3rdRail to make Pullman Hosptial Cars

This will be the ONLY time you're going to get a B&O B15 baggage car in O gauge. Scott Mann is the only guy willing to build it. So all you B&O guys step up and make a reservation.

The blurb on 3rd Rail's website say they will be brass, so I don't think they're GDD cars.

Rusty

Rusty,

What I was trying to say was that any car that looked like a passenger car (or modified from one) would likely be a candidate for GGD.  The 3rdRail cars would have to be something unique.  Perhaps Scott will says more at York.

Jan

3rd Rail had a flyer on their table at York back in April that mentioned these cars along with the possibility of the General Albert J. Myer radio car to match the Ferdinand Magellan.  They were taking input at the time on how much interest there was for them and had not officially stated they were going to make them.

I did a little more research and found this link to WII hospital trains.

http://med-dept.com/articles/ww2-hospital-trains/

The cars have closed vestibules and were made from Pullman sleepers.  Full trains included commercial dining cars.

Jan

Guys,

As Bill stated in his earlier post, at the April York show I had a placard announcing both the hospital cars and B&O C-15 baggage cars at the Sunset/GGD display.

I had a photo of the prototype hospital car (same car as Rusty's photo) and one of my scratch built 2 rail B&O C-15's on display. I will bring the C-15 car to this week's show.

As was stated on the announcement, both cars will be done in brass and are intended for 2016 production. The hospital car variations are still being decided but will in all probability include the radio car.  The C-15 will look like my model and will be available painted either green or blue, both correct for B&O. 

So what about the Ferdinand Magellan?

Already produced, some years ago, by Overland Models, in both 3-Rail Scale and 2-Rail SCALE. I purchased the "Truman version", and is one of my favorite pieces and a real conversation starter.

True, but very expensive and very hard to find, especially in 3 rail.

I believe 3rd Rail might be able to offer a high quality and more affordable alternative.

They, Golden Gate Depot, would probably run into the same situation that Overland did, i.e. insufficient demand. It took Overland Models many, many years to finally sell off all the various versions of the O Scale Magellan cars (FDR, Truman, and Reagan).

Overland marketed them as $1K+ passenger cars. I don't envision 3rd Rail making or needing to make cars at or near that price point. You can get E or F units from Key Imports or from Sunset/3rd Rail. It just depends upon what you're willing to pay.

Yes but, note that Sunset/3rd Rail will be offering these hospital cars in BRASS, i.e. they will be expensive, especially for the average 3-Rail "toy train" person. The ABS (plastic) passenger car models that Golden Gate Depot offers must be high volume in order to recoup the tooling costs for "molding" ABS bodies, and thus they sell for something around $150 per car. 

Just my opinion but, I simply can not see the demand for a Ferdinand Magellan car in either the high volume ABS (plastic), nor the hand-made $450 to $500 brass product.

Additional WWll period hospital cars will be a welcome addition as I am in process of assembling a hospital train, along with the WWll period military equipment "scale" train I am assembling flats for with Corgi, Match Box, Ertl, etc. loads.  I have the K Line Red Cross Madison cars mentioned above, and will include with the Hospital Train consist.

 I forgot to mention earlier I also have the Weaver hospital cars to be in consist.

Jesse

3rd Rail has had a great deal of successful experience producing and marketing brass passenger cars from Harriman coaches to Pullman heavyweights to even an oddball PRR horse car, all in the $300 - $350 price range, so even allowing for some inevitable price creep it seems to me that there would be at least as big a market for the presidential car as there will be for the communications car.  

We'll just have to agree to disagree.

The most recent Sunset brass passenger car offerings were the PRR head end cars; BM70 postal-baggage, theater scenery, and B74 horse manure cars, all of which were MSRP of $400. I would expect the hospital cars to be in the $ 450 range and the B&O C-15 to be about $400 MSRP.

Thanks Bob. That's just what I suspected. Hope Mr. Os3r reads that.

Also, I would definitely reserve/order a U.S. Army Signal Corp communications car, should Scott decide to produce that version.

You'll be pleased to know that I have read it. I stand corrected, but not dissuaded. That's basically what I meant by "price creep," although it occurred a bit earlier than I recalled. My opinion remains that a market that will pay $400 for a horse car or $450 for a hospital car will pay $500 or a bit more for a good model of the Ferdinand Magellan. I do, however, doubt that we'll find out any time soon.

The title of this thread say 3rd Rail will make these.  That is incorrect.  If they do not receive sufficient reservations they will not be made.  I only make note of this because of the public vitriol 3rd Rail/GGD has received by folks on these forums in the past when something is cancelled due to lack of reservations saying 3rd Rail/GGD promised to make X.  

The price will be determined by the number of reservations.  My guess is if only 50 reservations are made and the builder agrees to make 50 then the price will likely be nearer the $500 mark.  At 100 probably nearer $400.

jan,

  I want to wish you a sincere thanks for the link concerning WWll Hospital trains.

I am modeling such a train with a couple of Weaver WWll Medical cars, the K Line

ARC consists, and some K Line Madison type 18" cars I am redoing with Red Cross decals from LBR.  I will also have '40s era Army ambulances and jeeps with Red

Cross insignias loaded on Trans Corps flats to complete.  The pics and information

I found on the web site is just what I was looking for.  Again, thank you very much!

Jesse

Jesse,

You are most welcome.

Jan

John in Lansing, Ill