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The kits seemed to be leftover stock from the 2014 Trainfest, They look pretty good still.

Big fan of Accurail covered hoppers

 Funnily enough I've just finished putting a data only one together, I find weathering easier to do on the slope ends before final assembly. Very affordable even here in the UK so getting a decent fleet of patched and weathered cars together won't cost a fortune, the new PS hopper is good too!

Looks great, and now more kit builds...

Sorry about weird order but here they are..

The four kits:

This one had some character which I really liked.

...

Starting with the other grain hopper was definitely a good idea, this second one was a little more difficult

NOTE: Have yet to build second hopper

Hoppers

Kits build character!  Yes, the older Accurail ACF 4600 is a MUCH easier kit than the recent PS 4750.  Newer Accurail kits tend to have more, and more delicate, parts.  As your experiences show, they're still simple enough for those who aren't veteran kit builders.

One thing that can often help is to use solvent cement on the mounting pin and/or hole so the paint can dissolve somewhat as you insert the part.  Many kit parts fit just fine unpainted, but the addition of paint makes them just a bit too tight.

Thanks, the solvent cement is

Thanks, the solvent cement is what I used (from testors)

A pin vise and set of drills

A pin vise and set of drills is also very good to have in the way of tools. You can use them on more detailed kits you will find to drill for things like grabs when needed or when predrilled to get the paint out of the holes.

I picked up one similar to this for about 12 dollars on sale at an electronics store. In hindsight I wish I had picked up more than one as some other guys would have liked them as well. It included the bits and the index which seems to be worth the price alone. I have been using it a lot and it can be used both as a Yankee Drill or just turned with your fingers. I have also used it to drill coupler boxes for 2x56 screws and it really speeds up some of those operations.

Soo Line Weathering

For first attempts I think I did pretty well. I started with gray on both sides and then added dirt and rust. (All with Pan Pastels Weathering Set)

Some really heavy weathering...

Please comment and let me know what you think