After coming across this photograph of a New Haven Rail Bus, I wondered if any tinplate buses are to be had for conversion to running on track. I am not referring to Corgi type models or simply taking the poles off a PCC, but rather a 1950's or 1940"s type of vehicle..perhaps a school bus, or 1920's sort of bus. Any suggestions? Has anyone already done this in tinplate?
Something more like this..?
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The Chestnut Hill Mack Railbus would be perfect. Anyone have a photo handy?
I have been wanting a Chestnut Ridge Mack Railbus for years, as the Chestnut Ridge is my hometown railroad, and I used to drive past it's shed every day before they tore it down.
Does anyone know the latest on it? I know it's in Jersey...
There is a McCoy standard gauge Wapid Wabbit railbus:
I posted pictures on here of a Mack AC (that Chestnut Hill version with the front mounted radiator is the Mack AB, Mack AC's have a "Renault" style radiator mounted
at the back of the hood against the dash) and a Sykes railbus, both brass O scale, that I converted to 3 rail, but the manufacturer(s?) of which I have been unable to identify, although I have suspected Ken Kidder. Sykes railbuses were used by the New Haven and show up in the Keilty series of doodlebug books. They look similar to a Mack railbus (hood out front) and not the "loaf of bread" styling of your photo. While, as usual, Mack AB's and AC's have been done, several times, in HO brass, I am not aware of a Mack AB made in O scale, even in brass, and, of course, us poor neglected orphans in three rail O guage have never had any of these offered to us.
Electroliner" Your second photo had not opened when I replied above, or I would
have asked about the White WC-22?? yellow railbus pictured. That shot looks like
it could have been made in the roundhouse at Spencer, N.C.? I don't remember
seeing that railbus there, but could have missed it. It is now interesting as in my hunt for pre-1940 truck models, I have found Spec-Cast offered a 1/43rd? scale White WC-22 cab that would form the front of a model of that bus. Too bad the yellow sign to the right can't be read to identify if this is a White....Somebody (Corgi?) offered a
series of White National Park open top tour buses that could be kitbashed into a
railbus similar to the yellow one...(I have long sought a round back 1940 era toy
schoolbus to kitbash into such a railbus, and decided to haggle on a Tootsietoy
one I found of the approximate right size, and when I went back it was gone, and I have not seen another)
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