NEB&W Guide to Westerfield Rolling Stock Kits

Last Update: 2009-04-19

Rolling Stock Models Guide Table Of Contents
Freight Car Guide Table of Contents
Rolling Stock Table of Contents

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• Box Cars
  
• Stock Cars
  
• Reefers
  
• Gons
  
• Hoppers
  
• Misc. Cars
  

The Westerfield web site is one of the most useful and comprehensive, with accurate information about their cast resin kits. I'm not trying to duplicate it here, but go beyond some of the information to put their kits in context.
Al Westerfield has been producing cast resin kits since 1982. At first, he used polyester as the resin, which is very brittle. It was like assembling a glass model. Then he switched to a more flexible resin, as did everyone else in the hobby. In the last couple of years, he has been switching to one piece bodies, which are less intimidating to the novice.
Westerfield's field of interest is the 1900-1935 era, but many modelers might think that this equipment in general is too old for a late steam pike. Nothing could be further from the truth.
One of the turning point in the RMRRS's growing interest in freight car was a chart from a late '40's Railway Age, which bemoaned the age of the national fleet at that point. The effects of the Depression and the War had sort of frozen the railroads into a time-warp. They were trying valiantly to catch up with big orders for new freight cars right after the War ended, but it took almost a decade to catch up. Even as late as 1953 or so, cars from the late '20's or earlier were an enormous part of the fleet. Yet just as suddenly all the old steamers were gone, replaced by shiny new diesels, most of the old wood and composite cars had been replaced by shiny new steel cars. (Okay, the change wasn't quite as drastic, but bear with me here, I am trying to make a point here.)

Box Cars

• 36 Foot Box Cars
  • Double-Sheathed Wood Box Cars
    • PRR XL Box Cars
    • Santa Fe Bx-0/5/14 Box Cars
    • Santa Fe Bx-W, X, Y & Z Box Cars
    • Southern SU Box Cars
    • New Haven Fishbelly Side Sill Box Cars
  • Single-Sheathed Composite Box Cars
    

• 40 Foot Box Cars
  • Double-Sheathed Wood Box Cars
    • 40 Foot Harriman Box Cars
    • 40 Foot B&O Box Cars
    • USRA Double-Sheathed Box Cars
    • CB&Q XM-17/18 Wood Box Cars
    • GN 9000 Series Wood Box Cars
    • Tall Wood Box Cars
  • Single-Sheathed Composite Box Cars
    • 7-Panel Howe Truss Single-Sheathed Box Cars
    • 9-Panel "Bettendorf"-Type Single Sheathed Box Cars
    • 9-Panel Tall "Bettendorf"-Type Single Sheathed Box Cars
    • 7-Panel Pratt Truss Single-Sheathed Box Cars
  • Steel Box Cars
    • PRR X25 Box Cars
    • USRA-Type Steel Box Cars
    • Tall Steel Box Cars

• 50 Foot Box Cars
  • Single-Sheathed Composite Box Cars
    
  • Single-Sheathed Steel Box Cars
    

Stock Cars

• 36 Foot Stock Cars
  
• 40 Foot Stock Cars
  

Reefers

• 36 Foot Reefers
  
• 40 Foot Reefers
  

Gons

• 40 Foot Gons
  
• USRA-Type 46 Foot Gons

Hoppers

• Two Bay Hoppers
  • Fishbelly Side-Sill Hoppers
  • Pennsy GLa-Type Hoppers
  • Channel Side Twin Hoppers
  • Other Two Bay Hoppers
• Three Bay Hoppers
  
• Four Bay Hoppers
  
• Ore Cars
  

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