Good Morning;
I was wondering if anyone here is famliar with HO Scale OK Streamliner Passenger Cars? I recently came across an Ebay seller offering these cars & I'm not familiar with them at all. They are Made in U.S.A, all metal construction & according to the seller's description, seem to be a perfect fit for my needs & quite a value for the price. The seller had the following in their description:
The maximum radius I have on my mainline is 22", so the large 80 footers are a no go for me, but the 60 footers are quite tempting. (I have a couple 60' Harriman types & they do just fine on the 22" radius.) For the price of under $20. per car, these OK Streamliners seem almost too good to be true. Would really appreciate any input & opinions on these cars, as I'm tempted to buy at least 3 or 4 of them. Thanks in advance.
Carl
"I could never belong to any club that would have me as a member."
Carl,
Have a couple from when they first came out,,many moon's ago,,,with being all metal,,they are very noisy on the rails,some people like that,I didn't..Lacking heavily in any detail. I you can get a good price on them,,they would probably be alright after you doctor them up some. And they have all metal trucks,side frames,etc..
Cheers,
Frank
Gidday Carl, here's a link to the Hoseeker site....
http://hoseeker.org/otherhotrains3.html
and I see that the company name and products are still current......
http://www.okengines.com/news.shtml
Cheers, the Bear.
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
I had never heard of the cars until I saw your post. Then, I looked up the name on eBay and saw several different auctions on these cars.
If Frank's observation about the noisy performance is accurate, you could also replace the metal trucks with plastic trucks. That might be worth considering because the current trucks on those cars are talgo trucks with the couplers attached to the trucks, rather than on the body of the car. Talgo trucks can be troublesome for several reasons.
As far as detail, they don't look all that bad.
Rich
Alton Junction
As far as the detail part goes,,,I'm talking when they first came out,,60's,or maybe earlier. I din't even know,they still made them..
Boy, you guys are REALLY tempting me to take the plunge & buy a few of these! LOL! I like the fact that they are available in several styles & eras. My layout is Bangor & Aroostook, set in early to mid 1950's, so the 40's-50's era cars they offer are perfect. I like the undecorated, metal construction too. BAR passenger cars were either solid Pullman Green or silver/gray with a blue band running down the window areas, so these would be an easy paint. And thanks Rich for the idea of swapping out the trucks. About a year ago I purchased at a local auction a huge box full of HO stuff, mixed NIB & used. In it were two 1-gallon zip lock bags full of every concievable type of truck, both passenger & freight & zillions of wheels sets, both metal & plastic. I will never want for wheels & trucks!
Carl, if you are looking for that final push, you are getting it from here.
I took another look at some current auctions.
Those cars look nice, reasonable prices, and excellent feedback for the sellers.
The detail looks OK, reminds me of the Athearn Santa Fe BB cars from about 10 years ago.
That one auction ends in 3 hours. Something to consider.
You guys pushed me over the edge. It's all your fault. LOL!
Seriously, I just took the plunge & ordered three of the 60' late steam era Pullmans: Baggage, Coach & Observation. All the budget allows this week. I may order the diner later. A 4 car train will do just fine. In fact, most BAR passenger runs were no more than 4-5 cars & some only 3. While at their height, the BAR had the second largest fleet of reefers in the country (second only to the Santa Fe), their passenger fleet was small. The most they ever had was 50 cars & by the late 1950's, just before they discontinued passenger service, their passenger fleet was down to just 12.
I think I'll have some fun doing these up. Got a full bottle of BAR Gray & a full bottle of BAR Blue (Pollyscale) just waiting to be used.
And, Thanks Again, guys!
Good for you,,,why not,,,The observation car,,if they are the same as the old,,the metal roof had a molded on representation,of a light on top,,I drilled it out and put a light with red lens in it,,,looked pretty good...I had the Santa Fe,version....Have fun..
Carl, that will make an excellent consist but, of course, you gotta get the diner.
Otherwise, your passengers will be bringing sandwiches, chips, and bottles of pop on your train.
That becomes a revenue loser and more cleanup chores for the crew.
I beg you to get that diner before it is too late.
Just thought I'd post a quick snap of what I'll be running them with. This is my Proto 1000 EMD F-3A, done up in the BAR's 2 tone gray scheme, denoting one of their two most well known passenger trains, "The Potatoland Express".
Rich;
Wish I could get the diner now too, but budget constraints don't allow for it this week. You see, I'm hoping to be able to snag something else this week..........that goes with the loco pictured here.
I recall these cars not having an accurate cross-section. To me, this means I can't run them with anything else. They look OK when all are Herkimer, though. Well, actually, a lot better than OK.
The dome car I got had a dome made from a piece of acetate. I cut off a dome from a Con-Cor dome car (I think)--it looks better. Maybe they have something better than the old piece of acetate, now.
Ed
I have been in HO since the late 80s. I seem to remember adds in one of the magazines for these cars but have never actually seen one.
Anyone have a photo to share?
Jim
Jim, you can see some photos of those cars on eBay.
Thank You,
So whats in the plastic tube?
The plastic tube contains some wood shapes and dowels used to represent the under-body details, as well as the screws and hardware that hold the ends in place.
The are sturdy and run well. They are HEAVY, and the detail is minimal. The trucks are a bit crude in terms of detail. There are no grab irons supplied. It is hard work to drill the aluminum and install hand rails or grab irons.
The finish of the cast metal ends does not really match the aluminum bodies.
These cars were first offered in the early 1950's and are not much different then they were back then. I had a few back in the day, and built a few more in the 80's.
Not something I would be interested in these days - somewhat "toy like" in general appearance.
Sheldon
Oh! I've seen those at swap meets. Never paid them a 2nd look. I can't believe they are still making them.
We are talking about 2 very differnet models. The OK Lines/Herkimer cars from the 60s were very basic, with not much detail but were good models for the time. I have a couple of them.
The company was re-started a few years ago. The new models are more highly detailed and made with computer driven machining tools. I saw these at teh Amhurst show a few years ago, and they looked very good.
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
G Paine We are talking about 2 very differnet models. The OK Lines/Herkimer cars from the 60s were very basic, with not much detail but were good models for the time. I have a couple of them. The company was re-started a few years ago. The new models are more highly detailed and made with computer driven machining tools. I saw these at teh Amhurst show a few years ago, and they looked very good.
Thanks, George. We'll find out soon enough. Just heard from the seller & the 3 kits I bought were shipped out via Priority Mail this morning, so should have them by Thursday.
By the way, I thoroughly enjoyed my first visit to Maine Model Works a couple weeks ago. Very nice little shop & a good stock. Spent about 45 minutes in there poking about & chatting. Picked up some Code 83 Flex Track, Flex Paste, Gray Ballast & some Fine Leaf Foliage while I was there. I'll definetly be going back next time I get down that way.
If you say so, but what I saw a train show a year or two ago was no different than what they offered in the early 80's when I ran a train department, or back in the 60's when I first started working in the local hobby shop.
The Aluminum bodies are fine - it is the end castings and truck castings that are not up to my detail standards. And, unless they have changed them, the side doors, baggage doors, etc, also lack any detail.
In fact, unless they have changed them, their current catalog sheets show the same plain vestibule doors that are just a piece of sheet aluminum with a hole punched in it fro a window - a window too small to be correct for most prototypes.
If they have made any real improvements, they should post a picture or two on their web site.
Not a problem either way. The trucks & wheels sets are an easy changeover & I can always add Kadee couplers & gear boxes. If the end castings & doors are not up to snuff, detail-wise, they will be by the time I'm done with them. That's all part of the fun.
Carl:
I have a complete set of the OK cars. Orginally they came in what appears to be stainless steel or aluminium, which I ran for years then I decided to make my own custome passenger set. to match two brass units. You may not like the color by on the railroad they look good. As said earlier they lack details which you can add. I did add diaphrams. Each has Kadee couplers. I lubricated the wheels and for what I wanted they work fine.
Rob Sylvester, WTRR
They look fine to me, Rob. They serve your purpose & that's what matters. I went with them primarily because I wanted late steam/transition era Pullman's and I had to stick with 60 footers as the max radius on my layout is 22". The only RTR passenger cars currently being made in 1950's BAR colors (that I know of) are 80 footers by Rapido, which are too long and they cost $60-$70. a pop! I'm on a budget & paid less than that for the three OK kits combined. I will likely do as you did, switch out the trucks & couplers, add the diaphragms, detailing, add interior details & lighting. As I understand it, they come pre-wired & insulated. Then they'll get a BAR Blue/Gray paint job & decaling. To me, all of that is the fun.........fun you don't get with RTR, no matter how detailed they may be.
Carrl:
This is the lash up of two Oriental Brass F units, painted to match the passenger cars which are OK Passenger cars with the same paint color on the WTRR. I customed the head light, special lights I ordered and installed.
Robert Sylvester, WTRR
Strange that they do not show pictures of these coaches on their website.
http://www.okengines.com/products.shtml
Their web site indicate that you can order these cars in a variety of lengths.
Yes sir, they are pre-wired. All you need are two lighbulbs, or you can order from Rapido, the Easy-Peezy lighting which you can attach to the ceiling of each passenger car. I even did that with brass cars then put in tented windows, they look good.
By the way, since those pictures , I have added a broad silver area, (like a stripe), on each side of each coach to break up the red and it looks even better.
I'm going to be running my three cars (and hopefully a 4th-the Diner) with an F-3 unit also. It's a Proto1000 in BAR two tone gray. I posted a photo of it earlier in this thread. I had been hoping to get the matching F-3B unit that someone had on Ebay last night. But, I got outbid & it went for slightly above what I was willing to pay right now. Oh, well. I'll just keep looking & turn one up somewhere.
AVRNUT I'm going to be running my three cars (and hopefully a 4th-the Diner) with an F-3 unit also. It's a Proto1000 in BAR two tone gray. I posted a photo of it earlier in this thread. I had been hoping to get the matching F-3B unit that someone had on Ebay last night. But, I got outbid & it went for slightly above what I was willing to pay right now. Oh, well. I'll just keep looking & turn one up somewhere. Carl
That hurts. I have been in that position myself.
richhotrain AVRNUT I'm going to be running my three cars (and hopefully a 4th-the Diner) with an F-3 unit also. It's a Proto1000 in BAR two tone gray. I posted a photo of it earlier in this thread. I had been hoping to get the matching F-3B unit that someone had on Ebay last night. But, I got outbid & it went for slightly above what I was willing to pay right now. Oh, well. I'll just keep looking & turn one up somewhere. Carl That hurts. I have been in that position myself. Rich
Yeah, it was disappointing. I've seen fewer Proto 1000 powered B units around than I have A units. It ended up going for roughly $53. + $9.50 shipping. But, it was used w/box & not NIB. I paid less than that for my A unit & it was still NIB. You're always taking a bit of a risk buying used locos on Ebay, as you just don't know exactly how MUCH it has been used. And, you just don't know how much higher you would have to go to win it. Just not in the budget right now.
Thought I would post an update on the OK Streamliner Passenger Car Kits. They arrived yesterday & I'm quite pleased with them. These are definetly a much updated version of the older kits that were posted on this thread earlier. Not the same at all. I've included a few photos here. These are virtually all metal kits with no wooden parts or wooden dowels at all. Ends have fairly decent detailing, with rivets, good door frames & diaphragm fittings. The kits come with all metal gearboxes & metal whisker knuckle couples (which I'm sure the older versions did not have). And I think the trucks are quite nicely detailed! Comes with decal sheet & slightly frosted glassine sheet for windows. All in all, I don't think they're bad kits at all and a good value at $18.75 each. I think I'll have some fun with them!