Model Railroading > 4650 centre flow hopper..Atlas or I.M. (HO)

I have a number of these hoppers from both.
The bays on the I.M. are a lot lower than on the Atlas units

Who's correct? hmm!!

The general consensus as I remember it from the lengthy discussion on the Modern Freight Car List was that the Atlas model is more accurate in terms of the shape of the body, especially in regards to the upper part of the sides, between the early and late phases. The only drawback of the Atlas model is the lack of weld seams on the sides, but it some ways, this works out better because it allows you to scribe seams to match the prototype you're modeling.

I think the hopper outlets on the two cars are kind of a toss-up, because there are a fair number of variations in the prototype anyway, so you might end up having to kitbash them if you want to replicate a particular style.

I'm very picky about these things, and I chose the Atlas model as a better starting point because of the body style issue mentioned above.

Dave