Atlas Model Railroad Co. Product Review

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This review was taken from the October, 2001 issue of Model Railroader Magazine and is reproduced with permission of Kalmbach Publishing Company, Waukesha, WI.

HO 100-TON ACF PRESSUREAIDE COVERED HOPPER FROM ATLAS

Review by Jim Hediger, Senior Editor

Atlas has released a ready-to-run HO model of the 100-ton Pressureaide covered hopper built by ACF Industries. It’s an impressive model which features etched metal running boards, and it nicely captures the prototype’s discharge piping system.

The prototype 5,000-cubic-foot cars were introduced in 1979 to haul fine granular commodities such as clay, flour, limestone, and starch. According to Ed Kaminski, author of the book American Car & Foundry 1899-1999, about 4,500 Pressureaide cars have been built in three phases. The Atlas model represents one of the 2,000 cars built in the middle group between 1985 and 1991. It matches prototype dimensions specified in ACF sales literature.

Each car has eight roof hatches, four compartments, and fluidizing outlets where air pressure (up to 14.5 psi) is used to agitate and unload the lading. The car’s built-in plumbing requires only one air connection and a single outlet hose for unloading.

Additional general information on ACF Center Flow cars was published in the February 2000 issues of MODEL RAILROADER and Trains Magazines.

The model consists of a large body casting which includes the hoppers and sides. The roof, slope sheets, ends, fine end bracing, and ladders are added separately. These parts are detailed with the heavier side sills, eave braces, and end reinforcements characteristic of Pressureaide cars.

Eight simulated cam-locking pressure hatches are mounted along the roof center line. A set of finely etched .012”-thick metal running boards are cleverly mounted on plastic brackets cast into the roof for strength. The air inlet and product outlet piping is cast in silver plastic and mounted in holes along the hopper sides.

The model rides on free-rolling 100-ton roller-bearing trucks. The rigid truck frames and axle tubes are acetal plastic. The brass wheels are mounted on needle-point stub axles which are pressed into an axle tube. All wheelsets on our sample matched the National Model Railroad Association standards gauge.

The coupler boxes are molded into the floor and their lids are attached with screws. Accumate magnetic knuckle couplers come on the model and they’re mounted at the correct height.

Four formed steel weights fit inside the hoppers and they’re secured with small screws. The model weighs six ounces, so it’s one ounce heavier than the NMRA’s Recommended Practice of one ounce plus 1/2 –ounce per inch of length. Interior access is easy, so you could easily remove one of the weights to match the recommended weight.

Our sample car was superbly finished in ACF’s colorful demonstrator paint scheme. According to Kaminski, all of the other cars in the series have authentic paint schemes matched to builder’s photos. Only one demonstrator is available, but the other road names are made in two car numbers each.

These are superbly done modern cars, and their prototypes travel nation-wide so they’ll be useful on most contemporary layouts. – J.D.H.

Price: $26.95

Description:

Ready-to-run plastic freight car

Road Names:

1500 Undecorated

1501 ACF Demonstrator

1502-1, -2 ADM

1503-1, -2 Cerestar

1504-1, -2 Corn Products

1505-1, -2 Omya

1506-1, -2 Soo Line

1507-1, -2 Stanley