Lionel Southern FT & passenger cars? - opinions?

[FEClionel]

I was thinking of adding the single FT and 4 car set to my mostly southern and midwest sytle layout. Anyone seen the FT in person - has it been shipped. I can nevr reall grasp how items will look when I see them in the Lionel catalog. Also do the passenger cars have names or numbers on the side?

[BMRR]

I have the four car Southern Streamliner passenger set, and they look great !! Yes, they have road numbers. I also have the coach and diner. Never seen the FT in person, but I have it on order from my LHS. Should be in the first week in March. When I first seen them, I had to buy all six cars.

Stan.

[Anonymous]

The Southern had 38 FTA units and 30 FTB units. None of the As had steam generators enabling them to serve as A-A in passenger consists. Howerver, FTB units #4300-4302 and #4308-4310 were equipped with steam generators which could have been mu-ed as A-B-A or A-B on passenger runs.

I have never seen a photo of FTs coupled to a passenger consist but with the locomotive shortage during WW II, no doubt at some point FTs pulled passenger trains, probably with #4300-02 or #4308-10 providing the steam service to the cars.

The FTs were built from 1939 through 1945---mostly in 1944-45 when the War Department approved. Photos show that they moved a lot of freight in A-B-B-A hook-ups.