This 70-ton Air Slide covered hopper is from an American Standard kit from the 1990's. American Standard is best known in O scale/gauge for its well detailed heavy weight passenger car kits and later light weight streamline kits a well. Yet they also fielded some freight cars, this being one of them, as well as a modern (for that time) Rail-Gon being the other.
The 70-ton Air Slide covered hopper was not a common O scale car back then, other than a few expensive brass imports. The kit is styrene with some cast plastic parts - car sides, hoppers, end vents, shaker castings, bolsters, ladders, running board, roof end platforms, car steps and underframe ends. All else is styrene sheet and strips. Many of them, all inventoried on the instruction sheet, which has diagrams drawn and printed to 3/16"/ ft scale for this 1/4" /ft scale model. Deft handling of a scale ruler helps a lot. No couplers or trucks are provided.
I thought I might sell this kit. However, I probably not get anything near its original $ 19.90 cost from 30 odd years back. Even at $10 plus postage would be a price few would be willing to pay.
And it's not an easy kit to build. All the angle stock needed for car end bracing and roof ribs must be glued up from styrene strips to make the needed "L" shapes. The underframe center sill too, is built up with styrene strips. Further, it builds out to be a very light weight car in O scale, about 7 oz with Kadee couplers and Athearn "Symington" trucks under it. So, I put in an 8 oz block of wood to bring it up to a more road-able 15oz. But therein lies a tale.
I detailed the brake rigging underneath and added air brake piping as well. All was ready for the final part, installing the brake wheel with is rod and chains at each end, to connect with the brake cylinder below. Oh, I nearly forgot to say that its light weight also relates to its construction and details being rather fragile! Also, that added built-in weight can be a liability when handling this model.
The two photos below will give you some idea of what the car is like and the unfortunate accident I had when grabbing it as it was rolling off the workbench a few days ago. Other than those very fragile corner ladders that split down the middle of each rung on both sides, it is indeed quite repairable.
Later.
S. Islander