I have a number of undecorated Accurail hopper kits - the pototype said to be manufactured by the Canton Car Company in the late '30s, early '40s. They are unusual in that the sides only have 4 external ribs. The very large center panel has only a row of rivets down the middle. The model doesn’t show a rib on the inside. I’ve tried researching this car on the web but have not found any reference to the Canton Car Company. Does anyone have any information on this unusual car? The car is shown at the Walthers link below.
Thanx, Wayne. This car seems pretty rare. I plan on using the models on a coal branch. The Accurail kit makes a nice car. It just seems strange that Canton designed the car without a rib in the middle of that large center panel.
It does seem odd - I wonder if there was an interior brace at that point, similar to those found in Bowser’s Pennsy H21 and H22 hoppers?
I bought one of the Canton cars - the LHS had a bunch at $5.00 each, although the bulk of them were in a too-modern paint scheme for my '30s-era layout. I doubt, too, that it would be likely that my area would be receiving coal from a western road, but it looks good as an empty passing through on its way back home.
