Prototype Atsf passenger cars

[Anonymous]

I want to run passenger trains on my 4x8 ho layout. I read an article in a model rainlroader last year about pike size passenger trains and thought this was a great idea. However I am unsure how the "newer" longer passenger cars will run. Today's cars are longer than they used to be.

[Anonymous]

Your best bet would to run either Athearn or Con Cor cars. The models you mention are prototypically scaled in length of 80-85 feet in length. Athearns and Con Cors shorties are 72 scale feet in length. The longer cars will require a minimum radius of 30 inches, the shorter cars will work on radius's of 18-24 inches.
Ch

[Anonymous]

Good suggestion. I use the 72' cars on 24" curves and they work fine.

[Anonymous]

Thank's for the advice. perhaps I should also post this question in the protoype forum.

[dknelson]

The Con-Cor smooth side passenger cars are shorties; the Con-Cor fluted side cars are ful length. Don't ignore the new 60 foot standard passenger cars from Walthers. There were actual prototypes for cars this long -- unlike the 60 foot streamlined cars from Mantua, Model Power and some others.
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

For a layout that small. it might be a good idea just to run an RDC. The Santa Fe had a couple of RDC-1's (all coach). One of them was rebuilt into something that looked like an RDC-2 (baggage-coach). A doodlebug is another option. In the last decade of real passenger service, the Santa Fe ran a train using a dieselized doodlebug (actually two) along with a streamlined observation coach or less frequently, a straight coach. Also active well into the 1960's were mixed trains. Short, mineral brown combines along with some freight cars and a GP7 or two provided service totally ignored by our glorious government today. Instead we have foreign oil, oil wars, and terrorism on our shores. There IS a connection.
Stephanie Stout

[Anonymous]

I run 2 80' vista dome and observation Walter's cars and some Bachmann heavywteights on a 22" radius curves pulled by a BLI EMD 7A and have no problems. It really runs smoothe.