Adam’s Brick Junction

PNW Steam Shop has three awesome new LEGO Train instruction sets available for pre-order!

AAR 70 Ton 53′-6″ Flat Car

The first set of instructions available for pre-order are for the AAR 70 Ton 53′-6″ Flat Car. According to the product page for the model:

Prior to World War II, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) was tasked with evaluating contemporary freight car designs and establishing standard models that could be rapidly manufactured for use by any railroad. One such standardized design was a 70-ton capacity flatcar based on a prototype introduced by the Erie Railroad in 1941. These 53'-6" long cars featured a sturdy riveted steel underframe, a wooden deck extending beyond the frame supported by steel angles, and 14 pressed steel stake pockets along each side. Known for their resilience, these flatcars were manufactured well into the 1960s, with many later repurposed for trail on a flatcar (TOFC) or "piggyback" service. Others were equipped with bulkheads and other load restraints for specialized tasks. Some continued to operate in revenue service until the 1980s, and a few remain in use within maintenance-of-way fleets to this day.

In addition to the flat car itself the instruction set also includes details on how to build three loads for the flat car:

• a load of John Deere Model M tractors
• a load of milled lumber
• an Allis Chalmers oil circuit breaker with crate

PNW Steam Shop also has a number of amazing decals that you can purchase separately to go with the flat cars that you build. Decal sets that are available include:

• ATSF
• Baltimore & Ohio
• Chicago & Eastern Illinois
• Chessapeake & Ohio
• Detroit, Toledo & Ironton
• ERIE
• New York, Chicago & St. Louis
• New York Central
• Pere Marquette
• Pennsylvania Railroad
• Southern
• Southern Pacific
• Western Maryland

Tap here to view the AAR 70 Ton 53′-6″ Flat Car instruction set in the PNW Steam Shop

UTLX X-3 10k Gallon Tank Car

The next set of instructions available for pre-order are for the UTLX X-3 10k Gallon Tank Car. According to the product page for the model:

Union Tank Car Company (reporting marks UTLX) was the premier owner/lessor of tank cars in the steam era and beyond. Originally a subsidiary of the Standard Oil monopoly, they became an independent company in 1911 with the breakup of Standard, but they continued to service mostly the pieces of Standard Oil long after. Their plain black tank cars were ubiquitous throughout the US rail system.

While still part of Standard, many of their tank cars were built by the Standard refinery locations since the technology was similar to building refining equipment. Consequently Union Tank Line (as it was known in those days) had its own Master Car Builder and design staff. They participated, actively, in the development of the new tank car specifications that took affect in 1903. John W. Van Dyke produced several innovative designs, including the frameless Class V cars that were patented in 1903 and built for the next decade. When that design was not fully accepted by conventional railroad men, Van Dyke created a second design that was known as the Class X. The Class X cars had a steel underframe made up of two outward facing 15 inch C channels tied together at the top and bottom with steel plates. Cast steel combination bolsters and tank saddles were somewhat similar to the Class V cars, but, instead of those saddles being riveted to the tank bottom, the tank was anchored at its center to the center sill. This concept was patented in 1904 and eventually became the industry standard. Both the X and V cars met the MCB Class II specifications.

10-12 years later, new, improved specifications were discussed and approved for all new cars to be built after May 1, 1917 to be known as Class III. This would evolve to be ARA Class III and then ICC 103, the general purpose tank car. The UTLX design to meet the Class III specification became known as the X-3. As will be seen, it built upon the Class X design and met the Class III spec. UTLX X-3 tank cars were built beginning in 1916 and continued to be built until World War II.

The X-3 cars were built in various capacities and configurations, including 6,500 gallon, 8,000 gallon and 12,000 gallon tanks. They were also built with single, double and triple domes. However, none of these variants were more numerous than the basic 10,000 gallon, single-dome version. From the 1920s onwards Union Tank Car (UTLX) fielded the largest fleet of tank cars in North America, and the 10,000 gallon X-3 accounted for nearly 13,000 of them.

PNW Steam Shop also has a number of amazing decals that you can purchase separately to go with the tank cars that you build. Decal sets that are available include:

• UTLX 1920’s scheme
• UTLX 1930’s scheme
• UTLX 1950’s scheme
• Atlantic Refining
• Eastman Chemical Products
• Northern Pacific
• PROCOR
• Products Tank Line
• Seaboard Air Lines
• Standard Oil

Tap here to view the UTLX X-3 10k Gallon Tank Car instruction set in the PNW Steam Shop

ARA 1932 40′ Boxcar

The last set of instructions available for pre-order are for the ARA 1932 40′ Boxcar. According to the product page for the model:

A goal of the American Railway Association (ARA) in the early 1920s was to produce an all-steel box car that could be recognized as a standard by the member railroads. Although the original design presented in 1923 produced in excess of 60,000 cars, it wasn't until a new design was presented in 1932 that the member railroads gave their approval.

After extensively testing five prototypes in 1933, over 14,500 cars were produced for twenty-three railroads throughout the following decade. This design soon evolved into the 1937, Modified 1937, and Postwar AAR box cars.

Although not the most popular design produced, numerically speaking, the 1932 ARA Standard box car is considered one of the most important designs in railroad history. Dimensions of the cars varied slightly between the various roads with some having slightly higher roofs than others.. Standard dimensions of the prototype were 40' long, with an interior height of 9'-8".

PNW Steam Shop also has a number of amazing decals that you can purchase separately to go with the boxcars that you build. Decal sets that are available include:

• Bangor & Aroostook
• Chesapeake & Ohio
• Chicago Great Western
• Clinchfield
• Central of Georgia
• Canadian Pacific
• Delaware & Hudson
• Erie
• Louisiana & Arkansas
• Maine Central
• Missouri Pacific Lines
• Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis
• Nacionales de Mexico
• Norfolk Southern
• New York, Chicago & St. Louis (NKP)
• Seaboard
• Soo
• Western Maryland

Tap here to view the ARA 1932 40′ Boxcar instruction set in the PNW Steam Shop