I am thinking of getting 1 or 2 of Bluford Shops’ undecorated SP style short-body, short-roof bay window caboose kits. Do i need to drill hole for the railing and grabirons? If so what nubmer size of drill?
I am not familiar with Bluford Shops product, but it is a fair bet that you will have to drill for grabs and handrails. I cannot remember ever getting any kind of kit or RTR where I didn’t have to drill. At a guess, you will want an # 76 drill, but to be serious about it, you want to get a drill index for the smaller sizes (#60 down to #79). Take the grab irons you are going to use and stick a leg into the drill index to see what size it is. You want a slightly loose fit to allow room for the CA to suck up the hole by capillary action. If the fit is as tight as a cork in a wine bottle, the glue won’t pentrate the hole, and your grabs will fall out on the track ay some future date. Get an all metal drill index, the plastic ones stretch and wear and let you jam a drill bit into the wrong hole. Use a pin vise and drill by hand. The small drill bits will break if you try and drill by power, such as with a Dremel.
David’s got some good advice there.
If you like me, get extras of the 5 smallest. You’ll eventually need them anyway.
Something else to keep in mind. Depending on the kit, if already present, grab holes may be sized for a good fit when the kit is not painted. With paint, the holes may be tighter and you may be well-advised to run the correct size bit into each hole to open it to full size. An undecorated kit will be OK because there’s no paint to reduce the hole diameter. Kit instructions may call attention to this issue, but good to know about in case they don’t.
I assume you are asking about the HO version?
There is a photo on the Walthers site that shows holes in the carbody. Maybe they need to be cleaned out but it looks like they are there…
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/188-31000
I have a New York Central model and it is beautifully detailed.
edit I just found the instruction sheet that came with my NYC car and the drawings show holes in their locations. Of course, an email to Bluford might get you the answer you seek.
Hope this helps, Ed
If the grabs are to-scale, a #79 bit will do the trick. As Mike suggests, you may want to get several of them.
However, if you can build that kit (as shown in Ed’s link), you could make pretty-much the same car by cutting-down an Athearn Blue Box bay window caboose. It’s your choice of course (and your fifty bucks), but this new-in-the-box one cost me all of $2.00 at my LHS:
I left it sorta as it came, but gussied it up a bit for a couple extra dollars, then almost broke the bank with an eight dollar set of trucks. [:P]
It has pretty-well everything that would be difficult to scratchbuild - the steps, bay window, and shortening the body is not a big deal. At least you won’t have to make ladders or a new roof, like I did. [swg]
Wayne
Wayne love the look of your green modified athearn bay window caboose.
Thanks, caboose63. [:D]
My suggestion was serious: the Athearn caboose has pretty-well all the components you require at a much more reasonable price. Pre-bent grabirons of various types are readily available. The main modification needed is shortening of the body, plus plugging a few holes. I doubt that it would be any more difficult than building the Bluford Shops kit.
Wayne