ARISTO-CRAFT Freight Cars - 1:29 SCALE ROLLING STOCK
Manufacturer: ARISTO-CRAFT TRAINS/Polk's Model Craft Hobbies, Inc., 346 Bergen Avenue, Jersey City, NJ 07304. Price: ART-46115 Western Pacific stock car $49.95 each suggested list; ART-46508 Florida East Coast piggyback flatcar with two trailers $69.95 each suggested list; ART-41102 New York Central covered gondola $49.95 each suggested list.
ARISTO-CRAFT CONTINUES to expand its high quality line of very nicely decorated 1:29 scale ready-to-run rolling stock. The latest run includes new paint schemes of their stockcar, piggyback flat, and gondola.
The stockcar's scale dimensions work out to 40 feet 9 inches over the end sills, 10 feet 6 inches wide, and 11 feet 10 inches high from the bottom of the end sill to the top of the roofwalk, exactly the same as ARISTO-CRAFT's AAR boxcar. The piggyback car's length and width are the same as the stockcar; the gondola is slightly wider. Just as Athearn has done in HO scale, ARISTO-CRAFT has standardized many parts, such as floors, frames, and hardware, to reduce production costs and keep the cars affordable. And, as in the case of Athearn, the dimensions are still close to those of actual cars and the models are quite credible. We have no prototype plans for any of the review samples and are unable to verify accuracy. The instruction manuals with stockcar and gondola only say the model "is based on a forty foot steel freight railcar of the 1930s era. Actual prototype examples of this type car are still in limited use by North American railroads."
The stockcar's door has a working latch and slides open, revealing the floor with simulated wood planking common to all three models. The door guides are a little heavier than perfect scale in order to withstand the frequent handling often accompanying outdoor use.
Another nice touch is ARISTO-CRAFT's use of separate parts for the end ladders (plastic), brake hardware (also plastic), and grab irons (brass). The underbody "AB" brake rigging also consists of separate pieces and has good detail.
The Bettendorf trucks are crisp castings with working springs and show attention to such important details as brake shoes and journal box lids. The treatment ARISTO-CRAFT gives the roof is equally careful.
As with all ARISTO-CRAFT rolling stock, the biggest discrepancy appears to be the angle of the body bolsters. They are steeper than they should be and cause the cars to ride high. Manufacturers generally do that to allow trucks more room to swing so they can negotiate the unnaturally tight curves on most layouts.
All three cars are mostly plastic. The mold work is good and the castings have crisp detail. The assembly of our samples was very good with no glue spots, scratches, or other blemishes. Incidentally, aside from our samples, ARISTO-CRAFT offers rolling stock in no less than 63 other roadnames.
The couplers are ARISTO-CRAFT's knuckle type and they work well.
The cars operated through all our trackwork, including 2 foot radius curves, with no problem.
The trailers on the piggyback car seem to represent rather then duplicate actual truck trailers. The leaf springs, for example, only suggest detail. The tires have no treads. The axles bear little resemblance to real trailer axles. The end detail on the piggyback car is also sparse compared to that of the other two cars and the stirrup steps may be brass but they are less accurate than the plastic castings on the other cars. On the other hand, the trailer ends have operating doors and detach from the flatcar.
The ends of the covered gondola collapse inward to accommodate over-length loads. In order to keep them strong enough to withstand hard outdoor use, ARISTO-CRAFT beefed up their proportions and compromised their appearance. The gondola's cover snaps off so you may run the cars open. The cover's detail is good. Again, though, we have no prototype for comparison and are unable to report on the model's accuracy.
The real news is the decoration. Once more ARISTO-CRAFT's paint shop has excelled: No drips, runs, or sags; accurate colors; clean, crisp, opaque lettering; and clear, accurate emblems. The red and orange paint scheme of the Florida East Coast piggyback car with its contrasting silver lettering is positively striking. The herald alone has five colors. It even prints cleanly over all the contours of the bracing. And, even though such a scheme never existed on a stockcar, Western Pacific probably should have applied silver, black, and orange paint to them because the model looks great.
ARISTO-CRAFT's graphics department has paid a lot of attention to detail and, as usual, occasionally has allowed a little humor to find its way onto some cars. Markings on the WP car read "RETURN TO AGENT-MCCLOUD RIVER RR, HAMBONE, CALIF."
ARISTO-CRAFT's stockcar, covered gondola, and piggyback car maintain the same ongoing improvements to quality control as their other current production models. Each is well made and very attractive. For those with an interest in mainline, steam-to-diesel transition era railroading willing to overlook the gauge discrepancy inherent in 1:29 scale, ARISTO-CRAFT's latest rolling stock begs you to buy it.-RR
