Manufacturer
Atlas O LLC
378 Florence Ave.
Hillside, NJ 07205
www.atlaso.com
Era: 1986 to present
Comments: If you’re into modern railroading in O scale, this TrinityRail 25,500-gallon general-service tank car from Atlas O might be what you need.
The design was introduced in 1986 and continues in production today with at least 13,000 of the cars on the rails.
The reviewed model is decorated for Cargill vegetable oil service, carrying the appropriate reporting marks and number according to the Official Railway Equipment Register.
This finely detailed modern freight car is a mix of plastic and metal parts. The bottom of the tank and the end frames are die-cast metal while the remainder of the tank and many of the detail parts, such as the platform handrails, manway, brakewheel, and gearbox, are molded in various types of plastic. Grab irons, end railings, and safety railings along the bottom of the tank are formed wire.
The metal wheels are in gauge. The sprung die-cast metal trucks have separate brake shoes and the bearing end caps of the roll with the axles.
The die-cast metal couplers are at the correct height, but unlike the prototype aren’t shelf-type couplers.
The 15½”-long car weighs 1 pound, 7.6 ounces, nearly 3 ounces more than NMRA recommendations. Overall dimensions, such as the length over strikers and the coupler centers, match information from Trinity’s sales literature. The overall width is about 2 scale inches too wide, and the overall height is about 7 scale inches more than the diagrams.
The paint is neatly applied with clearly printed lettering, although the light gray area around the access hatch at the top of the car is slightly fuzzy around the edges.
In addition to the Cargill scheme reviewed here, the model is offered in Archer Daniels Midland , GATX (Rexene Corporation or BASF), PLM International Ltd., and Trinity Industries Leasing Co. with four road numbers apiece, and undecorated.
These tank cars would make a useful addition to any modern O-scale fleet.
