Who currently makes HO box cars with side doors that open & close? The ones I’ve seen lately do not have actual doors.
rgh
Most of the older Athearn/MDC cars have operating doors. The Kadee cars also have operating doors. A lot of the cars do not have operating doors as the door tracks are so over size…
Jim
Many of the older Athearn Blue Box cars have the sliding doors.
Though the railings are oversized, I’ve always liked this feature. On a layout I would like to be able to have boxcars parked at, let’s say, a warehouse and have the doors open to simulate loading/unloading.
Even though the freight cars I purchase now are more nicely detailed, I have quite a few 40ft and 50ft SL door cars that I bought years back and have no intention of getting rid of them. My favorite Bluebox was the 50 ft/ Railbox boxcar. Considering the technology of the time, it’s a decent looking car.
Many, many of these BB sliding door boxcars pop up on ebay and train shows. Prices aren’t too bad either.
rgh,
Branchline makes boxcars that have moving doors. I have one of their “Yardmaster Series” kits that I put together that is that way. Proto 2000 may make some, too - particularly their stock cars.
Tom
Tom, I like the Branchline yardmasters too. The doors open (not all the way though) and yet they maintain realistic sliding rails because the doors do not use the rails to open. I really like the operating door feature on my rolling stock - allows alot of modelling possibilities.
I just constructed a Proto 2000 double door box, and the doors are not positionable after the kit is completed. The instructions state that if you want the doors modeled open, you have to glue them in place that way. As far as the other P2K boxcars, I am not sure either.
InterMountains 40’, 50’ and their 60’ Pullman Standard R-T-R boxcars have opening doors. Most of their kit cars do also.
Most cars where the doors are separate pieces from the body can be made to operate. Here’s a Walthers 50’ automobile car:
A Red Caboose X-29:
Tichy rebuilt USRA boxcar:
Even baggage cars with moulded-on doors:
By the way, both the Red Caboose and Tichy cars have doors that are meant to operate.
Wayne
I know Intermountain has some. Even the covered hoppers I have from them have top loading hatches that are seperate so they can be positioned open, which is kind of a neat feature that I intend to use at a brewerey on my layout.
Beware of some of the cheaper models that have opening doors as they do not have finished interiors. It’s not the most prototypical to have a boxcar’s door open to show the weight inside. [:-^]
Cheers!
~METRO
Atlas 60ft boxcars the doors will open.
I like to have a few cars with operating doors to show things in work.
Bachmann’s too.
Also the modern 50’ Atlas (HO) boxcars, and it looks like maybe the new Atlas (HO) 1932 boxcars too.
Ed
Beautiful shots, Tomkat [8D][tup].
These are the very types of scenes I’m hoping to recreate.
I’m glad to know now that boxcars with functioning doors are still available.
[;)]
mechenger: Many if not all of my Athern 40’ and 50’ box have operating doors. (See below)
I like placing some detail inside.
Other box cars I have are Ertle, Accurail, Kadee with operating doors.
The white box car is another Athearn. I also have MDC and Roundhouse, I’ll look at those later.
Swap meets, and many hobby shops still carry the models with operating doors but pretty much older Athearn box cars have the doors tht open…
Robert Sylvester, WTRR
As mentioned, both the Branchline Yardmaster and Blueprint boxcars have doors that can be installed either operating or fixed. Kadee’s doors open, and I have several Intermountain boxcars with operating doors. Of course, Athearn always HAS had operating doors as far as I know.
Now the trick would be to get an HO 40’ reefer with operating doors, for those of us who operate a lot of perishable traffic. [:P]
Tom [:)]
Funny you should ask. Back in the olden days (say around the late fifties), Athearn ice reefers had both operating hatches and operating doors. The hinges for both were, shall we say, just a bit bulky.
Ed
My (admittedly not new, and rather crude) Japanese 4-wheel house cars have free-sliding doors…[8D]
Altogether TOO free-sliding. Normal slack action of a running train will allow them to slide open. Because most of them are double doors, they tend to stick in the open position.[:O]
I need to do some experimenting, to see if I can come up with a way to keep the @@@@ things closed![(-D]
OTOH, some of my other cars have doors fixed in the closed position. I have never felt any pain as a result of not being able to open them.[^]
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Alot of your older Athreans and Roundhouse have the opening doors that you talk about I have 30 or 40 of them. Look at your LHS sometimes they have a few.
There were some newer than that. I’ve got some with opening hatches. Not doors though.