Hello Everyone,
I’m looking for rolling stock in N gauge from 1880 to 1918. Is there a way or trick when looking at rolling stock, on let’s say Walthers or some other supplier, to determine the era of the rolling stock?
Not really. A lot of rolling stock lasted a long time. Your era is very young and there is not as much out there from thast period. Even with my 1939 period, a lot of stuff has repain schemes instead of my period even though it was built then.
Don, you are going to be doing a lot of scratchbuilding. All I know of are the Bachmann “old timers”, and there are only about a half-dozen of those.
Our host, Steven Otte models this time period in HO scale. He has posted in the past about the limited number of models in his chose time period, it must be much more difficult in N scale.
May I ask, what are you using for locomotives? There is nearly nothing available in N scale I know of that would be approriate.
-Kevin
Hi Kevin,
I have a Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 Consolidation N Scale loco. Just getting started in the hobby. Thanks for the info.
OK, this is all quite good.
The Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 represents a model that could have run all the way into the 1950s. This opens up your period to the 30s and 40s if you care to move it a bit.
There are plenty of N scale freight cars that are from the 30s and 40s, and Microtrains even has a few that the design dates to the 1920s.
Just something to consider.
-Kevin
Yes, I’d be interested in that era also. The problem for me is when I’m looking at one online from Microtrains, or some other supplier, how do I determine the era?
Atlas made early 4-4-0 locomotives in N scale like you need, you might check eBay, I’m sure they show up from time to time. As far as rolling stock, the only companies that I know who make what you need is Micro-Trains and Bachmann.
Ralph
The PWRS advance website gives you the option of what era to search. While that still offers up things later than I want it has also made me aware of things I did not know existed.
You have to develop an eye for railcars and learn some of the history of railcars. You can develop your eye when looking at rail photos. Try and date the cars in the pix. If you are really lucky the photo caption will give the date of the photo. Also, heavy equipment like rolling stock was expected to last for forty years or more. So a car or locomotive built in say 1880 might still be running in 1920. Cars were originally built of wood. All steel cars did not become common until maybe 1900, maybe a little later. Older freight cars were often only 35 feet long.
Things to look for:
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Arch bar trucks. They came in sometime after the civil war. They were banned from interchange sometime in the 1930’s. The bar stock they were made from was not all that strong and had a tendency to break, which usually caused a derailment.
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Janney couplers (knuckle couplers) came in sometime after the Civil War. Prior to that link and pin couplers were used. The big benefit of the Janney coupler was cars could be coupled and un coupled without requiring the trainmen to step in between the cars. A careless engineer on the switch engine could slam the cars together yielding mashed trainman. They passed a federal law requiring universal use of Janney couplers sometime in the late 1800’s. Google ought to find you the exact date. Useful for dating photographs of prototype cars. In American HO we all use Kadee couplers on our models.
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Air brakes. Westinghouse airbrakes were required by federal law again some time in the late 1800’s. Actually cars with or without
THE BOXCARS, TANKCARS & GONDOLAS WERE WOODEN Up to WW2 ! 36’ foot cars were a norm during the early years. You would search for 36’ or wooden sides. Micro trains did offer freight cars from the 19th & early 20th century .
They may have had wooden sides, but the steel underframe was already a thing. Wooden underframes were banned from interchange in 1928, so they were already well out before that point.
36’ cars started being built around 1890, 34’ or even shorter were common before that. 40’ cars became more common around WW1 - however up until the late thirties most 40’ cars were only about 8’-1/2" high, not the 10’-6" that many of us picture as a ‘standard’ boxcar. Some cars from the 1880’s were even smaller in height.
Steel cars were being built back to the 1890’s but an all-steel car wouldn’t become the norm for new cars until around 1925-30. During the 1910’s-20’s, new cars were often a mix - steel underframes, steel ends and roof, but with wood sides. Due to steel being needed for war materiels, during WW2 some new freight cars were built with wood sides.
Gidday Don, while he works in HO scale, Forum Member Dave Husman models the 1900-1905 period and I consider that his site would be well worth a look regarding what you should be looking for in the way of rolling stock.
Cheers, the Bear.[:)]
Some of them designed with provisions for steel sides to be inserted after the war, even.