It was a different era, people had time for one another. People talk about the demise of the LHS but clubs are on the endangered sheet too.
During my last trip to my LHS, I noticed a few Ulrich kits. Anyone have experience with them?
Ulrich all-metal kits were at the top end of my budget when I got into model railroading in the mid-'50s, but I did manage to scrape up enough for this drop-bottom gondola…
It had working drop-doors (only the four mid-car ones actually opened), but I cemented them shut, as I prefer “live” (loose) loads for my open cars, and the doors would sometimes open of their own accord.
I should also upgrade the brake gear, by the looks of it.
Ulrich also offered offset side hoppers with working outlet gates, and I recall seeing some very nice old-time shortie passenger cars, with open platforms. I wouldn’t mind getting a couple more gondolas like the one in the photo, and perhaps one or two of those passenger cars, too.
They also had a couple of nicely-done kits for trucks. I had a heavy-duty dump truck, with a trailer, but when I back-dated my layout, it was too modern, so I gave it to a friend.
This one’s too modern for my layout, too, but I like it too much to let it go…
…perhaps I should update the details a bit, and use it regardless.
Wayne
They also had wood boxcars and others, the passenger cars were shorties like some of the MDC ones and are identical to Laconias’s I beleive. When you get into building old wood cars you will notice they get more detailed as time moved on and the more detailed ones lived on as companys changed, like Campbell "Campbell aquired parts of True Scale"or went under like Loconia.
Ulrich…you bet, I have over 100 built-ups of two and three bay hoppers, regular gondolas, and drop bottom gondolas. Although by today’s standards, possibly crude…never the less, quite excellent and can be easily upgraded if necessary. They are mostly die cast metal and the gondolas had wood floors. I have found that plastic, brass, die cast, and wood rolling stock each have a unique look. For me, to simulate a metal car is with a metal model. My almost 2000 wood kit/scratch built cars are mostly of wood prototypes. My wood built-ups of metal box cars, passenger, and hoppers have been heavily sanded and sealed to simulate wood, and do so fairly well, but still maintain the look of a wood car, which is what I love so much.
Again, certainly not gospel…only my taste.
HZ
Thanks guys. Nice gondola and truck Wayne. I’ll take another look at the kits on my next visit. I’m pretty sure at least 2 were all wood.
Like their gon, Ulrich’s stock and outside-braced box both had wood sides under the cast metal bracing. I take that to mean that I can heavily weather one, and easily remove a few boards, as appropriate.
The Ulrich twin hoppers had opening doors. The triple had a linkage that would open all three doors when the car hit a trip pin.
I think the triple was patterned after a B&LE 90 ton car, and that the trucks had outside brake hangers.
Funny how what looks crude now didn’t look crude 60 years ago.
Ed