Passenger Cars 2021

[Rufus T. Firefly]

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[up148]

I apologize for the poor photo quality, I'll get the cars out of the case and replace this photo with a better one later. These are Beaver Creek imports from the mid 90's and the only brass models of these cars offered in O scale to my knowledge. In fact, I was pretty ate up with the UP at the time and saw an add for a HO model of this prototype in MR or RC. So, I contacted the owner of Beaver Creek to see if he would do them in O scale. The owner (Chuck Heinz IIRC) agreed and I became a dealer for BC, with me handling O and Chuck HO. We had great plans to import some nice O scale UP models and then Chuck had a heart attack and passed away while these models were in shipment from Korea. Since I was a dealer, I had to pay up front and was on the line for several thousand dollars that I would have to refund if I couldn't get my models. Pretty intense at the time, as I was going to lose a big chunk of my modeling money. So, I worked with Chucks wife and together we had all the models sent out to BC's custom painters (that's how Chuck did his models) and they came out very well. I never met Chuck, but this was a pretty sad scenario and I really felt bad for is wife.

I bought these two models from an estate collection several years ago and they lived a hard life. Paint chips and some minor handling damage, plus coffee stains; I never understood coffee stains on a brass model, but I've seen it more than a few times over the decades.

I intend to repair the paint and other minor issues, but the models are very good overall and hard to find these days.

I remember back in the 90's, Lou Cross cut down an Inter Mountain boxcar or reefer to made a very accurate model of this car. There was an article in OSN.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

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[De Bruin]

Great models Butch and quite a compelling story behind them too, did I get this right that you are a defacto member of the fraternity of importers who didn't keep a sample/example of your own product(s)? since your two (very nice indeed) examples here are later acquisitions from another estate? Quite an irony to me yet a more common occurrence apparently then one would think.
You can post more photos of your shelves there anytime too, those CGW engines are nice looking!
Pete

[up148]

Yeah, that was the beginning and end of my O scale dealer days and no I didn't keep any of my original cars. Actually, I don't have any models that I owned back in the 90's (except for my Peter Basset custom built 2-10-2) and in fact, about every decade or so I do a purge for some reason. There are more than a few locos I wish I had back, but that's life I guess. Back in the 90's I had to buy and sell and try to make a little profit, so I could afford keepers, as I never imposed on the house for my hobbies. But, the internet and eBay killed that business.

The CGW locos you see are 3rd Rail and nice locos. Trying to find CGW F unit and GP's in brass would be tough, tough tough. I'm expanding my railroad horizons and picking up some Midwest roads that ran into St.Louis back in the 50's. I lived in St. Louis until I was 11 and have many fond memories of CGW, GM&O, IC and others running up on the Merchants High Line that paralleled the Mississippi and also came across the Eads bridge. I never knew as a kid just how many roads came in from the East, but it's a lot.

I would like to duplicate some of those memories in O scale..............and I'm burning out on UP. I think after almost 4 decades of collecting and running UP exclusively, I've had enough for one lifetime. I'll still keep my steam locos and first generation diesels, but turbines and other UP models will be going bye-bye.

[bob turner]

Well, at least keep your Corvettes!

[up148]

Yeah, it gets to stay.

[E7]

Good thing it is not UP gold!!!

Rich

[up148]

[up148]

Here are some better photos of the BC express boxcar. I didn't notice it until seeing the car in daylight today, but whoever painted this one got the doors a much different shade of yellow. But, that too can be fixed. Lots of little paint touch up areas and I need to pull the shell off and carefully clean it up with mild soap and water. But, still a magnificent model for the rare prototype and model. Offered with all 3 styles of high speed trucks...Symington-Gould, Allied full cushion and Barber stabilized. Looks like the wheels need to be changed out for code 145 too.

[De Bruin]

Nice photos Butch thanks, especially like the under body view too. Again a great model and quite faithful to the prototype.
http://s3.amazonaws.com/rrpa_photos/63711/UP%2024177.jpg

[Chris Rock]

This has been a great thread. I have some cars but will need to take some photos to post.

[De Bruin]

Thanks Chris, I know for fact you've a great roster of suitable subjects, we're definitely looking forward to seeing some of them here.

Have a few more here to share, this one a re-post from a fairly recent OGR string, a well deserved hagiography about the late Bill Wolfer. While not having anything to contribute regarding his prodigious Custom Brass/NJ International line, I posted this build of his, bought off Trainz during that short-lived commuter train collection sell off they had, likely an estate remnant, though not necessarily Wolfer's estate, the car was labeled for/by him circa 1965 .

Specifically here a P70FAR (Walthers 9175) quite well done with directional lit markers, albeit a very heavy "old school" car at 3-4 lbs.

Lots of interesting detail "gingerbread" including the truck chains on Lobaugh PS trucks (not Commonwealths but not too far off the NPSC mandated improved trucks to "modernize" these cars either) note also modified for track powered car lighting. The only ding I have for the car outside of it's weight is the ends of the roof, oddly, cut and refitted with separate pieces.

Interior is all white metal hence the excessive weight of the car, note Walther interior tube lights which all still work albeit do seem to pull down the track power.

While I post this as a study to see how many here actually read OGR thoroughly, I was indeed delighted with getting this car from Trainz for pretty cheap, and yes I have more of these Walther 9175's....oh boy

[sarge]

A little reminisce regarding Bill. I remember him showing up at any number of shows with tables of this stuff along with his electric locomotives. He did strings of Walthers cars.

Invariably he had a set of CLW PRR PAs on his table, priced obscenely just to annoy the punters knowing Bill. The PAs originally came from Bob Clarke’s estate, one of the originals of the Armstrong/Stepek DC crowd.

He had a partner in the passenger car business, Dick Bregler. Dick made his own sides; I had a set of the signature ‘48 Century cars here from Dick. The pair of them were in California by then, but still strong ties to guys like Tony Ambrose and the Philly crowd.

If memory serves, the NJCB imports in that era had domestic drives, the electrics Wolfer, the diesels either AN or CLW, and the steam a design by Stu Kleinschmidt that no-one liked at the time but I found very tune-able.

Some of this might actually be right. GRIN!

[bob turner]

The E44 and GG1 trucks were perhaps Bill Wolfer's crowning achievement. I saw some of his PRR cars at his Orange County abode, and was impressed. He also had a 9" South Bend - that alone was enough to make me favorably impressed. I may have met him in Philadelphia in the late 1950s, since at the time I was a kid bothering the guy at the Olney Miniature Train Shop. I want to say Bill Thomas, but now not sure - anyway he hauled me around Philly to see some serious O Scale. Those $7.50 Max Gray freight cars really caught my attention.

Bill Thomas went off into 3-rail, but he was a talented custom builder back in the mid-century.