Old Kit Passenger Car Repair Question

[R.K. Maroon]

I found this interesting single-door, turn-of-the-century, truss-rod, open-platform baggage car some time back on eBay:



Many of the cast parts on this make me think it is a Walthers. I recall they had a series of open-platform Milwaukee cars in their catalog (maybe just before the war) but I haven't looked to confirm.

I believe it to be too early for my era of interest (~early post war) but unreason took hold and I bid. I have decided to fix it up and either run it and sell it or run it and keep it. One of the repairs is one I have not yet encountered. The roof fascia is made of cardstock and it has come loose on both ends:



It looks like the piece was cut from a printed template. In this "from below" shot you can see the tabs that were used to attach the fascia to the underside of the roof at each end:



The cardstock has lost its shape, so that just regluing the tabs won't cut it. So the question is how best to reattach this. I can think of a few ways to go but I am interested to see what others may think about this. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Jim

[ScaleCraft]

If you can form it, and back it with wax paper...thin super glue.
I restored a whole bunch of cardstock H0 cars some time back....dropped, crashed, cardstock mush.
Fixed it and made it workable with a file or sandpaper.
I have one of that series somewhere...open walkway along one side, I think.

[rex desilets]

Why wax paper?

[ScaleCraft]

Why wax paper?

uh....super glue has a hard time adhering to it? Dunno....whenever I glue anything that has to lay on something clamped...use wax paper.
May not work, but what else are you gonna back it with? Even if it does adhere, trim it with a sharp xacto blade and leave it.

[Chris Webster]

Any ideas would be appreciated.

Open a beverage that is in an aluminium can; poor beverage into glass.

Cut two (or more) strips from the empty aluminium can, bend those strips to the shape the cardstock needs to be formed into, place the cardstock between the two strips, clamp together, and then use a glue that doesn't bond to aluminium.

Toast yourself on your work and consume beverage.

[De Bruin]

I would defer to either Dave or Chris(beer especially) on this as I like both of their suggestions.
I (of course) don't like the way it was done to begin with so I would cut a stiff paper or sheet styrene insert based on that "space" and work it until fit
and then use the insert as a pattern to cut and sand an appropriately shaped bass wood insert.
I know,
I have "issues"

[ScaleCraft]

I would defer to either Dave or Chris(beer especially) on this as I like both of their suggestions.
I (of course) don't like the way it was done to begin with so I would cut a stiff paper or sheet styrene insert based on that "space" and work it until fit
and then use the insert as a pattern to cut and sand an appropriately shaped bass wood insert.
I know,
I have "issues"

Yeah....he asked about fixing existing....but I don't like cardstock free standing details at all.

Remove it and use it as a template for brass replacement...hope he can match the paint

[R.K. Maroon]

Thanks all. I have another small project on the workbench right now, so I will see if any other inputs come in before proceeding. Chris gets the award for clever humor here. I agree with Pete that it has the "have a beer" appeal, but I noticed that Chris never said anything explicit about an alcoholic beverage. I would have to be very careful not to stress the cardstock with whatever clamp would be used to make the aluminum-cardstock-aluminum sandwich, but it is a clever idea. Dave's idea is interesting as it would permanently stiffen the cardstock. The techniques could even be combined, I suppose.

As to replacing the cardstock, that is currently not an option I want to pursue. As mentioned, this turn-of-the-century car is probably too early for my early post-war Milwaukee Road Columbian, so I may wind up finding another home for it -- No reason to go overboard. Additionally, and maybe more fundamentally, I prefer the preservation route over the replacement option when viable.

More later
Jim

[ScaleCraft]

But...but...it's a baggage car!

North Coast Limited often had a heavyweight head end car. If serviceable, open vestibules might not be too much of a stretch...not available for passengers to roam.