Model Railroading > Dent and defrom gondola side and top

I have a number of Exact rail SP gondolas and really would like to weather them up and add a bit a normal damage. But for the life of me I can not figure out a good way to put dents in the sides and top of them. Anyone have a great solution?

Thanks

Some folks heat the plastic with a soldering iron and use various implements to form the dents. Easy to do too much with this method; maybe practice on some junk shells before attacking your $50 freight cars.

Chad

Back in the good old days you would use a table top goose neck lamp using a 100 watt light bulb to slowly make changes. You would hold the gon near the lamp. It is NOT a set and forget project. Constant attention is required.

Something that needs to be mentioned since the article first appeared in Model Railroader Magazine, you must use a 100 watt incandescent bulb. LEDs, or CFLs do not generate the heat needed to melt plastic in a normal situation.

ʎɹɹɐ˥

There is a great way to do this I discovered on YouTube. You get two Athearn weights and "mask" the areas on either side of the panel and then hit it with a cigar torch (Eagle torch) for exactly two seconds. Then push in to make the dents with a dental pick. Do one panel at a time making sure the metal "masks" cover the area behind the posts so you don't heat the posts and damage them. The car in the pictures are my first attempt and I'm very pleased. Get a couple of old Tyco gondolas, like I did, to experiment on before you tackle an expensive car. You may think about less than 2 seconds on an expensive car as the sides are not as thick as the Tyco cars. Spend the $8 for the Eagle Torch at Walmart rather than use another type of torch because it has a finger trigger rather than a knob off which takes time allowing the car to cool. I use one hand for the torch and the other hand has the pick for immediate use.

Mike Stewart
Oakley, CA

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Thanks for the ideas. I'll give them a try.

Thanks again