BILL SCHAUMBURG Kitbashing a C&WI combine As modeled in HO scale/Stan Rydarowicz T
he Chicago & Western Indiana R.R. operated a commuter serv- ice from Dearborn Station to
suburban Dolton, Illinois, a distance of 16.6 miles into 1963. To serve these runs they had a small fleet of passen- ger cars made up of former Erie Still- well arch window coaches, a used PRR/LIRR P54, and combine No. 40, the subject of this article. The combine was built in 1928 by the Locomotive Company of Chicago as a steam-powered railcar for local service and was eventually converted to an un- powered car. As elsewhere, Chicago’s suburban trains regularly carried newspapers on their outbound runs. The printing plants were adjacent to downtown, and trucks
brought the
bundled papers to the stations; train- men would unload them during stops. When discussing a possible model of this car with fellow C&WI fan Bob Kosic, he suggested John Green’s Beth- lehem Car Works Reading combine as a starting point. John had some at the prototype meet in Naperville, and they seemed close in design to the prototype. The letterboard is a bit too wide and each side is two windows too long, but with a little work, the model can cap- ture the essence of this unique car. When I started on the project, I ad-
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dressed the windows first. On both sides, the window nearest the baggage door needed to be blanked out, and on the right side of the car from the bag- gage end the last window on the right next to the vestibule had to be short- ened. (I think there might have been a restroom
there.) I put a piece .20″×.100″ styrene on the bottom.
RMC/Dremel Kitbashing Award........
of
Both ends appear to have plated over vestibule windows. These were probably from its motor car days. I simulated this with .005″ styrene cut to 2′-6″×3′-0″. This car did not have a fishbelly cen- ter sill, so the kit’s center sill was cut down to .125″ in height. It could have been replaced with some .125″×.030″ styrene strips, which would probably have been easier. The underbody de- tails were made from the kit parts plus a few scrap box parts. Small brads were utilized as steam traps so they wouldn’t get broken from handling. The custom trucks were obtained from Steve Funaro. They are available. There was a slight upward bow in the roof near the middle. This was cor- rected by mounting it with a long 2-56 screw coming up through the center sill. I placed this close to the interior partition so it is not visible.
A minimum of $100 and a Dremel Rotary Tool Kit with a variable-speed Dremel 3000 rotary tool and acces- sories are awarded to the monthly winners of the RMC/DREMEL KITBASHING AWARD. Entries must consist of at least two photos (high-resolution digital pic- tures should be at least 3,000 pixels wide; color slides or 5″×7″ or 8″×10″ prints are also acceptable) and a short text. Models must use at least 50% commercial compo- nents; unused entries may be held future editorial use.
I’m not sure what the wire on top of the car was for, but I suspect it is an electrical conduit. I made mine from .015″ steel wire and bent small U- shaped pieces to support it. Roof vents from Detail Associates were installed. The roof drip strips were made from .010″× .020″ styrene and placed over the baggage and end doors. All of the grab irons and handrails were bent from .010″ brass wire.
JUNE 2013
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