Needing a couple more boxcars, I ordered two Kennebec Central boxcar kits from Mt. Blue Model Co. Why KC and not an SR&RL prototype like the boxcar already on the roster (#35)? The shorter length and more basic look of the KC cars is more in keeping with the idea of a less-developed railroad like the Kennebec Central or Monson RR, compared to the boxcars used in the later decades of the SR&RL. A side benefit is that the KC cars are quicker to build since they only had a couple of grab irons, no stirrups, and handbrakes instead of air brakes.
The new cars were numbered 23 and 24. For variety, I weathered #23 heavily but left #24 pristine, as if it was recently repainted. To reinforce that idea I used a smaller font on #24:
The idea to use smaller lettering on the "repainted" car didn't occur to me until after I had already lettered one side. After debating which side I liked better, I had another idea: since the layout is a shelf layout and only one side will be seen during an operating session, why not number the two sides differently, so that the car can be flipped around occasionally to represent a different car? So the number on the reverse side was changed to 25, giving me three cars for the price of two!
As with all of my freight cars, the trucks are from Marsh Creek Miniatures and were 3D printed by Shapeways. Some two-foot freight cars only had brakes on one truck, so to replicate that look I removed the brakes and frame extensions from one truck on each car.
The Marsh Creek trucks are designed for Fox Valley Models 36" N scale wheelsets (20" in HO) with .540" axles. The FVM wheelsets are hard to find at the moment, but I learned from another modeler that Eastern Seaboard Models is now producing wheelsets of the same dimensions. I ordered some to try on these cars and they look good and roll well, so it's great to have an alternative to the FVM wheels.
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