HO Projects 2026

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8. Assembling the Body
Two boxcars are shown, the one on the left is the newer style with molded doors and separate ends. On the right is the older style with molded ends and separate doors. The construction sequence will include both styles.

a.  Ends
Note that the ends fit a specific end of the body. The body has recesses, one rectangular and one square. The ends have protrusions corresponding to the end they fit on.
UPPER LEFT: I fitted one end on and found it would not set flat against the body. I discovered there was a lip at the top of the body.

UPPER RIGHT: I used a 9" double cut wedge file to smooth the end.

LEFT: I applied small amounts of styrene cememt, with a round toothpick, at these three places on the end. Don't put the glue all the way to the outside edges or it may squeeze out when the ends are attached.

RIGHT: The ends glued on. Be sure to align the roof end that has the loop for the brake wheel with the end that has the vertical brake staff.

b.  Roof
Use the square file to ream out the only round hole on the roof. This is because the pegs on the roof walk won't go into this hole properly.

Then lightly enlarge the brake wheel mounting hole.
Snap the roof in place and use the toothpick to glue the roof to the body from the inside.

c.  Roof Walk
The roof walk has to fit all the way down until it touches the molded in roof walk supports.

LEFT: A test fit shows that the walk does not set flat when put in place; see the gap in the middle.

RIGHT: use a toothpick and put styrene tube cement on the roof walk supports.
LEFT: The roof walk is re-installed and the body turned on its top; ressure is applied.

RIGHT: The roof walk properly installed.

d.  Brake Wheel
Make sure the brake wheel is level in both directions. It will be painted after body assembly is finished. For a prototypical look, the brake wheel staff should extend about 3' above the roof. I didn't worry about doing this as it makes the brake wheel vunerable to damage.

e.  Platforms
The doors on the left are ice hatches for use on refrigerator cars. Put them aside if the model is not a refrigerator car. The platform glued on the roof is from an eBay purchase and did not come with the MDC kit. This is to show how the boxcar roof should look.

f.  Doors
LEFT: Here are two sprues with the door guides. The black set shows the bottom and the red set shows the top. The guides look like they are one piece as there is so much flash. Carefully cut them off and remove the flash.

RIGHT: use the square file to enlarge the holes.
The upper door guides have a wide top edge.

LEFT: upper door guides laying on the top edge showing edge width. I shortened the pins before installation as stock length did not allow the guides to slide up to the body.

RIGHT: the guides have to be straight and fit against the body. Put styrene cement on the edge that touches the body and hold in place while the cement works. I also put some on top of the guide and then wiped any excess off.
Once the upper guide is firmly in place, put a smear of styrene cement on the body, in the smooth space below the door opening and lay the door in. Make sure the door is straight and not twisted. Then put a few smears of glue on the inside where the door and the opening meet.
The lower door guides are difficult to clean up as the flash obscures their shape. Plus the plastic is soft and it is hard to hold the pieces to clean up. The test fit shows the holes in the body are spaced too close to allow the guide to fit. I enlarged the right hole a bit with the file until the fit was good. The photo shows the body without the door but this still works when the door is cemented in.
Put smears of glue on the bottom side of the guide to hold it straight.
All pieces installed. There are several spots where the glue is glossy and shows, but these will be touched up with paint. It is evident from the photo that I didn't get the door guides installed as good as they should be.

g.  Touchup Painting




This primer is close enough in color to paint the brake wheel. Spray a bit on the pallet and add a couple of drops of the Testors thinner off to the side. The primer dries so fast that it will be hard before it can be applied to the car body. Mix a center point with both and swish with the brush to find the desired thickness.




Since the last two bodies are darker, Testors Flat Black will be added to the pallet. You just have to guess when the color is close.

h.  Completed Bodies

9. Completion






Photos of completed cars
For more information on MDC 36' Old Time rolling stock: For prototype photos:
HO Projects 2026

MDC Part 1     MDC Part 2     MDC Part 3     MDC Part 4
Copyright © Jack Hess 2025