# Accucraft 3-bay hopper - anyone make a coal load?



## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Does anyone know of someone that makes a pre-fab coal load for the Accucraft 3-bay hoppers?

Thanks,
Jim


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

The 1:20.3 ones? Not that I know of, but I'd be interested if someone did!

Later,

K


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

I think the 3-bay hopper is 1:32, not 1:20.3.

Chuck


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## ewarhol (Mar 3, 2014)

Accucraft 3 bay hoppers 1:32.

Does anyone make scale coal? Could make your own load with a piece of styrofoam or styrene as a base. Paint it black (good Rolling Stones song), and top off with scale coal. Even thought about a magnet in the mix so one could remove the loads for having empty/full train.


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

Several years ago I make some "coal" loads for my Accucraft drop bottom gons. Dr. Rivet was making a storage building and there was some scrap plastic pellet insulation that I borrowed.










I measured the opening in the top of the gon and cut a piece of the insulation to fit.










Once cut to size I used a coping saw to cut out the notches needed for it to fit into the gon.











Using a coarse rasp I carved out the shape of a coal load.











The pelletized foam has spherical particles that from a distance could resemble coal.










I spray painted it with an water based paint. Any paint with an organic solvent ate the foam.










It is not perfect, but from a distance it looks OK.




















I have also made loads with real coal glued to a foam substructure. I am always loosing a piece of coal every time I run those cars.

Chuck


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## ewarhol (Mar 3, 2014)

chuck n said:


> I am always loosing a piece of coal every time I run those cars.
> 
> Chuck


Well the locomotive has to burn something


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

I don't think Accucraft's 1:32 3-bay hoppers are in production yet. Their e-store still lists them as "pre-order" and they still have the 1:1 prototype photo on the page for the hopper itself. 

Their 1:20.3 3-bay hopper is model of an East Broad Top 3-bay hopper that came out about 4 years ago. It's been out of production for a while, but you can still find the less-popular road names in stock at the stores. (I mention this just in case you were wondering what to get me for Christmas.  )

Later,

K


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Chuck, nice work! I was thinking of making my own, but wanted to make sure there weren't some out there already. I believe the Bachmann hoppers come with a coal load but I'm not sure what scale they are and if they'd be compatible with the Accucraft ones.

Kevin/Eric, these are the 1:20 scale: http://accucraft.com/modelc/AM20-301%203BAY%20HOPPER.htm
I din't know about the 1:32 scale or I would have mentioned the scale in my original post.

I went to a mold making class and got a starter kit, so if I can make one I like then maybe I can make some extras, but don't hold your breath. 
Kevin, that reminds me that the fellow that gave the molding class is willing to give a demo at the 2015 NGRC in Denver. He gave a great demo on how to make a mold and then use the mold to make a resin cast. If there isn't something like that already scheduled it may be of interest to folks at the convention. Do you know who I could let know about that? I know it's not a good idea to post emails with spammers searching posts for emails, but if you can send it to my direct email that would be great. It is Reynolds Advanced Materials and they are the Rocky Mountain distributor for Smooth-on products.


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

There's a whole photo thread on making coal loads for my Accucraft EBT 3-bays:
http://forums.mylargescale.com/15-model-making/18785-coal-load-accucraft-3-bay-hopper.html

From which this photo was taken:












I made a batch of 8 at once - shouldn't be too tricky to make a dozen at once. (Not me though - I'm out of EBT coal. My last batch came from Tuckahoe Steam and Gas open day.)


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

Jim

The Bachmann 2-bay 1:20.3 hoppers do come with a coal load. Unfortunately, it isn't a very realistic load. My load had round coal, but the Bachmann coal is all the same size and looks as if someone raked the load. All the coal lines up in parallel rows. I'm tempted to sometime replace them.

Chuck


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks Pete! I did find your post while searching for ideas on how to make a coal load. Nice work! 

Chuck, Thanks for your opinion on the Bachmann coal load. Guess I won't be using that as a starting point ;-)


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## Lorna (Jun 10, 2008)

Think that would work with the Rich Yoder ones as well?


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

Jim

Here is a picture of the coal load in the Bachmann 2-bay hopper.










Maybe it is more like a farmer plowing his field twice, second time at 90 degrees to the first pass.

Chuck


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

chuck n said:


> Jim
> 
> The Bachmann 2-bay 1:20.3 hoppers do come with a coal load. Unfortunately, it isn't a very realistic load. My load had round coal, but the Bachmann coal is all the same size and looks as if someone raked the load. All the coal lines up in parallel rows. I'm tempted to sometime replace them.
> 
> Chuck


I've successfully glued real coal on top of the plastic load. It helps to cut the base down by about 1/4" so it sits lower in the car, making more room for coal! Doesn't take as much coal as starting from scratch.

If you have a bunch of cars, it really isn't a lot of work to make the loads as a batch.


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

Lorna said:


> Think that would work with the Rich Yoder ones as well?


Sure. The base needs adjusting a bit. I have 8 AMS hoppers, an RYM, a Bachmann 2-bay and a later 2-bay that I built by cutting up 2 of the old 1:22.5 'big hauler' 3-bay hoppers. All are full of 'real' coal loads. Here's the 4 varieties of hopper: AMS, RYM, chop-job 2 bay and Bachmann 2-bay. (Note the 2 humps on the Bachmann 2-bay, corresponding to the humps on the original plastic load!)










Here's the whole train - at about 0.55 there's a run-by of all the hoppers. The last 3 are the different ones.






And finally, at Jim's 20th Anniversary Steamup, a composite of the yard with 27 empties and 9 full loads!


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## Tom Parkins (Jan 2, 2008)

Coal loads in 1:32 should not be much different than 1:29. I crush real coal and glue on top of plastic load or if it has none then on top of black foam. 

Crush coal glued on top of plastic Aristo load:



Some old 1:32 hopper cars with crushed coal glued on top of foam.


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Jim, let me know when you're ready to start hammering out coal loads. I'll help. I've got 8 hoppers now that need loads! (to say nothing of my 7 wood hoppers...)

Later,

K


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Will do! Got some good ideas from folks here. Going to have to be after the weathering session


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## Chris Scott (Jan 2, 2008)

Jason, aka Train Department, sells Welsh Coal but in 22 lbs lots for $56.50. Maybe he could be persuaded to sell in smaller amounts for modeling coal loads, maybe 1 lbs $5., or 2 lbs for $10. Reasonable size for Jason to break down to small amounts and $5-$10 a price we all spend with surprising ease on our toys. 

I'm not suggesting filling the hopper with coal just make trays of coal to simulate but with real coal. If there's coal left over it could be donated to one of the poor Live Steamers crazy enough to actually use coal as a fuel.  Just sayin'.

traindepartment.com/welsh-steam-coal/


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## Dr Rivet (Jan 5, 2008)

Chris
I would bet dollars to donuts that Jim or Kevin could get some real coal from the folks at the Colorado RR Museum for a very small donation. probably less than the cost to ship 5 pounds from Jason in the wilds of New Jersey.


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## tmejia (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks to fellow MLS'r Gary Armitstead I got my coal. Back in May, Gary says I have some coal for you. So yesterday (only 6 months later) I drove out to his house, had a nice visit and picked up my coal.

Thanks Gary










So sometime this winter? I will make a tender coal load for my C19.

Tommy
Rio Gracie


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

> I'm not suggesting filling the hopper with coal


 Mr Master Modeller Geoff Ringlé fills his hoppers from a plastic bag every time he runs them. Same for the tender. He says they don't collect dust that way.
It causes a slight problem when his tender overturns, spilling (prototypically) the coal all over the ballast!

Some other sources of real coal: Essex RR in CT used to sell it. Tuckahoe Gas & Steam has piles of it onsite. Almost any preserved steam loco site should have some - you only need 2 or 3 lumps!


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Dr Rivet said:


> Chris
> I would bet dollars to donuts that Jim or Kevin could get some real coal from the folks at the Colorado RR Museum for a very small donation.


Sacrilege! Colorado coal in an EBT hopper?  I'm pretty sure the sides would melt. Okay, _maybe_ if I were to use it to make a resin casting, since it wouldn't actually _be_ Colorado coal... 

Actually, I've still got two hefty chunks of EBT coal that I can use for casting. I might have to plan a return trip to Robertsdale at some point in the future, though, as there wouldn't be much left afterwards. Definitely worth experimenting. 

Later,

K


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

tmejia said:


> Thanks to fellow MLS'r Gary Armitstead I got my coal. Back in May, Gary says I have some coal for you. So yesterday (only 6 months later) I drove out to his house, had a nice visit and picked up my coal.
> 
> Thanks Gary
> 
> ...


BTW Tommy...........that particular coal is West Virginia Pocahontas. Some trivia............

You're welcome.

A little backstory on this coal.........we use it in our 1 1/2" live steam Mogul and get it from a dealer on the east coast. It is sold in 50 pound bags. Previous to using this coal, we were using Welsh coal. This was imported to the U.S. by David Rose, well known movie and orchestra composer. This was the BEST coal we ever used! Very low sulphur content.....a nice light gray haze. Beautiful burning coal. On the other hand, the West Virginia Pocahontas has a somewhat moderate amount of sulphur content and has a light, yellowish haze from the stack.


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## Tom Bowdler (Jan 3, 2008)

I'm surprised Kevin hasn't mentioned the method he taught me years ago,
It is similar to what Pete did, cut a piece of styrofoam to size and shape, cover the surface with black silicone caulk (so when a piece of coal falls off the blue or pink or white foam won't show and ruin the effect) and sprinkle on the coal pressing gently to seat it into the caulk.
As to the coal, we heat our house with black diamonds so I have a ready supply but go to your local coal dealer (mine is a farm supply) and get some rice coal. It is the perfect size and you don't have to smash it with the attendant mess from that process. 
I don't have my early EBT hoppers ready for their loads yet but I have done a number of locomotive and small hopper coal loads using this method .
Have fun,
Tom


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## Tom Bowdler (Jan 3, 2008)

Oops,
Forgot to mention that being a belt and suspenders kind of guy I also drench the coal loads in a dilution of glue and water for a little extra "hold". It sounds like the glue Pete uses would work well too.

Gary,
Do you know of any Ga 1 steamers using the Pocahontas coal? i have some welsh and Jason from the Train Department sells it but it seems like the W VA stuff would be easier to come by.
Have fun,
Tom


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

Tom Bowdler said:


> Oops,
> Forgot to mention that being a belt and suspenders kind of guy I also drench the coal loads in a dilution of glue and water for a little extra "hold". It sounds like the glue Pete uses would work well too.
> 
> Gary,
> ...


Tom,

After David Rose passed away in 1990, the Welsh coal was hard to get in the quantities we needed for 1/8th scale steam engines. I'm not real sure about Ga. 1 steamers using WV Pocahontas. You can see the size of the chunks we get to fire our engine with the photo Tommy posted. When we were firing our engine with Welsh coal, the clinkers were "almost" non-existent. Not so much with the WV Pocahontas. But clinkers in a 8" X 14" firebox can be very forgiving.....not very forgiving in a tiny Ga. ! firebox.


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## Tom Bowdler (Jan 3, 2008)

Thanks Gary,
That's why I asked.
Tom


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

We have been working on coal and ore loads for specific cars. Trying to get an idea of the demand for each. We now have one coal, and one ore load available. http://www.reindeerpass.com/stone-wall-1.aspx


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

$10 is a lot cheaper than what it would cost me in time and materials to make them myself, that's for sure.

I would, however, like to see "run-of-mine" coal (i.e., lumps of all different sizes) available, as it's more prototypical at least for narrow gauge hoppers. Standard gauge hoppers usually carried washed and sorted coal. 

Later,

K


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

> I would, however, like to see


 Picky, Picky, Picky.

Take the load like it is and glue some big lumps on top. It will still save a lot of time and will make each load look different.



> Trying to get an idea of the demand


 Well, they sold a lot of those 3-bay hoppers, plus there are many RYM hoppers around that will take the same load [with a bit of fiddling. Note the cross braces on the Accucraft are NOT symetrical so you have to put the load in one way only.]


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Mike, nice looking load. Will they fit the Accucraft 3-bay 1:20.3 cars? If you need demand to make them, I'd need 8, but I need to know by mid-January, as if I don't find any I like I'll hook up with Kevin to see what we can make.

-Jim


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

Our first coal load listed on our site fits the Piko coal car, the ore load fits the piko ore car, built from the old MDC mold.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Mike, so are you planning on making a load that will fit the Accucraft 3-bay hopper?

-Jim


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

Sounds like we should. My mold builder was working on bridge abutments and tunnel portals this winter. I need to ship him a hopper and see what he thinks about the supports on the inside of those. The mold and casting would be more complicated to do. I will get his input.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Sounds good Mike, let me know.

Thanks,
Jim


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Pete Thornton said:


> Picky, Picky, Picky.
> 
> Take the load like it is and glue some big lumps on top. It will still save a lot of time and will make each load look different.


Pshaw... If I wanted to go through that trouble, I'd just build the loads myself.  I'm bein' _lazy_ here. 

Later,

K


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

Yesterday I received a sample sand load, and a small sample of coal, rock, and ore. These are not cast, so have better detail than our cast ones. I will follow with some images.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Thanks Mike! Looking forward to pics.


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## Treeman (Jan 6, 2008)

file:///C:/Users/MIKE/Pictures/Sand%20load/IMG_0309.JPG

This is the sand load.


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## jimtyp (Jan 2, 2008)

Mike, that is a link to your personal C drive, I cannot access that.

-Jim


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