Purchased some Lou Cross Estate Kits???

Bob Delbridge posted:

Most of the instructions say to use items that are no longer available like Floquil paint.  Did someone buy the paint line (are they selling remaining stock or making new paint?) or is there a match from the Tru-Color line of paints?

Floquil is gone except for guys selling it on eBay for 4-5x's retail, but given the supply is zero, your demand may justify that expenditure, or not.  Tru-Color is there as are the Scale coat paints that Minuteman sells.  Basic colors - black hopper, maybe, just maybe  could just be a can of flat black Rustoleum or whatever other brand you like or already have on hand,

What's the best glue to use for wood/metal?  Does Ambroid still make glue, would Walthers Goo be the thing to use?

I suspect that you will get many answers to wood to metal.  I'll still use Goo but I'll combine it with medium viscosity CA during the process of fitting parts with Goo - totally unforgiving, but once set, and that combination sets very fast.

What do you guys do when mounting trucks to keep them from loosening due to vibration/movement around the layout?

4/40 screws - maybe a dab of Goo or CA on a thread, but I've not had that be a problem.

Should I apply sanding sealer before or after some of the parts are glued (would after help keep things square)?

Like on that hopper?  After, but not after the addition of detail parts that will get in the way of a little light sanding 400-600 paper or 00000 steel wool. 

I want to use as much of the wood as possible, but is there a particular wood part that I should replace with something else?

Like on that hopper?  You could sheath the wood sides, etc. with 0.005 or 0.010 styrene and then that sanding sealer step is by-passed....

I'm really excited about starting these, I plan on starting with the kit that has the best instructions and go from there, the Quality Craft N&W Hopper looks to be the most challenging.

Any other suggestions?

Good level workspace, good lighting, good music, good comfortable seating, and a good beverage (I recommend a good bourbon barrel stout from Alewerks) - fold in some patience and all of the usual tools, etc.

(Jay, can you send an updated list or are they all gone?)

That would be useful to post somewhere.......

Thanks Martin!  About the only problem I'll have is working at the desk, I have what I think is a bulging disk/disc in my neck (really should get it looked at )

2 or 3 of the cars have painted sides and recommend Floquil.  I think my stash of Freight car Brown is gone and hope the Tru-Color paint is a match.

I think I'll get some Goo, always liked using the stuff.

Hey Bob,

Sounds like they went to a good home.  Lou would have liked that.  He told me many times, he wanted folks to enjoy building them.

Bob did find more kits we didn't have on the first list.  Lots of Intermountain, more All-Nation, Ambroid, Athearn, Quality Craft, Labelle (interurban), Gloor Craft, Mainline Models, Weaver, Red Caboose, and 7 Hawk SF Cable Cars.  Bob wants me to re-build the spreadsheets but I'm tempted to just scan what he sent and distribute.  The new spreadsheets would be nice but I starting to make some people made because I'm not getting their project done.

Jay

Thanks Jay

More kits!!!  If Lou had this much stuff I wonder how many more people also have a stash like this? (now I've got my own stash...of 5)

I looked at the 5 kits I got and I'm amazed at the quality of the metal parts, especially the doors, ends, and roofs.  Somewhere there's all those dies/molds/stamps just waiting to be used again.

If all you need done is a simple Excel spreadsheet I'd be willing to help.  I'm not an expert but can enter data in a cell.

Bob,

I may take you up on it.  Right now everything is written on blue line and isn't consistent.  I spend more time trying to make sense of it than actually inputting data.

Jay

Bob Delbridge posted:

What do you guys do when mounting trucks to keep them from loosening due to vibration/movement around the layout?

I put some clear fingernail polish on the screw threads before screwing it in. Once it dries, the screw will not vibrate loose. But it can still be removed easily when needed.

RoyBoy, I've got a couple of passenger cars, 1 All-Nation, that the screws I'm using to keep the trucks on keep backing out.  The fingernail polish sounds like a good idea, thanks!

I have had such good luck with ScaleCoat and SC2 that I don't want to switch. I tried Floquil BN color back in the 70s never liked it. Can't go wrong with ScaleCoat.

Dick

Thanks Dick!  I keep forgetting about Scalecoat, even have Minuteman bookmarked

Bob:

What I like about ScaleCoat and ScaleCoat II was not having to spray a gloss coat for the decals as ScaleCoat is a gloss finish.

Dick

Dick, I have used Scalecoat and that is a plus.

While we're on the Scalecoat subject...anyone know if they have a color match for the B&O round-roof boxcar (M53?)???

I'm having a good time building these kits, reminds me of when I built RC airplanes back in the 70s.

The ScaleCoat paints offered by Minuteman seem to be a perfect match for the painted metal sides I've come across in a couple of these kits and go on real well with a brush.

 I just got a small order of ScaleCoat II from Minuteman. Only took a few days. It gets shipped as a hazardous material so UPS fro them to Sioux City was 13.00. Ouch. They had, I needed it.

Minuteman is going to be at the local NMRA Division show next month in Va. Beach, time to pick up a few bottles of paint!!!