Bachmann vs San Juan Car Company

All the rolling stock I have are from Bachmann which labels their On30 line as Spectrum. I have collected each piece of Rio Grande rolling stock that they sell. My collection did not feel incomplete though, because I knew that San Jaun Car Company sold a great Rio Grande stock car. The San Juan cars are the best On30 rolling stock you can buy, and you know it because of how much they cost. I have always admired their stock car. A local hobby store actual had one on sale so I got one.

San Juan Rio Grande Stock Car

I was so excited....until I got home. I learned a lot about coupler height and On30 standards that day. The problem was that Bachmann for some reason decided to build their On30 cars with HO coupler height. See pictures below.

A HO Box Car aligns perfectly with larger On30 box cars


Close up view of the matching couplers

So if you ever get the urge to run you HO cars with your On30 cars you are set. Otherwise it is kind of pointless, and frustrating if you want to purchase On30 cars outside of Bachmann. The San Juan cars are high quality and therefore are also to scale....even the couplers. The San Juan car did not match up with my bachmann cars. It looked so good, I didn't want to give it up.

My options were to buy a couple of converter kits for the Bachmann cars and run the San Juan car in the same place (boring). Or take it back and try to build my own. I deiced to take it back. I was able to get three new Bachmann cars for the price of the San Juan car.

I started off with a Bachmann unlettered stock car and airbrushed it "Engine Black".

Bachmann unlettered stock car

In the mean time I ordered some decals from San Juan Decals (Actual a different company than San Juan Car Company, but shares a web site to save money...that's what they told me). These are actually the same decals that go on the San Juan cars. They are high quality decals, and to throw in some authenticity they are based in Durango, Co.

http://www.sanjuancarco.com/sanjuandecals/index.html

To fit the large "Rio Grande" logo I need to add some more thin plastic to accommodate the size of the logo and add another piece for the number board. I added another coat of paint to cover the added plastic and let it dry. I let it dry for about a week and then started with the decals.

Working on the decals

Two down, lots to go

Putting on the decals was pretty easy. If you follow the instructions they will turn out great. When I was younger I built a model car with all kinds of decals and eventually they peeled off. I didn't want that to happed so I used "decal setting solution", the instructions actually tell you to use it, and it works wonders for "gluing" the decal down.

Once the decals had a chance to dry I applied a clear flat finish to make sure those decals were not going anywhere. The finish also helps blend in the decals to the model and makes it look nice.

Finished Product


Fits right in place, coupler height and all

I know it is not true prototype, but it will do.


Rio Grande

It was really fun to make this stock car. I thought about doing another one, or even making them and selling them to those who own all Bachmann, and want a stock car. It is my favorite piece of rolling stock that I have. I chose to number the car 5747 for a special reason, which I will get to in a later post.

Next on my wish list is a Rio Grande Long Caboose.