Hello Y'all, My name is Manny and I model Turn of the Century, San Antonio, TX, and the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Ry. They are three 30 foot, 60,000 lbs capacity, coal gondolas, of the Kansas & Texas Coal Company, as built by the St. Charles Car Company, in March of 1898. Here are the finished cars: K&TC Co. No 409: K&TC Co. No 400: and, K&TC Co. No 406: In this thread, I'll go over the building phases of the past three weeks, and give a little history of the cars. Climb aboard for a trip back to Golden Age of Railroading. Enjoy! Manny
First, I'd like to thank two very special individuals in my life: Tony Colantuono, and Robert Wintzinger. These two men, in the time I have known them have been instrumental in their own ways in helping me hone and improve my modeling skills. They have invested much in me as a person, and as a modeler, and I want to thank them personally for their continued friendship, help, and their contributions to the modeling hobby over the past 40+ years. Both are distinguished modelers, licenced/certified master modelers in ships and trains, and are two of the funniest, dedicated, hobbyists I have ever known. Both are a true blessing! Thanks guys! Now, onto the build and some background... According to the 1901 ORER, the cars owned by this company are marked for the "Kansas & Texas Coal Company", are numbered 400 to 599 inclusively, 60000 lbs capacity, and are equipped with air brakes. The interesting link to the Frisco is that the 400 series of the cars were assigned to the Frisco. The 500 were assigned to the Katy. I'll be doing cars 400, 404, 406, 409. These were seen in San Antonio. K&T Coal Company was linked to the Frisco by more than just assigned coal cars. It was a very small Kansas strip mining company which suddenly (in 1885) took over the operations of Rogers Coal Company (owned by the Frisco and named for C.W. Rogers). After this date K&T was widely speculated to be a "front" for the Frisco, enabling it to operate mines in Kansas (where business practices had gotten the Frisco and Rogers into trouble). In 1887 K&T expanded into Arkansas and then, a few years later, into the Indian Territory. In ca. 1902 K&T was absorbed into the Central Coal & Coke Company. This apparently occurred as part of a larger "deal" that transferred the Arkansas and Choctaw railroad to the Frisco (it was owned by Central Coal & Coke Company) You have no doubt seen various posts about the Little Rock & Texas Ry. Co. (better known as the Mansfield branch of the Frisco) in Sebastian County, Arkansas. Depending on how you want to look at the question, an argument could be made that the Mansfield Branch was built for the sole purpose of providing railroad access for the Kansas and Texas Coal Company which had secretly purchased hundreds of acres of coal land in Arkansas prior to the construction of this branch of the railroad. Kansas and Texas was, by far, the largest fuel supplier to the Frisco in the 1800's. K&T mines in Kansas were very important to the Frisco in Kansas and Missouri at this time. The Arkansas coal was critical for the mainline route to Paris, Texas (otherwise Frisco would have had to haul its coal over the mountains and down from Kansas). Frisco burned about 60% or so of the Arkansas coal and shipped most of the rest south to Texas for sale (mostly to other railroads). Remember that we are talking about the 1800's Frisco here. It is no easier to determine what was happening "behind closed doors" at big companies in the late 1800's and early 1900's than it is today. About all you can do is look at the historical outcome and speculate about why things happened as they did. Kansas and Texas Coal Company was well known as a poorly managed mess in the 1800's. The Frisco should probably have stuck exclusively to railroading, but naturally wanted to exert control over its own fuel supply. In 1903 Alexander Simpson, a mining expert, wrote that "In January, 1888, I inspected the (K&T) mines at Hackett and Huntington near Fort Smith... the mines were then new, badly laid off and poorly managed..." The same could have been (and was) said about their Kansas and Missouri mines as well. While Kansas and Texas Coal Company was wallowing through production shortfalls, labor riots, unnecessary mine disasters and other problems, another coal company was on the rise. Keith & Perry Coal Company was run by Richard Keith and heavily allied with Arthur Stilwell of Kansas City. Stilwell used K&P to provide much/all of the fuel for his new KCP&G railroad (now the KCS). Kieth & Perry (later Central Coal & Coke Company) owned a (primarily) logging railroad in southwestern Arkansas and Indian Territory named the Arkansas and Choctaw. When the KCP&G was built, the Arkansas and Choctaw obtained "running rights" (trackage) over the Frisco from K&P Coal's Bonanza, AR mines to Poteau, Indian Territory over the Frisco. K&P Coal became Central Coal and Coke in 1893. A little less than a decade later, beginning in 1902, Central Coal & Coke purchased and absorbed Kansas & Texas Coal Company (K&T). The Arkansas and Choctaw Railway was organized in 1895 in Arkansas. R.H.Keith was the president. By 1902 this railroad had 102.23 miles of track, only 40.25 of which were in Arkansas and the rest in the Indian Territory. Included in this Arkansas total was about a mile of mine track at Bonanza, Arkansas and rights over the Frisco to haul coal from Bonanza to the KCS at Poteau, IT. The sale of Kansas and Texas Coal Company to Central Coal & Coke Company occurred at the same time that Central sold most of the Arkansas and Choctaw to the Frisco. This was essentially a swap. The Arkansas and Choctaw was transferred to the Choctaw Construction Company (jointly controlled by officers of the Central Coal & Coke Company and the Frisco) and then on to the Frisco where it became the Arkinda/Ardmore sub. The arrangement at Bonanza was not included in the new deal. The KCS took ownership of the mine tracks at Bonanza (Frisco would acquire them many years later) Central wasn't the only coal company that owned a railroad. When they acquired Kansas and Texas they also got the Kansas & Texas Coal Railway in the deal. This railroad operated in Missouri along some K&T mines there and tied into the Wabash. Central now no longer controlled the Arkansas and Choctaw but still owned some small, scattered railroads. They created a new railroad called the Missouri and Louisiana Railroad Company to combine everything that was left and that they had acquired under one common operation. The Missouri and Louisiana consisted of four divisions. Bevier District (former Kansas & Texas Coal Railway) in Macon County, MO: Neame District and Carson District (both logging railroads in Louisiana which were tied in with the KCS: Bonanza District (the part of the old A&C operation which hauled coal from Bonanza, AR to Poteau, IT (OK)). The Missouri and Louisiana was essentially destroyed by the "Tap Line Decision" of the Supreme Court in ca. 1914 and was broken up. The Bevier district became the well known Bevier and Southern Railroad in Missouri and the two Louisiana "districts" became the Neame, Carson & Southern Railroad. It appears that the Bonanza, AR/Poteau, OK operation was then just carried on under the Central Coal & Coke Company name for a few more years, until Central finally abandoned operations at Bonanza (ca. 1919). At some point after this date the KCS tracks at Bonanza were transferred to Frisco control where they remained until they were removed in ca. 1950 after the last underground mine there closed. In its early years Central Coal & Coke was heavily associated with (shipped over and supplied fuel for) the KCS AND the Kansas City, Ft. Scott and Memphis. Frisco acquired control over the KCFS&M only a few years before it rid itself of Kansas and Texas Coal. (I think the KCFS&M experience with Central was the basis for the Frisco decision to "trust" Central with its VERY CRITICAL FOR SURVIVAL fuel supply) The business relationship between Frisco and Central Coal remained very close after this time, up until the Frisco began seriously converting to oil fired operation in the 1920's. Although there was some speculation from time to time that the Frisco owned or controlled Central Coal that is doubtful although it is clear that they would have exerted a lot of influence over each other in matters of mutual survival in the early 1900's. Frisco's control over the earlier Kansas and Texas Coal Company is more likely, but still would have been indirect. The statement that K&T was a "front" is based on rumors and speculation from the time since the Frisco could not publicly acknowledge control over K&T without getting into further trouble with the state of Kansas. The Jul 1904 ORER credits the Missouri & Louisiana Railroad with 200 coal cars (#400 to #599), 1 flat (#600), 1 furniture (#300), and 162 unspecified miscellaneous (numbered in the #1 to #200 range – probably logging equipment) cars. They also had 6 caboose (#100 to #105). It is noted that cars lettered “Kansas & Texas Coal Co.” and “Central Coal & Coke Co.” are being re-lettered “Mo & La R.R.” as rapidly as possible. Many thanks to a Frisco.org board member who supplied that information for me. I hope you found the background info interesting. Now, onto building the models.
LaBelle's 15th Anniversary 3-in-1 Kit, gondolas were used for the start of this project. First was to complete the undersides to the K&TC gondola's. In real life, the K&TC's were drop bottom's, however, no detail pictures are available to accurately or even remotely model, so they received the standard underside, truss rods, etc. This is just the way it has to be. If I can find some builders photos, or plans, then I can make new ones, but for right now, these will do nicely. Once the floors were completed, wood working wise, they were treated to a several coats of sanding sealer, each time receiving a scrub down by 0000 steel wool. The important thing on the gondolas is the outer sills which are two pieces of wood. These must be glued together as evenly as possible, and then the sides sanded so that the joint is smoothed so it will no longer be visible. It sounds a lot easier than it looks. It may feel smooth, but when using 10X magnifying glasses, you can see that more work needs to be done. That's what I did. It took time on all 8 sides, but I got it smooth as a baby's butt (Or so I thought, but on one of the cars, there was still a small unevenness). Parts used: LaBelle Gondola as a base. Tichy K Brake Cylinder, turnbuckles, Phosphorus Wire, .125, .015, and .020, for the brake lines and brake lever rods/guides Cal Scale #494 Brake Levers Grandt Line 10" Queen Posts Juneco Cast Metal Bolsters, drilled out and filled with Evergreen 1/8" styrene tubes for the bolster screws. Now that the frames are finished, I can start the sides. I've already sanding sealed the wood, so this should go fairly quickly.
For anyone who is building a wooden kit, here is how I do the sides and ends: 1. Measure the ends first and cut you wood accordingly, taking into consideration the corner straps, as they will add thickness, thus reducing the length of the end boards from the width of the car. 2. Once cut, sand both sides so that the boards are even and square 3. Take 3M Painters Tape and tear off an adequate length of tape and apply it to a sheet of glass (1/4" glass plate is an excellent work surface I highly recommend you get). Keep tearing off tape and overlaying the pieces so that when you are done, you have a solid piece that is wide enough to use for the total number of end/side boards for both sides (Wider 3M tape is available that will minimize or eliminate overlaying). 4. Peel the unit up as one piece, turn over, and then using a piece of the 3M P.T., tape one edge down square to the glass edge. 5. Pull the turned up tape taught, then place another piece as in Step 4. You now have a square sticky surface to work with. 6. Using a small square, true up your boards to make on big rectangle. 7. Remove the square, and you have your sides all aligned. 8. Mark your stake distances on the bottom board. Draw the center stake (if one) first or a center line as a guide by using a square. Then using the square again, draw perfect guide lines on the wood. The glass will keep you true. 9. Complete one side of stakes. 10. Complete the other side, using the first row as a placing guide. When gluing, use sparingly. A small drop of ACC will work fine. Use small micro-brushes to clean up any glue that may have come out from under the stake. Be careful NOT to get glue between the top boards of what will be opposite sides when done. 11. Once complete, wait 5-10 minutes. Disconnect one side of tape, and carefully walk the painters tape off the boards. Your two identical sides are now free and ready to use. Flip them over and use your square to draw center lines opposite the outside stakes for the inside steel straps that join the boards together. Grandt Line makes the straps as hinged straps. You simply cut off the hinge and you have your strap. Grandt Line part number: 5298 Too Easy!
Now that the sides are completed on both sides, it's time to start assembling the car body. Note to the straps: You must determine whether the car is an empty or if it will carry a load. The strap hinges, when used on this car (60" high sides, unique), are not long enough. Since all cars were going to have a load of coal, the straps were located at the top edge of the top board. If they were going to be empties, then the strap would have needed to of been centered between the top and bottom board of the sides. This isn't a factor with standard 32-48" high gondolas. The ends of the gondolas are made the same way that the sides are done, as above. You have to make sure that you take into account the width of the side boards, when cutting your end boards, and using Grandt Line's Gondola Corner Straps. Grandt Line is the only detail parts manufacturer that makes injected molded corner straps for gondolas. They aren't an exact match for the K&TC Co. cars, but they'll work. Sometimes, a little compromise is in order. Once the wood for the ends is cut, aligned by the square, lines drawn, you have to take the corner straps and fold them and apply them to the ends. Be careful, as there are two sizes on the sprue. The larger ones are meant for the outside of the car. The smaller ones are meant for the inside of the car. Mind you, not all cars doubled up on outside, inside applications. Some used only the outside, then steel straps on the inside, or nothing. They bolted directly to the wood. Once the ends where done, it was time to glue them to the car floors first. This was done using a little Stick Fast ACC. I use Tite Bond III Wood Glue as a rule, but ACC was needed here. Once the ends were centered, then the sides were slid into place on test fits. Then they were ACC'd and the body was in place. Here you can see what the inside strap detail looks like, along with the corners Next, I put the brake platform, ratch & paw, brake staff, brake wheel, truss rod ends, grab irons, and grab iron NBW's on, and lastly, the stirrups. The K&TC Co., had dual side cut levers on both ends of the car. I ordered them today from Cal*Scale. Air release valve Cut Levers Time for the paint shop!
Cars were painted Polly Scale Steam Era Black. Once dry, the sides were treated to a coat of Testor's Gloss-coat in preparation of decals. Decals were from Art Griffin. The original decal was numbered 409, but I also ordered renumbered 400, 404, 406 to make a four car set. 404's floor is done, but I ran out of side stakes and corner straps. I have to order more, so 404 is still under construction. Here are the cars painted, and with their bright white lettering After multiple coats of Walthers Solvaset, to snug the decals down, including cut decals that overlapped side boards, the cars were then Gloss-coated again, and then received coats of Testor's Dull-coat. After thoroughly drying, the cars were ready for Bragdon Enterprises Weathering Powders!
Bragdon Powders are some of the best weathering agents I've ever worked with. They go on, and stay on. They don't come off. Some folks seal their powder work to their model using Dull-coat or other fixatives. I do not. Since I do not handle my finished models barehanded, but with nitrile gloves on, there never is a transfer of powder or hand oil prints. I used only two colors: Dark Rust and Black (Black is a special color made for me, not available to the general public). The bolsters, coupler pockets, truss rods, turnbuckles, brake cylinder, brake levers and linkage, all received different levels of rust applications. Then I brushed the black over the rust creating a blend that makes the car dirty from coal dust, but some rust still appears. I simply use fine horse hair paint brushes to apply the powders. I then after application, use a facial brush women use for their make up, to dust the car as one unit, thus feathering the blend. The final outcome is awesome. I highly recommend Bragdon's to everyone!
Kadee Coupler, Arch Bar time! Kadee Coupler, Arch Bar time! Kadee Coupler, Arch Bar time! Here it's at! Here it's at! LOL... Kadee Whisker Couplers are my choice. I find they are nicer than the traditional No. 5's. Personal choice. Nothing wrong with the No. 5's. Kadee 501 Arch Bars are the ticket. Prior to installation, I take the truck, and using a true Graphite Pencil, I rub the bolster contact area to build up a good layer of graphite. This graphite serves as a lubrication and helps your trucks swivel so much smoother. Once the trucks are installed, it's a recheck with the Kadee Coupler Gauge, and then some test photo shots. I love taking shots from the underside view looking up at them. Makes the cars look so ominous and ready to do business! LOL...
Weathering the sides and ends was the same as bottoms. I used Bragdon's Mortar White to imply the white paint on the sides as dripping from water exposure. The process of blending the colors was exactly the same way. Once completed, I took the pictures you see in the opening post. The cars are now inside my display case as my railroad is still being built. I hope you enjoyed these builds. Any constructive criticism is welcomed. Thanks again Railroad-Line Forums for allowing me to share my modeling and participate. Enjoy your modeling everyone! Have fun! Thanks again! Manny
That is some impressive work, Manny, with great results. You're giving me a little spark of temptation to scratchbuild something...
