Hoogerland National Railways Gondola Page

Gondolas

Gondolas are some of the simplest and oldest freight cars. Basically a flat car with raised sides, they can carry a variety of cargoes, and are frequently seen hauling scrap iron. Wooden train gondolas are some of the most useful cars, since they can carry everything from green plastic army men to tiny teddy bears.


'97 Red Gondola	I made the original 3" gondola out of poplar with a basswood frame. You can't really tell from the picture, but there are tiny nails attaching the sides to the ends and bottom. It's basically a open-topped box made of 1/2"x1/8" boards, with a 1/8" thick bottom, glued onto a frame block 5/8"H x 3/4"W x 2 3/4"L. The details were drawn on with a fine-point marker and straightedge.
In 1999, I changed the gondola design a little. I switched to maple and left out the nails, since they probably weakened the wood as much as they strengthened the attachment. I also made the sides a little taller (raised to 5/8"). The frame was thinned to 9/16" H x 3/4"W.
'99 Red Gondola	'99 Blue Gondola
Another addition for 1999 was a a slightly larger version (3 1/2" long), with a fancier frame design (two 1" blocks of frame stock with a piece of 1/4" x 1/2" in between). This was for the "Level 2" freight train.
'99 Big Red Gondola	'99 Big Blue Gondola