Intermountain has just announced production of the ACF 2 Bay Centerflow Hopper assembled in six road numbers in both HO and N scale. There are several pictures of the prototype on Mike Condren's website. Here is a link to more specific information on the release. http://www.pwrs.ca/view_product.php?ProductID=178663 (HO specific) The stock #'s are: HO 46508 ($32.95 MSRP) N 66508 ($22.95 MSRP) The pre-order cut-off date for these is August 31st. If you want them to be produced, I highly suggest pre-ordering them because if Intermountain doesn't get enough pre-orders, they won't make them. I would also welcome feedback as to where any of you saw these cars used and for what commodity. As more and more of us are getting into operating, information like this becomes invaluable. Thanks,
Bob, First up the model is a Plate C 2980cf (taller) ACF car which is incorrect for the Frisco Plate B (lower) 2971cf design. You'd be better off starting with the superior Athearn ACF 2970cf model and remove the welded angle on the car side and add two beads on the top sill. The 2971cf design also had extended draft gear housings. prototype http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/slsf/slsf78690ads.jpg draft gear (moloco) http://www.molocotrains.com/dg-0414-draft-gear.html These car were pretty much exclusively used in sand service in Oklahoma. They were an excellent design internally for such a service. Perhaps on some occasions there were a few in cement service as well. In the end, I don't want to discourage anyone from buying one of these IMRC cars, I just wanted to everyone to be aware that it is a stand-in only. Nick
Nick - Is the Athearn based on the old Ramax 2-bay ACF Center-Flow car? I have one of the Ramax cars around here somewhere that has been waiting at the paint shop for about a decade. I recall it has the angled beam along the top of the side sheet, rather than the three beads as the IRC car has. I gather this was an earlier ACF design. Ken
Ken, I had some of those RAMAX kits as well, I sold of them years ago because they were designed to look like a ACF 2970cf, but they ended up being the height of a ACF2890 taller Plate C design. It reasonably accurate close to the IMRC car. I believe that the Athearn car is a design from scratch tooling and probably the best ACF hopper out there which I rarely give those accolades to Athearn. Nick
