PCA Cement Wagons

[bill badger]

After some searching I've not been able to find anything on this. I appreciate these are a fairly old now, so apologies is this is raking over long cold ashes, however...

 

I've seen Hattons have the Castle Cement PCAs in the bargain bin:

 

http://www.ehattons.com/52906/Graham_Farish_373_007C_PCA_bulk_powder_wagon_Castle_Cement_grey_weathered/StockDetail.aspx

 

Now I'm always wary of bargains as in my experience there's always a reason why they didn't fly off the shelves. Searching the Paul Bartlett site and other general googling hasn't turned up a prototype for these as modelled. The Castle Cement (and earlier Ribble Cement livery) PCAs seem to all have shorter top walkways (not a long the whole length as on the model) and the tank to chassis mountings are different; the model has flat longitudinal plates and perpendicular supports; as far as I can see the prototypes have curved panels. It also looks like either the tank might be too long (or the chassis too short).

 

For £7 a pop I will probably go for a few, for want of anything else (the newer Metalair PCAs are different to the Castle prototypes). There may be some reworking that can be done, or with new transfers and weathering they may be  'good enough' as a representation of the Ribble Cement rakes that ran from Clitheroe in the '80s. I just like to know what I getting myself into first.

 

Can anyone shed some light? 

[Stu from EGDL]

Hi Bill,

 

These are the previous tooling PCAs prior to the Metalair version as you correctly state. They are still a good wagon and run well, have decent (non NEM) couplings and look good in a block train. Downside is that they sit on a fairly generic chassis which has some inaccuracies and imperfections.....but most people can accept this. There is the option of altering the under frame, but that would spoil the ( admittedly basic) weathering. For £7 a pop, they are a fair purchase.

 

Later,

Stu from EGDL.

[alibuchan]

I have a rake of 18 all got from bargain bins and they run nicely. They aren't the best looking model but passing at a reasonable speed they are acceptable.

 

Alistair

[bill badger]

Thanks chaps. I'll find the cheapest I can and get a couple to see if they'll do. Given that PDA bogies, which would be the ideal wagon to represent the Clitheroe-Gunnie in the mid to late 80's, have never apparently been offered in RTR of kit form alternatives, they probably will!

[njee20]

Like Ali I've got a rake of 24 which is a mix of the older ones and newer metalair ones all picked up on eBay or bargains, the variety makes for a good looking rake, I don't mind the imperfections.

[PaulCheffus]

Hi Bill,

These are the previous tooling PCAs prior to the Metalair version as you correctly state. They are still a good wagon and run well, have decent (non NEM) couplings and look good in a block train. Downside is that they sit on a fairly generic chassis which has some inaccuracies and imperfections.....but most people can accept this. There is the option of altering the under frame, but that would spoil the ( admittedly basic) weathering. For £7 a pop, they are a fair purchase.

Later,

Stu from EGDL.

Hi

 

They can be improved with the TPM detailing kit. I'll see if I can photograph mine later if interested.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[Les1952]

Just on (or slightly off) that topic-

 

Does anyone do the earlier Cemflo?

 

Les

[Scottish Modeller]

Just on (or slightly off) that topic-

 

Does anyone do the earlier Cemflo?

 

Les

Hi Les,

 

No, but it would be an ideal multi era wagon to produce.

 

Thanks

[grahame]

Does anyone do the earlier Cemflo?

 

 

 

Yep, that and the Prestwin would pretty much complete the history of two axle dry powder/cement wagons in N gauge.

 

G.

[mikeharvey22]

Yep, that and the Prestwin would pretty much complete the history of two axle dry powder/cement wagons in N gauge.

 

G.

And the "double bubble" wagon which was essentially the continental powder wagon design with the cone sides flattened to British gauge.

 

http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/ferrystscement

 

And then for bogies there is the sodium tripolyphosphate (later starch) bogie tankers.

 

http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/proctorcerestarpba

 

and......

[Les1952]

I asked because the Cemflo was the wagon used in the bulk cement train that took Class 33s to York and Tyneside on a regular basis in the sixties- and which was also responsible for the demise of DP2.

 

I'll look out for Presflos as a substitute in the short term...

 

Many thanks

Les

[Revolution Ben]

Hello Bill,

 

Like many of the older Poole-era items, this is something of a generic model.

 

The underframe discharge gear and body details are, as far as I can tell, based on the Rugby Cement wagons - see http://paulbartlett.zenfolio.com/rugbycementpca- but as you have identified have many detail differences to the Ketton tanks.

 

The better bet for the Ketton trains is the depressed centre tank, but it still has flaws.

 

All these models can be much improved with the addition of appropriate TPM detailing kits.

 

The Metalair PCAs done more recently are a far more accurate model featuring finer, etched ladders and other details and well worth any additional cost in my view.  Just a note of caution - only a handful had the Blue Circle cement logo; the majority are plain grey.

 

cheers

 

Ben A.

[bill badger]

Thanks Ben,

 

I've picked up a handful of the Castle Cement PCAs as they will do to represent the Clitheroe (Horrocksford) to Middleborough flow (I've found a couple of photos, plus the Paul Bartlett pics). I'm developing a trackplan for Hellifield in the 1980s with a 'what if' most through freight on northern WCML was sent up the S & C, so would like to have a take on the Clitheroe - Gunnie rake; there's nothing I've come across to easily fill-in for the PDAs, but such is life... the Farish PCAs will have to do.

 

I'll look up the TPM kits.