to see if there is any detail at all, so after snipping off the parts I don't want, I painted them to highlight the detail. I just cleaned them in 91% alcohol with a stiff brush, shot them with Tamiya fine gray primer, then painted part of the trucks with Vallejo Sombre Gray. Now you can see the "Swing" in the swing motion trucks: But trucks are a model too, and are not considered completed unless you weather them a bit, and put rusty metal wheels on, instead of attempting to use the plastic ones MTL provided: And there you have it, suitable Swing Motion Express Reefer Trucks for all your head end car projects in Z:
Rob, Thanks for the truck SBS! Is the Vallejo paint you used on the wheels solvent based? Those trucks look great! Scott
No it's water based acrylic. But I cleaned with 91%, primed with Tamiya, and after painting, I forgot to add that I sealed them with Dullcote. That should make everything thick enough to last if I let the paint harden a few months. before any aggressive handling, which is always the case.
I guess they used passenger trucks to have a smooth ride, otherwise with too much shaking, the fatty part of the milk would turn in butter. Nice work!
They used express trucks because they were ran in express passenger trains. This is also why the milk cars had end buffers and steam lines.
