Hi yall, long time listener first time caller. With Scaletrains announcement of their reissue of the MTH N&W J class under their Fox Valley Models brand, I am looking to make an accurate consist for what it would have looked like on one of its trips up to Strausburg. I am a modern modeler and as such I don’t have a ton of knowledge on passenger cars of the era. What ought I be looking for to make a mostly accurate consist. I don’t need everything to be exact but ideally look right at home on my future Strausburg spur line.
Well first the picky response. The railroad isn’t Strausburg. It is Strasburg. There is a Stroudsburg up near the Delaware water gap. Strasburg is pronounced like the word as. Told you it was picky. When I was there last July just 611 was on a roundhouse storage track and I saw no N&W cars so they were either stored off site or Strasburg cars were used. Someone else will have to answer that question but there are lots of pictures on the internet to help you and the N&W historic society can probably give you the history of every car.
Slighly off-topic: I’m hoping with this new announcement of the N&W (MTH) passenger cars by Scale Trains, the NYC 20th Century Limited passenger cars will eventually be re-released, as well. (And with additional car names different from the ones already released by MTH back in early 2013.) I’m particularly interested in adding a 2nd diner to my 10-car consist.
I also hope that Scale Trains includes a similar lighting package using capacitors that MTH used in their cars. So MUCH better than messing with batteries.
On both of 611’s visits to Strasburg she pulled the regular Straburg train.
Have you ever been there?
The history of each car is different, but in general they are mostly authentic open platform wooden coaches from the 1890’s and early 1900’s.
Strasburg has about 20 operational passenger cars and can operate two separate trains. When traffic is at its peak in the summer two trains run on a 30 minute departure schedule and actually pass each other on a siding about halfway along the route.
It may be the only place left in the world were a regularly scheduled steam train passes another reguarly scheduled steam train.
Again, if you have never been, Strasburg is not your typical limited schedule tourist line. Trains run almost year round and in the warmer months trains run 7 days week from 10AM to 6PM and later at times.
Some of the cars on the train are interpretive reproductions build on original coach frames by the Strasburg car shop.
There are no “exact” HO models, but the previous MDC/Roundhouse/Athearn 50’ clearestory roof “Overland” cars are very representitive and have been available lettered in Strasburg colors at verious times over the years.
Their web site has lots of photos of the equipment. And there are
Gidday Sheldon, I don’t know why, but I would have thought the three cars I linked to, would have been in the 60+ foot length range though I note, with interest that in the site that you linked to…
Never the less, and this goes for all those professionals and volunteers who do such loverly work in restoring and maintaining railroad equipment for us to enjoy, albeit in my case by video, you all have my utmost admiration and thanks.
While not a rivet counter, having seen the open-ended cars that Strasburg does o
Most of the cars at Srasburg are between 60’ and 68’ - over the pulling faces. Making the car bodies in the 50’ to 58’ range.
There has been a long standing descrepancy in how passenger car lengths are decribed in North America. People still mix the two methods - total length over pulling faces and car body length.
The carbody length method did not always include vestibules or open platforms.
But the Roundhouse cars are the closest thing out there to these cars, and I can’t say I know the exact true length of those models because I don’t own any.
Strasburg does have one 80’ steel car.
As it turns out, I may be there tomorrow. The grandson and I have some free time…
Sorry for any confussion about the actual length of the these cars.
No confusion at all, Sheldon, some clarifation though.
If I’m scratch building / kit bashing a specific railroad car, I do like a proper dimensional drawing from the manufacturer, or from the model railroad press, but I’ll happily settle for written dimensions. Push comes to shove; I’ll scale my own drawing from a side on photo (s) using a wheel as my starting point. I just hope in that case, I guessed the wheels diameter correctly, 33” or 36”, but ultimately, I am a believer in that if it looks right, then it is right. (Not recommended for those who want to enter completions!!)
Hope you and your grandson have a great Day.
Cheers, the Bear, who can easily confuse himself!! [sigh] [:)]
Gidday Sheldon, great to read in your other thread that you and your grandson had an enjoyable visit to Strasburg.
I do have a couple of those HO scale “Old Timer” Roundhouse cars, (for a future MOW train) and out of idle curiosity took the measurements…
Thank you for the info. Had a feeling those cars were measured that way, 50’ car body. So that makes the Roundhouse car pretty close for the shortest cars of the Strasburg roster and about 10’ short of the longest.
While cars of this length do not pose any of the operational issues of longer passenger cars, I personally have never been uncomfortable with a little selective compression.
After all, we compress radius and turnout number quite a bit.
My new layout has 36" radius minimum curves on the mainline/passenger car trackage, with most curves being more like 40" radius and larger.
And still I prefer to avoid cars in the 85’ range, I have only few that are 80’, with most being in the 72’-78’ range.
I insist on close coupling and working, touching diaphragms on my passenger cars and this combination of car length, #6 and #8 turnouts, and 36"R or better curves provides a smooth realistic appearance.
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