OK here is the deal
I have 2, maybe 3, Bachmann 2 axle Bobber Caboose chassis ( no bodies) that I want to repurpose on my layout (1950’s US east coast harbor theme) but aside from short cabeese and trolleys, I am having a hard time finding other appropriate cars to model them on.
On one I am planning to model a Scale Test car, but the other two are stumping me. Short 2 axle cars are not exactly ‘common’ on US railroads in any form, so I am offering it up here for suggestions, what to the history wonks here have to offer?
Any suggestions? Burro Crane? Covered Uranium Gondola?
Have fun with your trains
scale test car, GN had bobber cabeese, other than that I can't think of anything.
SP&S modeler, 1960's give or take a decade or two for some equipment.
http://www.youtube.com/user/SGTDUPREY?feature=guide
Gary DuPrey
N scale model railroader
There is some type of piggyback "spine" car in use called the Front Runner. Walthers offered a model of it for a while - but from what I heard, it had serious derailment issues.
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-3981
-Ken in Maryland (B&O modeler, former CSX modeler)
CSX_road_slugI remember there was some type of piggyback "spine" car in use ~10 years ago, Don't know exactly what they were called so I can't do an accurate Google search. Walthers offered a model of it - but from what I heard, it had serious derailment issues.
Not really much else in North American revenue freight service since the 1880s I guess.
chutton - I guess I was too late in correcting my post before you got to it - sorry about that.
Espee had several 6,8 &10 ton self powered steam cranes on its roster, with one exception all had 2 axles, the odd ball included lead & trailng trucks similar to a steam locomotive which is proper since it was constructed from the frame of a scrapped electric locomotive! The boom tenders were unique for having only 2 axles as well and not exceeding 12 feet coupler to coupler!
Dave
I always liked the 2 axle (4 wheel) wagons of European railways (of course, most new wagons now have 2 axle-bogies (trucks), giving them the 4 axle profile typical of North American rolling stock). A lot of these wagons were short, 10 or 15 foot, 20ft was pushing it, particularly on British Rail unfitted or vacuum-brake stock into the late 1960s. New BR designs in the 1960s were for a standard chassis 34ft long, and the VGA introduced in 1981 had a length of 42ft at a time when American Railroads had mostly retired their fleets of 40ft boxcars in favor of 50ft and 60ft ones. They had numerous turntables and wagon elevators in their depots, so there was significant length limitation.So compare, a BR 15ton, 15ft mineral wagon w/ 2 axles in 1959, vs a PRR 70ton 40ft hopper in the same era - 7.5ton/axle loading vs 17.5ton axle loading in the same time-frame - now, 2axles on that 70t PRR hopper (if even feasible) would be a 35ton/axle loading - which nearly matches the current 286K axle loading standard on North American tracks. That 70ton hopper would not have been workable 50 years ago for general interchange service...
How about something like this: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=74476
TONY
"If we never take the time, how can we ever have the time." - Merovingian (Matrix Reloaded)
CSX_road_slug There is some type of piggyback "spine" car in use called the Front Runner. Walthers offered a model of it for a while - but from what I heard, it had serious derailment issues. http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-3981
Got four of those but haven't run them yet. If they don't run well, maybe I should just sell them off. The D&RGW Railblazers used to have those in the consist in the mid-late 80's which is whey I got them in the first place.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
I've seen pics of short pillar cranes -- basically a stiff-leg post in the center of the car, with a swiveling boom -- on a 4-wheel chassis. Can't recall if model or prototype, definitely steam era, but coulda hung around until the 50s, of course.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
So did the real ones.
Oh Well I knew it was a long shot but aside from the crane car suggestion, all the other suggestions are too modern for the era I'm modeling, I was hoping something could be found for the WW2/transition era.
I knew I wouldn't have alot of options to choose from but it looks like besides the scale test car some sort of Burro like crane car will have to be option two, the third car might just get the covered gondola treatment, thanks anyways guys.
Generally two-axle freight cars were obsolete by about the US Civil War in the 1860's. Some were used for non-interchange / industrial work. In the Mesabi Iron Range, narrow gauge lines were set up using four-wheel dump cars to remove overburden (dirt an rock) from areas that were going to become open pit mines.
Four wheel 'bobber' cabooses lasted into the 20th century, but it can depend on the railroad and area you model. Here in Minnesota, the law requiring cabooses to be at least 24' long and having at least two 4-wheel trucks dates back to 1911.
Trouble is I have more than enough cabeese, and these stupid bobber chassis just tend to accumulate so I wanted to find some sort of use for them, guess I'll just have to use a little creative license.
I have seen a prototype photo in Model Railroader of a 4-wheel 2-axle American refrigerator car. I think it had big Hormel lettering on the side. Slightly curved roofline like a B&O wagontop but not necessarily made of sheets that bent over the top. Early 20th century. May have been inb an MR from late 1960s or early 70s. Try their index under "Hormel."
riogrande5761 CSX_road_slug There is some type of piggyback "spine" car in use called the Front Runner. Walthers offered a model of it for a while - but from what I heard, it had serious derailment issues. http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-3981 Got four of those but haven't run them yet. If they don't run well, maybe I should just sell them off. The D&RGW Railblazers used to have those in the consist in the mid-late 80's which is whey I got them in the first place.
I run 3 and 5PACK SETS on MY layout and had an issue with them when empty.. The solution was to weight the container and or trailer that rode on them,(the floor) and the derailment issue ceased to exit.
I run them with a stack train with 85footers and tub cars at least 50ft long, pulled by 4 BB sd 40s, no derailments.
Cheer's,
Frank
No specific suggestion, but how about making a short (depending on how many frames you have) On30 ore/coal (or other) train? It'll give you an excuse to buy a On30 Porter or other small loco. lol
Or custom build those frames into some rolling stock for someone else? Ma&Pa had 4 wheel bobbers, maybe your railroad recently absorbed a (fictional?) railroad that, for some reason, had a lot of homemade 4 wheeled cars? Maybe you could build a 'fallen flag' train for your railroad? All the original roads that make up your current railroad? (parked on a RIP track, or occasionally run behind an old loco)?
Build not-so-prototypical cars with your (or someone else's) family members' names on them (great to run at Christmas).
Sell/trade at a local train show, or online?
Keep looking...I'm sure you will find something interesting to do with those underframes.
http://delray1967.shutterfly.com/pictures/5
SEMI Free-Mo@groups.io
Sorry for the delay, VSmith... there was an oddity (from my view) with the new photobucket.
However, you mention east coast harbor, and Baltimore is an east coast harbor. So here's two 4-wheel examples from the B&O Museum. The first is one of those derrick cars.
And, if you want to really detail one of those bobbers:
Bill