I started out by cutting the frames to shape and size.  Since I was building four of these, a jig made a lot of sense.

Bolsters were built from I channel and acrylic.   The small piece of acrylic was tapped to hold the truck mounting screws.

I built up a coupler pocket using some additional basswood pieces.   These were nailed in place.

Eight sides are needed so it was necessary to build another jig to help glue the sides together.

The vertical posts are first drilled to allow for some nut-bolt castings to be added later.

Next, I distressed the long wood strips by running a razor saw to add some grain.

Glue is placed on the vertical posts and the strips are glued in place.

Once the sides are dry, I add some O scale nut-bolt castings in the previously drilled holes.

Grab irons are formed from brass rod. 

Each end is flattened on a small anvil.   Then I drill a hole in each end to accommodate the NB castings.

The grab irons on each end are formed a bit differently; each have to be bent to allow for the difference from the ends.

Stirrup steps are formed from brass strips and attached using squared off escutcheon pins.  

Brake detail is added using some commercial parts.

The truss rods actually work; I threaded some brass rod and put squared off nuts on each ned.

I fabricated the door opening control from styrene and NB castings.

For the ratchet and pawl, I started with a commercial casting and just cut the gear out for the ratchet.   The rest is from styrene strip.

The slope sheets were created by first edge gluing wood strips together.

These were then cut to shape and covered by some .010” brass sheets, also cut to shape.

I added some bolt heads and used a styrene angle piece to finish the outside edge.

The inside of the hopper was dyed with a solution of India Ink and alcohol, giving it a nice weathered finish.

Small pins were inserted into the holes to simulate bolt holes.  These are the same holes that the nut-bolt castings were inserted into from the outside.

Doors are made with some thicker brass sheet cut to size.  A rod ran across the hopper and I attached the chains to it with some glue.

I took some 1/2” angle pieces and spray painted them using a textured paint, to give it the look of some rough iron.

I then used some 1/8” angle pieces to hide the joint between the slope sheets and the sides.   Small pin heads were used to represent the bolt heads.

Finally, the slope sheets were painted with Neo-Lube from Micro-Mark.