Despite all the 3D printing, there is a satisfying amount of traditional modelling in these coal cars. I elected to use cast acetal plastic corner steps (Grandt Line) and air hoses (Detail Associates) along with brass truss rods and cut levers to avoid crunching these exposed parts. The ladders and corner grabs will also be wire, necessitating 128 tiny holes in the car bodies. Then there are the weights, cut from a sheet of lead I bought from Eileen’s Emporium at least a quarter century ago; plastic is almost unaffected by gravity, and so there’s another reason you can’t just print the whole car.
Air hoses are problematic, and I almost always struggle to fit them. This time, I printed a little tube for them to fit into, but they don’t quite fit. Each tube feels like it might break if you shouted at it, let alone threatened it with a drill. I may wind up replacing the printed tubes with some brass or steel tube, or maybe I will drill a hole in some little brass brackets like I did on the flat cars.
Pembroke:87 