Do these kits represent the same thing?
I was about to pull the trigger on the saber g10 and realized I already have a miniart covered goods wagon. … And then I realized I already have TWO miniart covered goods wagons.
I think they are variations of a theme, in that they don’t seem to be identical in design/appearance they do seemed to perform the same function.
The Miniart seems to have some type of shelf or bar inside and is perhaps shorter(?).
Are yours the 18T ‘NTV’ wagons?
The Saber is the sexier of the two, I will say.
These are both “boxcars”, i.e., goods van/goods wagon/cargo wagon, etc. Miniart’s is a Russian and Soviet Railways Standard Covered Van (NTV) of 18t capacity. Saber’s is a Deutsche Reichsbahn covered van/goods wagon/boxcar. They seem to be of a similar design across the national railroads of Europe.
Except for on-line reviews I have never seen a Miniart or Saber boxcar but I have reviewed Armor 35’s [https://archive.armorama.com/review/14226/index.htm](https://Soviet Railway Boxcar). You can also find reviews of track, a flat car, Ua Railcar - a track gang’s “speeder”, railroad figures, etc. via [ MORE REVIEWS ].
If Sabre G10 is like their Ssyms flatcar, it is absolutely reccommendable. Excellent kit.
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Thanks. I guess there’s only so many ways to design a box. Good background.
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And they also have another DR boxcar kit available. Very interesting.
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Erwin, another goodie. It may be a couple of hours before I can look it up so I’ll ask you, what does “Gedeckter” and “Güter” translate into? Something about the floor, and “guter” would be goods wagon, i.e., cargo?
If I recall correctly, Saber entered into an agreement to help Thunder Models with their kits? I recall a couple of years ago that Libor thought they were copying his models, but Thunder made amends and offered a cooperation.
It surprising and amazing how many unique designs were/are created for boxcars in North America. There are a lot of freak designs for specific uses. Like this St Louis & Santa Fe design for loading automobiles.
https://www.westkentuckynrhs.org/regional-rail-news-2/
I just received this book yesterday
Gedeckter means covered, so what you yanks would call a box wagon. Güter indeed means cargo.
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There were/are quite a few cargo wagons in Europe too… Though there is as standardisation too. It can be seen by the letters in the naming (like Symms). Each letter has a meaning.
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Just a reminder that in the USSR / Russia (1524mm) and in Europe (1435mm) there are different track widths.
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Yes, the myth holds that the Czar did choose for this because it wouldn’t allow the Europeans to invade his country utilizing the railroads. I read somewhere else this was a economical reason: it would be cheaper (why?) to use and maintain a wider gauge. This also necessitated to change the bogies of the all wagons that went cross border into Europe and China.
(see Railroad Gauges and Russian Border Crossings)
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Interesting article. Thank you. The description of the current situation is a little outdated, but in general everything is true.
The difference in the track did not prevent the Germans from reaching Moscow, and the Soviet troops from reaching Berlin. So it’s really a myth.
What is interesting is that in India and Pakistan the gauge is even larger: 1,676 mm
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I understand the article is not up to date. It just fascinates me that the change of bogies occured with the passengers inside the coaches. It is a time consuming operation, taking many hours of intensive labor. I think that these days, there should be a more effective way of doing that. Even simply put another train ready an let the passengers switch.
The Germans simply rerailed the Russian track to get the German (and other “accuired” European rolling stock) onto it…
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I had to undergo this procedure: once (2005) I went to Bulgaria by train. It took 2-3 hours for the entire train. Everything is already well thought out. In addition to the cart, the towing devices are also being changed.
Here you can see a well-illustrated story about this procedure. Смена железнодорожных тележек на российскую колею в Бресте » BEST - Все самое лучшее в сети
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Interesting article. Thanks…
It requires special wheelsets to do it, but there are gauge-changing facilities that will allow an entire train fitted with the wheelsets to be pushed or pulled through, gradually compressing or expanding the wheel separation, to allow the train to be driven straight through from one gauge to the other without having to change out the bogies/trucks on each carriage. See Variable gauge - Wikipedia
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Nightmare! I did not think that everything is so bad and confusing. Europe and the USSR is not the most difficult case.
Thanks for the link.
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