Detailing the Interior of the Broadway Limited Kitchen Car

Broadway Limited "College Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper  (continued)

The car is almost done.  I need to grind the bottoms of the people in the lower staterooms so they are aligned with the lower windows.  I will also paint the scratches in the car walls and the white plastic second level structure.

I plan to use right angle Plastruct to support backs for the Upper Level Duplex seats. The Seat Backs will be placed right behind the Upper Level people.

Here are some pictures peeking through the windows of the car.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Great work, John! I've always admired detailed passenger car interiors, and yours are beauties.

Of course I would strenuously object to a grinder being taken to my behind, but such is life for the O scale passenger..... 

Correction:  I need to grind the people in the Lower Duplex rooms only.  I will not grind the people in the end Staterooms because they are at the correct height.  The Lower Duplex room people need to be lowered more.

Broadway Limited "Imperial Field" 4-4-2 Sleeper

The Imperial Field is an easy car to detail since no modifications are necessary.  I did replace the E-clips that hold the trucks on the car.  Other than painting and adding Preiser 65602 Seated People I painted, nothing creative challenged me.

Here are pictures of the car through the process of painting and adding people to the car.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper

The Catawissa Rapids is also an easy passenger car to detail. No modifications were necessary, though I did put steel 3/16" E-clips from Home Depot in place of the factory silver E-clips.

The car has six staterooms and 10 roomettes, five roomettes on each side of the car.

I will be painting more Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People to put in this car.  My supply is missing certain key figures.  It is time to paint 15 more boxes of 24 People. (360 people)

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper  (continued)

I spent the past two days painting more Preiser 65602 Unpainted 1/45 Seated People.  The "Catawissa Rapids" Sleeper has 6 Staterooms and 10 Roomettes.  The bathroom for the Roomettes is at the opposite end of the car, creating traffic past the Staterooms.  I guess the long hallway is for accommodating the line for the potty.

So far I have finished the Kitchen Car, Dining Car, "Tower View" Sleeper-Observation, "College Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper, "Imperial Field" 4-4-2 Sleeper, and "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper.  There are four more Broadway Limited Sleeper Cars to finish over the next two weeks.

I am putting all ten cars under this thread, rather than listing them individually.  Please check back to view new postings.  Your work is welcome and encouraged to provide ideas for detailing the Broadway Limited Cars.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Conemaugh Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper

This is the seventh Broadway Limited passenger car that I detailed.  The Conemaugh Rapids 10-6 Sleeper has the same interior as the Catawissa Rapids Sleeper.  The figures are Preiser 65602 1/45 Seated People that I painted.

After the glue dries overnight, I will close up the car and test run it on the layout.  I have another Rapids Sleeper to work on tomorrow.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Conemaugh Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper  (Continued)

Here is a peek into the finished Conemaugh Rapids 10-6 Sleeper.  I have the next sleeper half painted and should finish it tomorrow.

Thanks, John Rowlen

Looks great.  

Broadway Limited "Schuylkill Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper

The painting and detail work on the eighth Broadway Limited passenger car is completed. The Schuylkill Rapids car received new steel 3/16" E-clips to hold the trucks on the car.  The interior seats were given two + coats of a mixture of "White Flat" and "Earth Red Flat" Testors Acryl Paint.

I painted more Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People for this car.  My supply of already painted figures has been seriously depleted with the detailing of seven Southern Pacific, seven Union Pacific Excursion and now eight Broadway Limited cars.  I have two more Broadway Limited cars to finish as I complete what has been my version of "March Madness".

Here are some pictures of the open interior of the "Schuylkill Rapids car.  My next car will be my second 4-12 Duplex Sleeper with custom second level interior.  The second car will have some modifications from the first which I have already shown in this thread.

Sincerely,  John Rowlen

John, I keep repeating myself. Wonderful work. I started detailing my first car today- the  Imperial Ridge (it was the only car that needed window repair) . I will try to at least get  somewhat close to your work. Thanks, Frank

Broadway Limited "Chickees Creek" 4-12 Duplex  (with Newest Revised Interior)

The Chickees Creek 4-12 Duplex has two revisions to lower seats and shortened verticals walls.  After completing my College Creek 4-12 Duplex, I started looking for ways to lower seats to the window lines of the small duplex windows.

The middle six lower Duplex seats are facing the wrong way, the direction for the upper level Duplex Seats.  I had to cut out the middle six seats and rotate them.  I scored the floor along the edge of the seats on three sides from the top, then scored the seat along the wall from the bottom.  (See photos)  Once the scores cut through the floor, I carefully wiggled the blade to the corners of the seat cuts to remove the seat(s). 

The seats have been spray painted at the factory, leaving a line between the red seat and unpainted floor base.  I used this line to trim off the unpainted floor material, lowering the seat by approximately 1/16 inch.  I ran the seat base against a finger-nail emery board to level the base. Using strips of Plastruct, I glued supports under the floor to set the seats upon.  (Leave a pathway for wires to run down the center of the floor.)  Do NOT glue a support over area where the light switch is located, far right middle duplex seat,  or the floor will not screw flat to the chassis.

After gluing the seats in place and facing the new direction, I cut Plastruct 7/8" high by 1/2" wide. I painted these six .080 vertical supports  Insignia Red Flat Acryl Paint by Testors.  When the paint dried, I glued the supports to the back outside corners of the middle seats, 1/16" from floor outside edge.  (See photo)

I then made three .040 bridge Seat Pads for the Upper Duplex Rooms.  The length of these vary.  I cut 1/2 " wide material, then removed 1/4" through the middle of the bridge.  I had to cut away some of the red middle wall that runs through the middle of the Bridge Seat Pads.  The bridge is supported at the ends and in the middle.  I painted the underside of the Bridge Insignia Red so it matched the room interior.  The top is painted the color of the cars seats.  A seat back may be added by using right angle plastruct to support seat back 1/2" wide by 3/8" high approximately.

Please post questions and review the original instructions for the "College Creek" Duplex 4-12 Sleeper.  Use the new measurements from this "Chickees Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper posting.  I am painting Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People for this car and will post more pictures when completed.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Chickies Creek 4-12 Duplex Sleeper

I apologize for the typographical errors.  It happens when I post late at night.

If you have questions, please post them.  I have tried to cover all the changes I made to the original factory interior which had no upper seating level in it.

John Rowlen

I'm a late comer to this post. Great job on the cars and on the detailed walk-through on how you did it. Thanks for posting, John.

Broadway Limited "Chickies Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper  (continued)

Here are some pictures of the finished detailed interior of the Chickies Creek 4-12 Duplex Sleeper.  The new revision measurements seem to work better.  After the glue dries overnight, I will post pictures through the windows of the illuminated car.

The figures are Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People.  Preiser is now painting some of these figures in six packs for $30.00 or $5.00 a person, plus shipping.  They are available on Ebay.  The detail is not as good as the four-packs from two years ago.  Painting the figures saves money, but takes time and paint.  The 65602 24-pack varies widely from $25.00 to $37.50 US.  Shipping also varies from Germany, from $9.00 to $49.95 for DHL shipping.  

It takes an extra day or two to detail these cars, but the results will last a life-time or longer.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Chickies Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper   (continued)

The car is finally completed with two new revision modifications, lowered six middle seats and lowered upper Seat Pad Bridge.  Here are some pictures through the windows of the car.

See the previous posts for instructions for detailing this car.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Imperial Ridge" 4-4-2 Sleeper

The Imperial Ridge is the tenth car in the Broadway Limited 21" passenger car set. It is part of the 6-83586 2-pack along with the Chickies Creek 4-12 Duplex Sleeper.

I painted the interior to get the car ready for Preiser 65602 Seated People I painted.  I added two new steel 3/16" E-clips to hold the trucks on the car and placed a toilet and sink in the empty space where the bathroom is located on the 10-6 Sleepers.   The toilet and sink are parts from spare NYC ESE interiors I purchased from Lionel two years ago.

Tomorrow I will continue to paint more People for this car.  I have 10 boxes of 24 people left to paint.  Some of the people will go in the second 4-pack I purchased in order to have an additional Tower View Observation and a few more sleepers.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Caution: Some People Do Not Have Heads

I opened five boxes of Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People to fill my remaining Broadway Limited passenger cars.  The pictures show the five colors I use for women: pastel pink, blue, yellow, green and lavender. Also shown are the brown and gray for men.  I also use Navy Blue and Light Tan for men.  The pastel paints are made from a Testors White Flat Acryl paint with the flat red, blue, yellow, green added to tint the white.

The figures with the babies come in four, three and two parts that must be painted and then glued together.  After the rough painting shown in these pictures, I inspect and correct any flaws in the painting of each figure.

I will finish the Imperial Ridge 4-4-2 Sleeper after completing the 120 people in the five 24-packs.  The five packs cost $140.00, but make over $600.00 of Preiser Seated People based on the new Preiser six packs at $30.00 for six people. --- And that is why I paint my own people.  I get a better quality paint job in a wider variety of color combinations.

Sincerely,  John Rowlen

One poor gal seems to have misplaced her baby and has lost her mind (and head) over this terrible ordeal.

There also seems to be at least one 3 legged baby in the pictured brood...

Cheers, Dave

John, Thank you so much for sharing your work. Both your methods and your results are an inspiration  to me . Frank

Five days of painting Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People have been fun, but I am more than ready for a change of task.

Broadway Limited "Imperial Ridge 4-4-2 Sleeper   (continued)

I will use the six boxes of 24 people (144 people) that have been painted and place the ones selected in the Imperial Ridge 4-4-2 Sleeper.  I will inspect each figure and correct any flaws in their painting.

The passenger car interior is painted and has been waiting for people.  I just need to grind and fit the figures into the car after any "figure paint touch-ups".

When the tenth and final Broadway Limited car is finished, I will sort my Preiser inventory and get ready to detail the CSX Executive Train.  The Executive train will use many of the men from the Preiser 65602 sets in specific "working cars", cars that could go out in a smaller work train.  The cars that would be part of a "family and friends outing" will have the women and children added into them.  This is one passenger car set that makes sense being broken into a smaller "work train".

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Imperial Ridge/Field" 4-4-2 Sleeper

I swapped body shells on my Imperial Field and Imperial Ridge cars as I waited for a new "Imperial Field" body from my dealer.

All ten cars are done.  It is time to celebrate.  Here are a few pictures of the last car.  I have six more Broadway Limited duplicate cars that I plan to detail on a snowy day.  The red interior with the tan seats I painted gives the car a rich looking interior.

It's been fun.  Now we're done.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Great job on the passenger cars, John. 

Broadway Limited "Imperial Field" 4-4-2 Sleeper #2

I just finished my duplicate "Imperial Field" 4-4-2 Sleeper from my second four-pack.  I bought the set as back-up to my main ten-car set.  Trains uncouple and collide with each other.  This is my insurance to protect my original detailed set.

The people are Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People that I painted.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "College Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper #2

I just finished the second College Creek 4-12 Sleeper using the measurements described in the "Chickies Creek" 4-12 description in this thread.  I replaced the E-clips that hold the trucks on this car.  One 3/16" E-clip was loose.

The next process was cutting out the six middle seats and turning them the correct direction.  The lower seats were molded in the direction for the upper seats.  (See photo)  I trimmed the seats bottoms along the read line made from the factory spray painting of the interior.  This lowered the six middle room seats about 1/16"+.  I ran strips of plastruct under the floor to support the new seat positions.  DO NOT put plastic under the seat by the Light Switch in the metal chassis.  The plastic will hit the switch and prohibit the floor from laying flat in place.

Then the .080 Plastruct 1/2" wide by 13/16" upright supports for the upper Seat Bridges were added to the back of the lower seats. The .040 Seat Bridges were made to span the uprights.  I cut a notch in the middle wall under the Seat Bridge span in order to support the middle of the Seat Bridge.  The underside of the Seat Bridges were painted with Testors Insignia Red Flat Acryl paint.  The upper Seat Bridge was painted with the same mixture of White Flat with Red Earth  that was used for the lower seats.

The Preiser 65602 people for the Duplex rooms needed significant grinding of the backsides in order to lower them to the windows.

When the Krazy Glue dries, I will close up the car and take pictures. If using Krazy Glue, be aware that the glue fumes can fog the window glass of these cars.  I learned this the hard way when I detailed 180 Walthers HO cars several years ago.  I have painted over 1,800 HO Preiser Seated People and now about 1,944 O-gauge People so far. I have ten more boxes of 24 and five more enroute from Germany to paint.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "College Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper #2  (continued)

The second "College Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper is finished and on the layout.  Here are a few pictures of the car.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper #2

Just completed the second "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper.  This is a duplicate car to lengthen the Broadway Limited 21" passenger car train.  I decided to finish the duplicate Broadway Limited cars while the paints are still good and before they dry out.

I like the way this passenger car set looks at night.  The people inside are clearly seen as the train passes in the dark over the Double Pratt Bridge by my control table.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 Sleeper #2   (continued)

Here are a few pictures of the finished "Catawissa Rapids" 10-6 duplicate Sleeper.  The second "Tower View" Observation is almost finished.  This project has been time consuming, but worth the effort.  The cars look good at night on the layout.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Tower View" Observation #2

Getting closer to the finish of the Broadway Limited passenger cars.  The duplicate "Tower View" is completed and waiting for the glue to dry before I close it up and take pictures. Getting a good observation without broken antenna supports has been a challenge.  There are going to be repaired units on the market soon, if they haven't already reached the second tier marketers.

The car has new steel E-clips to hold the truck on the car.  One Lionel silver E-clip was loose.  The black U-shaped end support will have to be re-glued to the car body.  It is an easy fix, but one that I have had to do on another Tower View Observation.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Chickies Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper #2

Here is the progress on the second "Chickies Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper.  The car as manufactured has the six Lower Middle Duplex Seats facing the wrong direction. The seats are installed in the direction for the Upper Duplex Seats, not the lower.  It was necessary for me to trim around the seats, scoring/cutting many times to free the seats.  I used plastruct strips under the floor to brace the seats.  (See the first "Chickies Creek" 4-12 Duplex Sleeper entry for complete instructions.)  Do not glue plastruct over Light switch (sixth middle seat) in metal car floor. It will keep the floor from laying flat.

I also lowered the six middle seats as I turned them around.  This helps position the people in the lower Duplex rooms at the correct head height for the windows.  I cut the seat bases along the red paint line formed between the spray-painted seat and the beige plastic of the floor material. (See last two pictures.)

I glued 1/2" wide, 13/16" high supports to the back of the middle seats to provide support for the Upper Duplex Bridge that will hold the people in the Upper rooms.  It was necessary to cut a notch in the dividing wall to allow the bridge to pass through the wall. The middle wall provides extra support for the bridge.

I used Testor "insignia Red" Flat Acryl paint to touch up scratches in the red walls and floor.

I will be adding Preiser 65602 People I painted to the car as I have done with all of the cars I have completed. There are currently three more Broadway Limited duplicate cars left to be detailed: A Dining Car, Kitchen Dormitory and a 4-4-2 Sleeper.  In my opinion, The Broadway Limited cars are the best of the recent run of Lionel 21" passenger cars. Their coupler connections look good between the car Diaphragms and the car interiors, though needing some additional work, are very unique when finished, especially the 4-12 Duplex Sleeper Cars.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Chickies Creek" 12-4 Duplex Sleeper #2  (continued)

After working on so many new 21" passenger cars the last month and a half, my body seems to be moving slower and every new car takes longer.  Here are pictures of the second "Chickies Creek" interior with Preiser 65602 Seated People I painted.  The glue is drying, and I will take through-the-window pictures tomorrow. 

This is the most labor intensive car because the lower middle six seats are cut out of the floor, lowered 1/8", and then turned 180 degrees for the correct position.  I then build three custom Seating Bridges for the Upper Duplex passengers.  It is a lot of work, but the 12-4 Duplex Sleeper is my favorite Lionel 21" passenger car.  It looks so good running at night on my layout.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Chickies Creek" 12-4 Duplex Sleeper #2  (Continued)

The second "Chickies Creek" 12-4 Duplex Sleeper is running perfectly behind the Pennsylvania Legacy E8 AA engines.  The car is worth all the effort to move, lower and reverse the six lower middle seats.  Once that was done, building the Upper Duplex Seating Bridge was easy.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Imperial Ridge" 4-4-2 Sleeper #2

The second "Imperial Ridge" 4-4-2 Sleeper is finished with interior painting, and the painting and placement of the Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People.  All people have been ground down to a better height and glued into place.  I added new Steel E-clips to the trucks to ensure that they stay on the car.

The glue is drying and the car will be closed after several hours.  The second Dining Car and Kitchen Car arrived yesterday.  This thread will end as it started, with the second Kitchen Car being painted and detailed.  I am curious to see if I can make any improvements to the second Kitchen car.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited "Kitchen-Dorm Car #4601" Car #2

The thread has come full circle, back to the second "Kitchen Dorm Car #4601.  This car has a simpler detailing plan than Car #1 that started this thread.

Kitchen:  The first step was to cover the wires that are exposed in the kitchen.  A custom-cut piece of plastic was notched to fit against the speaker and volume pod in the car interior.  The piece is glued to the speaker case and pod and floor.  I used Testor's Insignia Red Flat Acryl paint to cover the white Plastruct wall.

Dormitory:  The next item was to replace one E-clip that holds the trucks on the car.  The factory silver E-clips failed on three of my cars, dropping the trucks.  The floor piece unscrews to gain access to the E-clip.  I replaced one with a 3/16" Steel E-clips from Home Depot.  It is an inexpensive fix.  Note: I did not replace the E-clip under the sound system so I would not damage the wiring.

Building the beds:  The Dorm Room uses 1/4" H-beams for bed supports.  On the outside edge, I glued them with the base down.  On the interior wall, I rotated the H-beam 90-degrees and used the H-beam as the wall base for the bed that can be seen through the window. The bed tops are plastruct cut to the width of the walls I removed from the center of the car.  I used the red wall I cut off the middle of the car floor for room dividers between beds. (See pictures.)

Pillows:  The pillows are two pieces of plactruct glued together, then sanded to shape the pillow.  I put head indentations in some pillows to give variety to the seven pillows used in the Dormitory.

Middle Car Void:  The middle of the car has nothing in it.  (In Car #1 I put a restroom from a NYC ESE Floor piece I purchased from Lionel parts.)  The eight seat boxes have been cut off the floor base.  The walls have been removed to be used in the Dorm.  I used a red wall to build an alcove around the Dorm Right window.  This piece allows the wall to shift out of the window area.  A piece of Plastruct covers the holes in the floor.  It is glued only to the Dormitory side of the car.

Window Glass:  Many windows were tilted up and down on the car.  I used a Excel #11 blade to loosen the tape at the bottom of the window and then straighten the window.  I placed a very small amount of glue at the upper corners of each single window glass to hold it in place. (Note: The upper pegs in the car shell do not hold the window glass pieces in place.)  The windows can fall inward if not glued at the top edge.

Preiser 65355 US Personnel:  The figures have had 1/4' cut from their legs.  This helps lower them into window view.  They are 1/43 figures, larger than the 1/45 and 1/50 figures I have used in the cars.

This detailing project has been fun.  All ten Broadway Limited cars have been discussed in this thread. Some updates to the 12-4 Duplex appeared in the first and second "Chickies Creek" posting.  Read all the postings for the car you plan to detail to see changes that may have been updated.

I have the second Dining Car #4600 left to detail. There are two more 10-6 Sleepers in shipping limbo.  The dealer may have encountered problems when I asked them to inspect the two-pack cars.  I only detail good cars.

Thank you for following this post.  The posting of pictures has kept me motivated to push forward with this project.  Painting the Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People has added greatly to the time required, but also made the cars come alive with people interacting inside the cars.  The cars look great at night.

Sincerely,  John Rowlen

very nice

Excellent thread, John. Thanks for sharing.

Hi John - do you do work for hire? I'd like to send you some of my 21" passenger cars for interior painting/figures etc. Please email thanks. 

I enjoy working on the passenger cars, detailing the interior seats and fixtures, and painting the Preiser 65602 Seated People for the cars.

Unfortunately there are too many chances for mishaps doing work for other people:  1. Shipping damage may occur,   2. The cars sent to me may have factory flaws in paint, window glass, or assembly,   3. The Preiser 65602 Unpainted blanks may become unavailable again.  (They were out-of-stock for two years prior to the current limited release.)   4. The cost of twenty-four Preiser factory-painted People is about $150.00 per car, plus shipping fees from Germany, if the five separate packs are available from the same dealer.  5. The cost I would need to charge would stop most people from having the cars detailed.

There is a great deal of satisfaction doing the work on these passenger cars.  The detailing is part of the fun of model railroading.  I wish everyone good luck detailing their cars.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Broadway Limited 21" Passenger Cars - Post Script

The twenty Broadway Limited cars are completed: two sets of the ten Lionel 21" cars.  The second Dining Car was detailed, but left empty of Preiser 65602 figures.  The other Dining Car is full of diners.

The second 10-6 Sleepers 2-pack, "Schuylkill Rapids" and "Conemaugh Rapids", are completed.  A few pictures are included.  This is where my contributions to the thread end.  It has been fun and many hours of painting.  The money invested in the detailing of the cars has made the cars very beautiful to watch in the darken train room.  The return on my detailing efforts may never be recovered if I sell them.  (I have found this to be the case when I sold some HO detailed cars on Ebay.)   The money and effort detailing these cars is a personal choice for enjoying the process of detailing and the final finished cars.

Note:  The Preiser 65602 Unpainted 24 Seated Passenger packages are selling out on Ebay.  My USA suppliers are out-of-stock.  The last time Preiser 65602 figures sold out, it took over two years for them to become available again.  If you plan to use them, you may want to purchase them soon.  Most Ebay sellers have only one or two in stock.

Sincerely, John Rowlen