We're closing in on the final woodwork of the boxcar body and will be turning our attention very soon to the trucks and some metal hardware.

For some of the more "ornamental" metal that will not see operational stress as it relates to a museum display, we have opted to try casting some parts out of polyurethane resin, and so far the results are excellent and the price is RIGHT. We're not doing this on grab irons, ladders, etc, but mainly on spacers, pole pockets, etc.

Check out

http://www.tarheelpress.com/LawndaleBox ... dware.html

What you are doing is interesting... you are carefully coping original parts in resin, producing accurate, but non working parts.

1) Good museum practice, but alien to an operating railroad museum.

2) Affordable for a non-operating restoration.

3) Innovative.