Does anyone know where I can get (preferably free) blueprints of train cars (or detailed photographs from all angles). I want to build some train cars of different types for my hobo series in the Poser gallery, and I was only able to find models of a 40' boxcar and a flatcar that were realistic enough for my  needs, and so I want to try building some myself.

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Jeff

Renderosity Senior Moderator

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Attached Link: http://www.the-blueprints.com/index.php?blueprints/trains/

This is the best I came up with the last time I looked. Mostly engines, but there are a few wagons and carriages in there.

http://paintshop.railfan.net/paint_scheme_design.html
The Railroad Paintshop- Here you will find crisp vector work side and front views of many different types of engines and rolling stock, as well as various railroad equipment and lineside structures. They even have great ideas for railroad paint schemes if you want to texture your own road name. Hope this helps.

My youngest brother is part of a model railroad guild in this area, he suggests going to the library where you live and get  some books. He states unless you are part of a local guild or know someone in the guild most blue prints cost any where from $10-$50 depending on the site, rarely any give away free.

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You might also be surprised at what you can find doing an image search under related subjects.

One thing I definitely need, tho, that none of those sites have, and that I can't find on a google image search, is a top-view of a covered hopper car (a.k.a., grain car). One of the things I'm doing with the images I'm producing is I plan to use them as illustrations in a book I'm writing about when I was a hobo, and I'm trying to build models of the different cars I actually rode on. Some grain cars have a platform on the end that hobos sit on (some don't have the platform), so I really also need a close-up of the platform area, something else I can't find. I could probably try to model that part from memory, tho.
As for paint schemes, I plan to reproduce the actual paint schemes of the roads I rode on (Santa Fe, D&RGW, Burlington Northern, UP and Illinois Central Gulf)

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Jeff

Renderosity Senior Moderator

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If all else fails you might consider getting a scale model from a hobby store, or a garage sale.
I just found a long forgotten bonus box in my storage with a few N-guage railroad cars and a diesel loco. The couplers are way overscale but the other dimensions and details look pretty close.
I'm going to set up my digital camera with a tripod and take some reference pics to import into my modeling program. I've modeled sections of track from real-world photos. I wouldn't model track using most model railroad track as a reference, unless it's "fine scale".

Yeah, I've thought of that too.  I rememebr my brother's N-scale trains, with their grossly oversize couplers (if they scalwed them correctly you'd need a tweezers and a jewelser's loupe to work with them).
If I did that, I'd have to get O-scale cars because of my bad eyesight, tho.

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Jeff

Renderosity Senior Moderator

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Mi parolas Esperanton. Ĉu vi?

Attached Link: rail pictures.net

A search for "covered hoppers" on the site below turned up 5 pages of results. A few derailments so the hoppers are on their sides.

Here is a nice place to try called the BluePrints

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