This 50' bulkhead flatcar now contains 20 lifts of sheetrock and is ready for weatherproof wrap. I already have an idea for banding everything down, but would appreciate advice on materials and techniques for covering the load. 
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Robert. You might consider paper towels(other than kitchen strength). There are also same size towels on a similar roll that are reusable(a few times) that come in blue. Cut the stock to the approximate size, dampen and drape over your loads. Remember to cover the front and back between the bulkheads. When dry, trim with a hobby knife.
Your load has a lot of detail, the same 'load' could be replicated with a block of wood under the 'tarp'. It is going to be a shame to cover such a nice load.
John in Lansing, ILL
"Your load has a lot of detail, the same 'load' could be replicated with a block of wood under the 'tarp'. It is going to be a shame to cover such a nice load."
John in Lansing, ILL
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That is how I feel, as well. I am hoping to find a translucent material that will allow the load to partially show through.
@Rob Leese posted:"Your load has a lot of detail, the same 'load' could be replicated with a block of wood under the 'tarp'. It is going to be a shame to cover such a nice load."
John in Lansing, ILL
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That is how I feel, as well. I am hoping to find a translucent material that will allow the load to partially show through.
have you considered pantyhose?
Nahhh. :-)
I plan to experiment with wax paper, plastic bag material, or dull coated pallet wrap to see if any of those look convincing.
i’m just saying, it may be worth trying if you use something bright and really high sheer. 
thinking about it more, a section of grocery bag might work pretty well.
What about a net bag, like oranges, onion, potatoes... or "fishnets" 
Synthetic wont really like paint though. I think if you could find a natural fiber you'd be all set. (what do military modelers use for camo nets?)
Tissue or paper towel or light cloth for canvas.
Modern shipping might have plastic shrink wrapped loads. I'm not even sure they band them anymore; they might just make a "plastic mummy" and call it done.
Experiment #1. Wax paper to simulate thick clear weatherproof wrapping bound with black pinstripe tape to represent metal banding.
These loads are not glued down, so they can be changed.
Comments?
Robert, That looks realistic and allows the load to be appreciated. John in Lansing, ILL
Rob; Nice work that looks super.
Looks good to me. Well done.
Thank you for the feedback. If I could find an instance of metal banding that wide I might be satisfied, but as it is, the banding would measure 1:1 a full six inches. Too wide, I say. What strikes me funny is that I switched this type of car load out of Georgia Pacific on a nightly basis, but have no memory of how the cars actually looked. That was only 39 years ago.
I was gonna say. The only “issue” is the banding is way out of scale. You might try something like EZ line, which is a black elastic thread, comes in a few thicknesses, glue it to the bottom, stretch it around and glue the free end down to the bottom. The elasticity holds it tight. Outside of that, It may be hard to get something to stick to wax paper real well.
@Boilermaker1 posted:I was gonna say. The only “issue” is the banding is way out of scale. You might try something like EZ line, which is a black elastic thread, comes in a few thicknesses, glue it to the bottom, stretch it around and glue the free end down to the bottom. The elasticity holds it tight. Outside of that, It may be hard to get something to stick to wax paper real well.
Thank you Boilermaker1. I am not fishing for compliments...I'm looking for better solutions. Will check out EZ Line.
Months later, we now have this.
The banding is made from ‘heavy’ grade E Z Line.
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