Boxcar Sunday, Let's see your boxcars.

Don, Neat layout, great story and  thanks for those details.  I am from Richmond and remember when the Acca yard was very busy.

Here is the information on the box car- it does have very nice detail.

I've done em all...

Don McErlean, Beautiful older Locomotive, colorful layout, great story, I have a Son living in Savanah Ga., it’s an amazing city.  SIRT, beautiful weathering of your rolling stock, neat box cars.... Great pictures everyone and hopefully having some train time this Sunday. I’m taking a day off from The Yard/Painting/Staining the deck, cutting down trees, gardening, I’m free.... I haven’t learned the art of weathering yet, so my cars are fresh out of the shops....(humor)... Stay Safe, Stay healthy, continually pray for our country.... Happy Railroading 

Here are two more RF&P boxcars.  The outside braced boxcar ( photos 1&2 ) is a MTH Premier.  The blue boxcar ( photos 3&4 ) is by Weaver.  It's by  coninsidence that RF&P boxcars came up today because just a half hour ago I finished weathering the MTH model shown here .... I don't have pics yet.   I also have another MTH Premier RF&P boxcar ( like in SIRT's second photo ) still looking brand new with no weathering. ...  sorry no pic of that one either at this time.  

Box cars from Train Clubs (TTOS, LCCA, and LOTS) 

Wow Guys...Hokie71, SIRT, & Trumptrain all with RF&P boxcars.  The L&S is most definitely moving to acquire at least one of these.  Thanks for the sourcing info as I am sure I can find one now. 

leapinlarry - thank you for the complement.  You are correct Savannah is quite a city, I bet your son loves it there.  Is he by any chance affiliated with SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design)? By the way, if you go visit him and you have some free time my wife and I summer about 40 miles East of Savannah on Tybee Island.  Send me something over this forum and perhaps we can get together for an evening or a meal.  No trains at the summer place but always have cold beer!

Something you may not know about Savannah and its RR history. I was reminded because of DG's post of a Central of Georgia boxcar.  Central was always the big name in Savannah arriving in the very early part of the 20th century. However at the very end of the 19th (about 1898 or so) another railroad was built from Savannah to Tybee Island (at the time the island was named "Savannah's Beach").  The route, only about 17 miles , just "ate" money to construct because its almost all swamp, wetlands, and water so the Tybee RR went bankrupt almost immediately.  It was absorbed by the Central of Georgia and continued to operate for another 30 years (till 1932).  It was an interesting "branch" since it never actually connected to the Central, had its own locomotives and passenger equipment (didn't move revenue freight). It was officially called the "Tybee Suburban Service" by C of G.   They had their own terminal stations in Savannah and 2 stations (north and south) on Tybee island.  The loco's were two  light 4-6-0's that started as coal fired but were quickly converted to oil.  It was a principally summer service to the beach (although it did run all year) and no air conditioning thus the coach windows would be open and those coal cinders  did not go over well with Mamma's new beach bonnet !  Winter traffic was mostly commuters and school kids but in the summer demand was high enough that extra cars were needed and the trains often ran double headed.  All was well till they opened the Tybee road (Rt.80) in 1922.  By 1932 the RR was bankrupt .  Money was so tight that by 1933 the rails had been ripped up and sold for scrap.  Except for a few "trails" there is little left of the RR today.  Our house is quite close to the presumed location of the North Station (however no vestige of it exists) and the South Station was right at Hotel Tybee.  While you can't see anything of the station, the current Hotel Tybee is about in the same place.  A few blocks further south there used to be a turn table to turn the loco's for the return to Savannah. 

Sorry for going on but thought you might be interested in this little side note of RR'ing in Savannah.

Anyway, Happy boxcar Sunday

Don McErlean

Don McErlean, that’s a great story, I’ve been to Tybee Island Several times.  I think there’s a Crab Shack near there, either way, Savanna is where my 2nd son resides on Jefferson St.. walking distance from down town. I’ll let you know when we are heading that way, we stay in Atlanta a lot. Thanks for the invitation. Happy Railroading 

As a Rock Island aficionado, I've picked up some Lionel Standard "O" Rock Island box cars at train meets relatively cheap.  While mainly just molded-in detail, not to mention a non-prototypical paint scheme, they are at least plausible, not to mention pretty dang'd close to a true 1/48 scale.

With just a little bit of work, I can massage them into a much more visually appealing representation of a ubiquitous R.I. 40' box car.

Cutting off the molded plastic stirrups (at 2 corners) and adding new stirrups bent from Arrow T-50 staples (at all 4 corners) goes a long ways towards adding to the looks of these cars.

Handsome little rascal, ain't it?  Lowering the car ride height, adding some late model die-cast sprung metal Lionel trucks in new holes to allow bolster-mounting (instead of those ridiculous back tabs on the trucks), along with a scribed-wood interior flooring also adds to the looks.  Some additional weight inside (not shown) also adds to the better tracking of the cars.

I'll buy these suckers all day long at around $10 or so apiece.  A little bit of model railroading goes a long ways towards having fun. 

Good start Bill T

I received a couple of 19th century reefers from Mario's,  have my General engines pull them. 

A few from the Red-White-Blue fleet.

Here are a few old timers making their way around the loop. 

The long to medium to short of hy-cube box cars. The 86 ft is Lionel, the 60 ft is Atlas Master Line, and the 40 ft is Atlas Trainman Line.

                         My Atlas 'O' DD Hi-cube Rio Grande 60' boxcar at NJ Hirailers Paterson, NJ.

                                                              I added the reflective strips.

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River City 3 Railers new club cars arrived last week from Christine Braden. All but two have gone to their new homes. Mine alone (#2010) remains on the layout.

Great variety, Fun thread.

Here is one I don't think I have seen posted.  Similar to many of these cars, makes you think about those grand, dominant companies of the past that are no more.

This car is a K-line, K742-8020

Early Atlas O scale boxcar in Pennsy livery. 

Well continuing my penchant for display of the non-normal or scale, today I selected a Marx Joy Line consist.  These date to about 1935 which was just about the same time that Mr. Marx assumed full control of the Girard Model Works and expanded his toy empire. Despite the depression, his high volume / low cost marketing strategy made him one of the largest and most successful toy supplier in the world.  Joy line train cars as designed and manufactured by the Girard Model Works began about 1929 and lasted through about 1936 although the transition to what we mostly know today as the Marx 6" car began to transition into the line in about 1934.  From 1929 on the products of the Girard Model works were exclusively marketed through "Louis Marx & Co" a toy distributor fully owned by Louis Marx and his brother David.  They marketed the full products of the Girard Works including other toys besides trains. Hence due to the exclusivity contract,  the Marx logo is actually imprinted on many of these toys prior to Marx assuming ownership and control.  The "Hobo Rest" boxcar shown below with a black frame and blue roof dates from 1930 to about 1934.  The red-boiler 105 CW locomotive with the sheet metal boiler dates from about 1932 to 1935.  Note that while Marx (in his role as a toy salesman) did sell a Girard Model Works, electric Joy Line train set to Sears in1933-34,  Girard Model Works, the original manufacturer of Joy Line trains, normal strategy was to have them marketed as individual cars, sold at dime store counters.  After what became normal depression era financial stress and maneuvering took place, The Girard Model works declared bankruptcy in March 1934 and was re-organized with Louis and David Marx as Directors in March 1935.  This more or less ended the "Joy Line" era.

Here is the "Hobo Rest" boxcar being pulled by a Joy Line, type 105, clockwork locomotive of nearly the same era.  Locomotive still works rather well although it has a problem with its "cow catcher" and my Lionel switches.

Here is a close up of the box car.  Black frame with straight lines and simulated air tank as well as blue roof date the car to the later period of 1930-1934. You can just read the black lithographed lettering..."The Joy Line" under the roof edge.  A long way from mint but at 86 years old not too bad. 

Happy Box Car Sunday everyone.  Beautiful day here in Texas, might even go outside today - but only to the back yard .

Don McErlean

Quick B4 battery dies early entry 

I just received  from a Stout auction 

NEVER BEEN RUN

                                        Atlas O 60' auto parts boxcar with reflective strips.

Boxcars functioning as boxcars do on the Free State Junction Railway.   The bottom photo of prototype RF&P boxcar and is my personal photo which I took at Virginia Transportation Museum in 2017.   I juxtaposed the prototype photos with a photo of my RF&P boxcar ( next to bottom photo ) on the FSJR. 

Happy boxcar Sunday! Here’s NYC carrying a transnational consist.

- The Other Guy 

Here’s a couple boxcars I custom painted in the new CN scheme. The top is a Lionel 86’ hi-cube, the 2nd pic is 2 MTH Premier cars. 

Well here we are on another "box car Sunday".  I was experimenting with an AMT  "Beep" switcher to see how many cars it might pull.  The result was not really too encouraging.  I found that 2 6464 Lionel box cars around my 0-31 curves seemed about it.  I then lubricated every journal and found that I might get a 3rd but it really slowed down on curves.  Not really too impressive.  Anyway here are some pictures.

Here is my USAF Beep switcher pulling 2 6464 series box cars.  The Great Northern 6464-25 from '53-'54 and the Western Pacific 6464-100 from '54-'55. 

What is this?  Well its an old Navy engineer (somewhat like me) annoyed that the Air Force is getting all the attention

Happy Box Car Sunday everyone.  Stay healthy

Don McErlean

This car, while a fantasy car, has some special interest to me.  Those signatures on it are original and were obtained by a fellow TCA member from whom I acquired this car from.

Great photos & videos everyone

What jushavnfun said.

Love that RF&P car at VMT (from trump train). Also like a ton the cars with stuff inside like the Linde car above from BAR gp7.

Late to the party but continuing the A&P theme coupled with "stuff inside".

AEC boxcars from RMT Trains

My new club car on the layout......

Thank you Gilly @N&W for coordinating this !

Peter

Got myself back on MTH's daily newsletter, and got word on how to obtain their 2020 York boxcar:

This actually arrived last Saturday, but by the time I photographed it (this is an inventory shot) it was too late for a "Boxcar Sunday" post.

As of the most recent newsletter mentioning it, there were still some available, but you need to call MTH directly to order.

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---PCJ