Back Again To The Purgatory Box

Here are some more items I found in the box, and some other comments. First, a PRR N8 kitbashed from two Mantua-Tyco cabooses following articles in MR and RMC from the 1970s and 80s (one was in the April 1982 MR, but I think the RMC one gave a more accurate version);

I must have done this at least 25 years ago, certainly before the Bowser cars came out. I cleaned it up and gave it a coat of flat finish. It has Champ decals. I'll need to scrounge some ladder stock to finish it.

Below is what I think must be one of the oldest cars I still have. This is an Ambroid wood and metal car from the 1960s. It was one of a dual kit that I built in my dorm room in college. At the time, I brush painted it and used some really thick varnish called Walthers DDV to flatten and blend the decals.

Over the years, the varnish and decals yellowed, so I gave it a dust coat of thinned light gray. I replaced the stirrups and the trucks and wheels. It actually looks good for a 50 year old car.

Here's a more conventional purgatory box item, a Bev Bel-Life Like covered hopper. The prototype Napierville Junction had PS-2s, but the paint job is really nice.

This spent 20 years in purgatory after I got it at a swap meet in Sacramento when I had a work assignment there. I finally pulled it out and started work making it layout-friendly, with scrap sprues in the truck mounting holes and styrene for the coupler boxes:

Switching gears, I'm getting more and more respect for the Bachmann GP9 as a layout quality loco. With the factory decoder replaced, they're easy to speed match and run in consist with Atlas Classic locos. The Bangor and Aroostook leased locos to the PRR and LIRR in their off season.

The hood louvers aren't correct in their location, and they lack other fine details like grab irons. On the other hand, at the range this photo was taken -- maybe 2 feet -- it's just not noticeable. But the good paint stands out.

I notice that Bachmann has come out with a second road number for the PRR simple keystone scheme GP9. It'll be on my next web order!