This is a question I suppose more about prototype issue. About 30% of my cars have roofwalks, or “planks”. I have railroad that is freelanced, with a mix of other stock and power. Question is how common are roofwalks in this day and age? My lay out is more or less set to modern day. Am I committing a major no-no, or can I “get-away-with-it”?[:)]
Thanks much.
Roof walks have been outlawed for decades. The only place you’ll see them are at railroad museums.
Andre
Roofwalks on cartops in the present are a major no-no. Roofwalks from cars in interchange service were outlawed in 1964, and railroads had until 1974 to remove them. The only cars that might still have roofwalks would be captive cars, such as maintenance of way cars, which would never leave home rails. They are still allowed if a car has equipment on the roof which needs to reached, like covered hoppers.
This info was gleaned from the following web page: http://data.detnews.com/hotbox/hotboxstory/details.hbs?myrec=187
-Ed
[banghead]
Well, guess I can pull a few off. Thanks guys.
canazar
Couple of things to go with pulling off roofwalks. The ladders should be shortened as well, the only “tall” ladder should be the one to the brake wheel. Some freight cars did keep their tall ladders but I think it was the exception versus the rule. There are ways of plugging the holes in cars that have roofwalks. Body putty or pieces of sprue work great, just sand or file to shape.
Rick
Good info above.
Only thing that I can add to this is that roofwalks survived in another way…
Boxcars and reefers that were slated to be scrapped were sometimes stored in yard areas for several years until their appointment with the blowtorch came up. Seaboard Coast Line had a big group of the older 40ft and 50ft. boxcars stored in several yards until the last were scrapped around 1979-80. Some of them still had roofwalks, but I think their ladders were cut off.
Back then I saw a big batch of them stored in Tampa Yard, rusting away for several years, though the bodies of a few of them looked like they were in good shape and just needed painting. Then one day in 1980 I rode my biycycle to the yard, as usual, and saw that they were all gone! It was the end of an era.
Well, I think I am sorta stuck between a rock and hard spot… My layout jumps back nd forth between to era’s. One is around 1949, Last year of the cab foward since that is what I have… and present day. Everything between 1950 and 1974 sounds like it is out. Man, this prototypical thng can stink. Good news is though, I have less box carsof that era than i thought. I only have about 12 of them out of the 35 or so. Not too bad.
I began expeirmenting with one of them and the roof walk came off pretty easliy. I am really greatful now that i didnt go willy nilly with the glue ( all of them are kits. Roundouse, BB, etc,) it looks like I can just trim the ends and insert them from the inside out. Easy way to make my plugs. I suppose a little sandin and some new paint, good to go. Thanks for the info everyone
My question is just the opposite. I model the transition period. Most of my boxcars have the roofwalks but I bought a GMO boxcar last week and discovered that it didn’t have one. When did boxcars start appearing without the roofwalks. Is this car appropriate for 1956.
The GMO boxcar should have a walkway,if it’s built date is for the fifties it should probaly be a steel walkway.
Before you dismantle them, maybe someone will trade you. Email him if you have the opposite situation.
The last time I was in Canon City Colorado there were still two 40’s with roof walks sitting behind the old Santa Fe Station (now Grand Canyon RR Station).
So there could still be some about your layout, just not in normal trains.
The Ontario Northland Railway still has the odd one laying around. They are probably used for storage I would guess.
Keep them on if you want! You dont have to be totally prototypicall!
Roof walks, steam, and cabooses - some of the reasons I model the early 50’s.
Enjoy
Paul
canazar: Actually cab-forwards were still used until 1956 or so, which gives you a few more years for its use…nothing wrong with era-hopping, it gives us an excuse to have twice as many pieces of rolling stock as we can fit on the pike!
Really?
Well, I think I know what the deal is there. I was reading the history on AC4/5’s which is what I have from BLI. The AC 4/5’s were gone by 1949, but the older brothers kept on going for awhile. … but I suppose I could stretch that one a little in my case. [:D] Even goign up 6 years makes a huge difference. Mostly on some early deseils wouldcome in to play more. Which, are doubly important since I plan on goign back and forth, the desiels will either be “new”, or old work horses still around for my small freelanced railroad I am building.
I have decided a couple I will conert, mostly for the fun of it, and the others will be set aside in case I get a need for the 70’s (alot of my freinds model that time peroid) and they will come in handy, or some day someone will give them a good home. Most of the are weathered up nice and I hate to tear themup. Thanks everyone, this has been a good thread.[8D]
If it doesn’t require major surgery, I take mine off. Otherwise, I just decided the FRA in my world has been a little lax in enforcing that particular regulation. (They’ve also allowed a few friction-bearing trucks to slip by them into interchange service) My railroad, my rules![:p]
BTW, thanks for the link to that info, Ed.
Pretty much says it all.
This would explain all the hundreds of ice reefers I saw being hauled towards Cleveland,
Ohio way back around 1970-71. No doubt to be scrapped,if not in Cleveland, then somewhere further East. Solid trains of ice reefers on the Nickle Plate. Too bad it was
their last run, but at least it made for an impressive sight ! [8D]
Thanks, AntonioFP45 !!! This whole thread has been great ![:)]
I plan on modeling both steam and Modern desil, you know, when your in your modern stage you can alway use your Cab forwards for excrusion/fanfair trains or you could just say that the railroad you model decided to keep some of its ol steam roster on thru 2006. Thats what im planning on doing.
After all its just the model, and while its nice to stay as prototipical as possible, it won’t hurt to add a little emagination, after all its your rail road.
I just saw the UP Challenger in Eugene Oregon in september or so, I never got to see it run but I saw it in the yard, man that was realy cool.
Takes me back in time