I am contemplating on purchasing some Accurail Kits for my freight car fleet. I was wondering:
Are they worth the money?
Are they easy to assemble?
Are they very detailed?
I have built model cars and HO structures before so I have some experience in kit building.
Thanks
I’ve built 3 of their 89’ open auto racks. Pretty nice kits for the money. Medium level detail. Fairly EZ to build. Good quality. Everything fit well. You will need to upgrade their wheels and couplers.
Their long cars need BIG curves. These 89’ cars barely run on 26" curves.
Short answers–
depends
yeah
no
longer answers
I like them for the price - especially at train shows where you can get them for about $8, though if they’re more than about $8-$10, I’d gladly buy fewer more complex kits for twice the price.
They’re “shake the box” type kits. Usually a one-piece body shell, trucks, underframe, and weights. Last one I did was a hopper, it took about 10-20 min to put together. You have to provide couplers (the Accumate ones they provide are junk)
Like I said, they’re shake the box – most of the “detail” is molded onto the carbody shell. IIRC, the last boxcar i put together had the roofwalk, some of the brake system (reservoir and 3-way valve) , and the handbrake handle as seperate parts.
If you’re looking for some of the harder/more detailed kits, I would recommend Red Caboose, Tichy, or Branchline. Or if you like building flat kits (IE you have to build the shell too) Funaro & Camerlengo resin kits are really nice… though very finicky to put together/
Hi!
I’ve been building HO kits since the early '60s, and have them from many manufacturers. In short, I have a lot of experience with building kits, and its one of my favorite things to do. To answer your specific question, Accurail kits are generally worth the money, fairly easy to build, and have a medium level of detail. I do add KD couplers and Intermountain wheels, and do a light weathering on the trucks, and a spray of Dullcoat on the entire model. One minor thing to point out is - in my opinion - the model is pretty well made and durable, with the exception of the bottom steps (forgot their name) on both ends of each side. They can break very easily, so be careful.
Ok, my advice is to try kits from several manufacturers, with the goal of getting the appropriate car, road, and build date to fit your layout’s theme and timeframe. May I recommend a few others…
Like a lot of old guys, I started out with Athearn “blue box” kits, and still have several of them. They are pretty basic, but with some added details they look pretty good. Also, they generally make great runners and everyday layout cars. MDC kits are pretty much in this category as well.
On the higher scale of difficulty, Walthers and Proto (Lifelike) kits are pretty nice too - and in my opinion a step above the Accurails.
And then you get into the Intermountain, Red Caboose, and some others are even more difficult and delicate models, but the finished pieces are really nice. Funny thing, all of my real craftsman kits ended up going in the display case, and rarely on the layout. They are delicate, and can be easily mishandled.
Anyway, “twer I were you”, I would check out particular cars that appeal to you from various manufacturers and enjoy what each has to offer!
Mobilm
I’ve put together a few Accurail kits, and I really liked them. I thought they were fun to assemble, and they spurred me into converting my fleet to Accu-mate couplers.
Kind of. I still think they’re a bit too pricey to buy a lot of.
I thought they were easy to assemble.
As detailed as any Roundhouse or Walthers cars you’ll find.
The molded on details are easy to remove with a number 17 blade. A few minutes with a drill and pin vise, some aftermarket ladders and some touchup paint and they look good. They make a good base for adding details. Accurail’s decal sets offer you the ability to easily number several like cars with different numbers.
I like them.
Jeff
I really like the Accurail kits. They can be picked up in sales at very good prices, the are easy to build. Like others have mentioned I add kadee couplers and metal wheel-sets.
This thing I like best about them is the non-shiny finish of the plastic. Dull-cote is not usually needed as they are already matte finish. I find the more detailed kits (Proto; Branchline, etc.) too tedious for me, but I have a blast throwing together Accurail kits. I’ve got loads of 'em.
I like them. They’re well detailed–especially the grain on the wood boxcar kits. Matte finish, so you don’t have to worry about ‘killing’ new-car ‘shine’ on them. I replace the Accumate couplers with Kadee #5’s, the plastic wheels with either Intermountain or P2K 33" metal wheelsets, and they’re ready to go. They assemble easily, are well weighted and roll beautifully. I use their ‘steam era’ kits exclusively and they look good behind my locos. I’m not afraid to run them mixed with my more detailed plastic cars from Intermountain or Red Caboose at all. Their new gondola kits are even more detailed than their normal boxcar/reefer kits and look just fine.
I like them. A lot.
Tom [:)]
It appears I’m the only person here that likes Accurail’s couplers… [sigh] Just means more on the market for me!
They are a bit pricey but if you can find them for around $7-$9, at that price, I’d say they were a good buy.
They are very easy to assemble. As others have mentioned, you should be able to knock them out in about 15-20 minutes OR if you are thinking of using them with a younger modeler… I’d guess that most 10-year olds should be able to handle them… I’d think that someone with a little limited dexterity might also be able to assemble them. I’m legally blind (20/200) and I can handle them with no problems. I can’t say the same thing about some of the cars with individual grab irons and other very small details.
Their level of detail varies. Their first kit was a single sheatherd boxcar that had EXCELLENT wood detail. Their more recent cars are more like other low-end kits. Are they contest quality? No, but if you want to fill out your freight car roster in a hurry, they are among your best bets.
Athearn “Blue Box” kits are also good ones as are MDC/Roundhouse kits. Walthers is re-releasing some of their kits that are on the same level as the Accurail kits. Bowser kits are probably in the same group as well.
One thing about the way Accurail did their reefers… the entire side panel is removeable so if you want to repaint the car sides, it is a simple matter to pop them off and paint them separately. No masking! Some decals and you have a whole new car.
Hope this helps…
dlm
Yea…but I usually try and find them discounted, when possible.
Yes. They can be assembled in <30 minutes.
Yes and no. The underside/braking is a bit spartan. However, the car bodies themselves are quite nice. I think their 7000 Series 6-panel wood boxcars are exceptional.
Then you shouldn’t have any trouble with the Accurails. As Dan mentioned above, if you want a more detailed styrene kit, try the Branchline “Blueprint” Series, Proto 2000, Red Caboose, Tichy, or Bowser kits.
Whichever kit I put together, I always replace any plastic wheel sets with Proto 2000 ribbed or flat wheel sets. I also like to switch out the cheaper couplers for Kadee #58 or #158s. These are slightly smaller and more prototypical looking than the #5s.
Tom
Wikious–
My only problem with the Accumate couplers has been on long downgrades, where they tend to ‘split’ from the weight of the train. Actually, other than that, the couplers are pretty reliable, but I have a long (8’) 2-2.4% downgrade on my westbound track leading into my yard, and I’ve had trouble with the weight of the train ‘splitting’ the Accumate couplers and causing derailments. I’ve heard reports from other modelers that they work very well for them, so if they work for you–keep 'em, by golly! [:)]
Tom
That’s funny! That is the exact same problem I’m having with mine. (going down a 2.5% grade) Other than that, they’re not too bad. Still don’t think I’d equip a whole fleet with them though.
1 IMHO they are worth my money.
2 Yes they are with a minimum of fuss
3 They look just fine to me ,and I am the only one they have to please at my house
I would personally reccomend them to anybody wanting good looking reasonably priced rolling stock.
Wait a minute, are you talking about walthers classic kits???
Then if you are then heres what I have to say about them: They are very very easy and go together in 3 secounds (ok thats an egzaduation, they go together in about 3 minutes if you don’t add all the detaling parts which is what I did) well, thats how the 49’ quad hoppers are, they’re just a plastic body (and this is the quad hoppers) with a truck mounting kit, coupler box, but the couplers aren’t great, the “spring” in them is plastic and it breaks easly, there’s also a bar that goes acrost the bottom for suport and as far as building goes you just need super glue.
But as far as accurail kits go I don’t have any.
To my mind yes since these are very nice cars that is comparable to Athearn, Atlas and Walthers cars.
They are very simple to assemble-like a blue box kit.
3 . Are they very detailed?
No more/ no less then your average car from Athearn,Atlas and Walthers.
You judge:
I also like Accumate couplers - and have had no problems with them. Most of my rolling stock is equipped with EZmate couplers from Bachmann and, again, I have had no problems with these either. To be honest, my layout does not have any grades…so the separation problem can’t occur. I have never been a big fan of Kadees and usually remove them whenever possible…just my opinion - I’m sure you have your own. To further align myself with the model railroad demons; I also remove the trip pins as I uncouple my stock with a skewer (…oh the humanity!!).
We found a bunch at a swap meet for $2-5. The trouble with kits is that you actually have to put them together. Most are still in the box.
Larry likes the McHenry couplers.
Sue
I purchased two six packs of PFE wood reefers to add to the reefer blocks we run at our local modular club. I think they are great. The only problem I encountered when assembling them was fitting the body sides of the car over the floor. The body of the car tends warp inward at both the front and rear making it very difficult to fit. This problem was easy to solve by fitting appropriate styrene spacers at the bottoms of the car body that allowed the body to slide easily in place over the floor. Peter Smith. Memphis
They have a neat program where you can buy 48 cars and they will print the sides and ends to your specs and mold or paint in your choice of colors. Go their website and look where it says “48 cars” for the custom program. It’s not very expensive.