BUSINESS CARS........Let's see yours

These are really great looking cars with nice detail.

K-Line 16" Millennium Business Car w/base I selling so I have lots of pictures of it.

K-Line 18" PRR Business Car.  This sees action once in a while on the layout, usually at the end of an express.

GGD 60ft Harrimans

Here is my K-line Northern Pacific Business car, I also have the SP Daylight packed away somewhere.

What is the difference between a business car and a observation car. How can you tell the difference.

A business car is a rolling office for railroad officials.   An observation car is for the general public.  The big external difference is a loading door for the pantry and kitchen.  The flood lights on the rear end for observing track at night.  Also the plaque on the for that would say PRIVATE or BUSINESS CAR.  

A business car is a specially build car, normally an observation, to carry VIPs or do other railroad business (track inspection, pay cars).  While a passenger observation had only staterooms in the front and a parlor like area in the back (usually-lots of different configurations), most business cars were normally self contained.  The PRR Business Car #37 had an inside length of 70', had a kitchen, conference/dining table, smaller rooms for the staff, and a couple of staterooms for the bosses.  Business car #150 was smaller with an inside length of 59'.  It was also self contained but probably used by lesser executives.  Most business cars are heavyweights or re-built heavyweights.  Business Car #90, with an inside length of 73', even had a fireplace.

There were few streamlined business cars.  The PRR had one that was originally built for Anheuser-Busch called the Adolphus.  The PRR bought it from Anheuser-Busch and gold-plated it for their Chairman of the Board of Directors and re-numbered it to 1000.  This may be the car K-Line used to model theirs.

ADDED:  The K-Line car is numbered 120.  Just looked it up and the car with that number started out as a heavyweight in 1928.  It was named the Pennsylvania from 1935 to 1939 when it was named Baltimore.  It was renamed to Pennsylvania in 1952 and modernized in 1953.  The pictures of the modernized #120 actually looks closer to the K-line model than the Adolphus, so this might be the prototype car K-line used.

railroad man posted:

What is the difference between a business car and a observation car. How can you tell the difference.

The ones owned by a railroad were NOT for revenue/passenger service.  In these cases they carried railroad person to events or carried customers to wine and dine.

The private ones (such as Anheuser Busch's Adolphus or PT Barnum's private car and sales cars) that were used for that company's business from again carrying their own personnel to wine and dining customers.

I think we have one each of all the K-line cars ... a full long shelf of them.

Here in Spencer at the NCTM there are two great examples of private Business Cars.

The "Loretto" for the president of United States Steel Corporation Charles M. Schwab.

And more special if you worked for Duke Power like I did, the Doris, built for James Buchanan Duke.  

On some special excursions from the Museum you can buy ($$$$) a ticket to ride this car.

Originally by CAPPILOT:

There were few streamlined business cars.  The PRR had one that was originally built for Anheuser-Busch called
the Adolphus.  The PRR bought it from Anheuser-Busch and gold-plated it for their Chairman of the Board of Directors
and re-numbered it to 1000.  This may be the car K-Line used to model theirs.

ADDED:  The K-Line car is numbered 120.  Just looked it up and the car with that number started out as a
heavyweight in 1928.  It was named the Pennsylvania from 1935 to 1939 when it was named Baltimore.
 It was renamed to Pennsylvania in 1952 and modernized in 1953.  The pictures of the modernized #120 actually looks
closer to the K-line model than the Adolphus, so this might be the prototype car K-line used.
Ron

I'm not sure what is trying to be conveyed above but K-line DID do Three [3] Types of Adolphus PV's: 

• The Adolphus of Anheuser-Busch
• PRR car #1,000
• 
• and Amtrak Car #10,000
• 
• The K-line version of the PRR#120 is more of an adaptation of the Adolphus car than the real #120 that is owned by Bernie Leven.

K-Line private car on our layout

Pulled by 765 this Summer in the Joliet Rocket

New Haven #1

New Haven #2

New Haven #4 repainted.

Williams Lake Louise on our layout.

Business car that means business.          John in Lansing, ILL

"Paradise"