Recent Updates

40 Ton Andrews Freight Car Truck Patterns                                          Updated: 16 July 2008

For some time now only two freight car trucks have been available in 1:20.3 standard gauge (a long wheelbase archbar truck and a cast urethane Bettendorf style truck, both marketed by my friend Don Niday--see the Products Page. In the next few months I plan to offer a first in 1:20.3 SG: an investment cast brass Andrews truck. I've have described the prototype briefly on the Products Page, so I will not repeat that information here. What is worth knowing is the progress that has been made on this truck over the last several months and the way this progress has come about.

Although the Andrews concept of a cast steel frame with bolt-on journal boxes dates from the 1890s, I was unable to find any drawings for the early Andrews T-Section design, and in particular the version used by the D&RGW. Enter fellow large scale modelers Rick Blanchard and Kevin Strong. Each of them provided me with invaluable measurements and photographs of the two pairs of these trucks which remain on D&RGW dual gauge idler cars X-3050 and 010793, located at the Colorado Railroad Museum & at Antonito, respectively. From their measurements I worked up 2D CAD drawings for the 5x9 journal boxes, side frame, truck bolster, McCord journal box lids, and journals box bolts.

The 3D CAD Model

(D&RGW 40 Ton Andrews Single Truss Truck w/ Idler Car Body Bolster as Rendered by Steve Weber in Solid Edge 3D CAD)

Initially, a third party turned my 2D side frame and journal boxes into a 3D CAD model using SolidWorks (pictures at right). Sometime in February of 2008 I was contacted by a Swiss modelmaker, Mr. Steve Weber, who had found my site on account of its emphasis upon Gauge 3 (Steve builds high-end commercial models of German and Swiss prototypes in Gauge 3, known as Spur II on the continent).

Rapid Prototype Wax Patterns

Brass Casting Patterns

(The 40 Ton Andrews side frame as cast by Dennis Mashburn)

For the past several months I have been helping my friend George Konrad with his standard gauge mallet project in 1:20.3.