Modeling Atlantic Coast Line K-9, K-10 and K-17 gondolas
Detailing a trio of Accurail gondolas for the ACL/John Golden
MODEL PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR UNLESS NOTED
These are the three finished ACL gondola models built using Ac- curail kits. Since the author models the 1950 time period, the
T
he Accurail HO scale “41-foot AAR Steel Gondola” is a beauti- ful rendition of the prototype At- lantic Coast Line K-9 gondola. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the Accurail kit and model three prototype ACL K-class gondolas, each using dif- ferent detailing philosophies and su- perdetail upgrades.
The prototype
Atlantic Coast Line acquired its first all-steel, 40-foot gondolas in 1941. Bethlehem Steel built 200 cars, num- ber series 93200–93399, class K-9, to the 1940 AAR Recommended Practice design with an all-steel body and wood deck. The cars featured a 41′-6″ interi- or length and a 4′-8″ interior height, with ten evenly-spaced ribs and Dread- naught ends. The cars were equipped with AB brakes, an Ajax brake wheel, and Buckeye trucks with 33″ diameter wheels. They were painted in ACL’s spartan all-black scheme with report- ing marks and AAR-required data only. A further 200 cars, series 93400-–
93599, were delivered to Atlantic Coast Line later in 1941. These cars also fol- lowed the 1940 AAR Recommended Practice design and were dimensional- ly similar to the K-9 cars. The new cars, however, featured a steel deck in- stead of a wood deck and were classed K-10 by the railroad. Like the K-9’s, the K-10’s were constructed with Dreadnaught ends, AB brakes, and
68 MARCH 2012
models are weathered to appropriately reflect each car’s age. The K-17, being new, only received a light coat of weathering.
Ajax brake wheels, but were equipped with AAR trucks. They were similarly painted black with reporting marks and AAR-required data only. In 1943, Atlantic Coast Line modi- fied 130 of the 200 K-10 class cars with
home-built logging fixtures for cypress log train service for Lee-Tidewater Cy- press Company. Cars were selected randomly. Each car was outfitted with six additional steel ribs that extended from the bottom sill to 3′-4″ above the
TWO PHOTOS: COLLECTION OF BOB’S PHOTO ACL K-9 class car seen in 1956 with the addition of Prismo® high-visibility blocks (above).
The word “Prismo” was a brand-name of a reflective paint that used glass particles to in- crease reflectivity. K-9 No. 93316 (below) has a top chord added as a stiffener, and roping staples added to the sides in each panel. Also note in this photo from 1960 that the Prismo stripes have been dropped and the large post-1956 COAST LINE monogram has been added.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100