Light Rail Products: model trolley projects

Springfield Terminal Car #10

Concept

Conversion of a Bachmann Combine Passenger Car into a Wooden Interurban Car. This project uses a Bachmann combination car, plus some parts from another. (You can use a coach, or baggage car as well). The end result we are trying to make is a small New England or any other small short line wooden Interurban car.

Background

This particular car we are modeling is a 1901 Wason Car Company product that was built for the Springfield Terminal Railroad in Vermont. As a side note, the Springfield Terminal Railroad was later used to “swallow up” the Boston + Maine and the Maine Central Railroads as parts of Guilford Railroads, Springfield Terminal Railroad Company.

Below are many of the parts used in kit-bashing this particular car.

LRP products

LRP #004 Trolley Bases + Poles

LRP #006 Ohio Brass Trolley Catchers

LRP #007 Headlights

LRP #008 K-28 Controllers

LRP #010 Roof End Modifications

LRP #012 ALCO Interurban Trucks

LRP #204 NWSL power units

Other products used

Bachmann Combine + Passenger car

Wood (assortment of bass wood)

Glue

paint

In making the “Springfield Terminal” Car, the original car has one more window set on each side than the “out of the box” Bachmann combine has in it. In order to add a window on each side, a second Bachmann coach was stripped and two windows cut out to splice into this car. Later, the overall length of this Bachmann coach will be reduced and be fashioned into a small Interurban Coach. Or, you could choose to skip this step all together.

Disassembly: Begin with disassembly of both of the Bachmann cars by first removing the trucks. These will not be needed again, but store for future use. Remove the screws that hold the body to the floor/frame. Following this, at each end of the car, near the end doors, are two tabs that must be pushed to clear the car shell from the floor section. Then, remove the screws that hold the roof in place. Remove the wiring for the lighting, and the various plastic parts, but keep the clearastory windows as you’ll need these later on. Hold onto all parts, you may want or need later.

Roof Modification: Beginning with the roof. Turn the Bachmann roof upside down, take LRP #010, the Roof Modification and carefully line it up with the Bachmann roof. You’ll see a piece running across the underside of the roof about 1 inch from the roof’s end.

Line the LRP part up with this, and draw a line where you will cut the Bachmann roof in order to splice and join the LRP roof section. Make the cut as square to the car roof as possible, then do the same at the other end. You may need to clean the ends of plastic flashing in order to make these smooth. Glue one of the ends on. Test fit the roof and the second roof mod (LRP #010) to be sure the roof still fits onto the car shell.

If this is OK, glue the second roof mod onto the main roof shell. You should have a flat surface handy to be sure the roof sections are flat and lined up as best possible. Use a metal ruler (24'') to line the new roof sections up with the original roof section.

Once you have glued these parts together and the glue has set, fill in the voids with glue and modeling putty. Sand smooth. Use tissue to simulate roof canvas on this model’s roof. Paint on some color and carefully lay over the tissue, painting over the tissue slowly. This is very time consuming, being very careful not to wrinkle the tissue. This will also help to hide the voids in the joint you have made. Once all the tissue has been painted and has set up, paint the underside of the roof sections. The tissue and paint will help make a stronger joint or connection in the roof sections. For paint on the interior, a light yellow was used which will help reflect the lights later on.

Click the forward icon below to continue with the Springfield Terminal model.