`K Line Business Car K4680-30012

Not sure what year produced.  Was on eBay yesterday and there was an 18" 4 car set that would go well with this.  Believe they were looking for $300.  Hope that helps.

I THINK the business cars were from the late 90s early 2000s.  I had the Santa Fe version of them.  These were nice cars.  $300?  Wow.  Just for that car?

@jbmccormick posted:

I THINK the business cars were from the late 90s early 2000s.  I had the Santa Fe version of them.  These were nice cars.  $300?  Wow.  Just for that car?

In reading the post by Main Line Steam the $300 price was for a set of 4 cars ... which is not a bad deal for K line scale passenger cars with interiors if in excellent condition.

Also I own the same Kline Pennsy business car number 120 at RHT and it's from the early 2000s.  Back then the price that I saw on the car was $129.00 at MB Klien in Baltimore.   I druelled over that car for 2 years.  When K line announced they were going out of business Klien marked the car down to $40.00 and I jumped on the deal!  

Your car would match the cars from the K-Line Spirit of St Louis set.  I don't have the set numbers but some of the individual numbers are:

K4680-33600/coach

K4680-38424/obs

K4680-34149/coach

K4680-38060/sleeper

K4680-34620/diner

K4680-30009/sleeper

Be careful with these cars - they were produced at the time we moved from variable 0-18 volt operation to constant 18 volt.  Thus, some may need rewiring as the drumhead/and or “back porch” (obs. deck) of the car will be damaged if you run them at a constant 18.  Somewhere I have to cure for this – email me if you op at 18 & I’ll try to find the info on the alternate wiring.

Ron: Thank You that was the information I was looking for now the search is on. Are those cars all 18 inch as I see a lot of 15 and 21 inch cars for sale?

@SURFLINER posted:

Be careful with these cars - they were produced at the time we moved from variable 0-18 volt operation to constant 18 volt.  Thus, some may need rewiring as the drumhead/and or “back porch” (obs. deck) of the car will be damaged if you run them at a constant 18.  Somewhere I have to cure for this – email me if you op at 18 & I’ll try to find the info on the alternate wiring.

Would this also apply to K-Line's Golden State 18" cars?

@Magicland posted:

Would this also apply to K-Line's Golden State 18" cars?

Your Question:  “Would this also apply to K-Line's Golden State 18" cars?”  Don’t know about any other affected cars.  Applies to “Business Cars” (obs.) K-Line produced.

From the TTML:  Message 11115

From: Chip Miller <millerh@b...>
Date: Wed Aug 16, 2000 11:48pm
Subject: K-Line Business Car Alert
I'm less enamored with my K-Line Adolphus business car than I used to be.

WARNING:  Don't operate these things at higher (read: Command) track voltages.  Although I use only about 15 VAC in Command operations, I melted the rear lights in the drumhead position.  I noticed this when the red and white lenses fell out of the lights.  It turns out that I melted the entire light fixture and part of the observation deck.  The whole thing needs replacement, assuming I can actually get that part.

Possible fix – also, from the TTML:  Message 11148

From: Paul Metzler <DKyote2@C...>
Date: Thu Aug 17, 2000 8:39pm

Subject: Re: K-Line Business Car Alert
One possible safety measure is to put a diode in series with the light bulb - cuts voltage (on an AC source) to about 75%, which will allow the lamp to not burn as hot.  Something like a 1N4001 or something - only need 50 Volt, 1 Amp rating. I get 1N4001 for about $.25 each in bulk, would expect maybe $.45-50 at Radio Shack.  Of course, Radio Shack is long gone.

@RJT posted:

Are those cars all 18 inch as I see a lot of 15 and 21 inch cars for sale?

Those cars I listed are all 18"; I have them.

Ron:  Thank You

Got these in a very good deal, but I found out why. The silhouetted windows are not very popular. The color match of the Williams engine and the K-Line 18" Heavyweight cars is excellent though. Hope to replace these eventually with NYC cars of a similar type but with actual widows and passengers. Also to have diaphragms would be a plus.

@CAPPilot posted:

Those cars I listed are all 18"; I have them.

Ron I just tried to send you an email based on the email in your profile and it cam back as undelervierable below is the question I ask you in that email.

"Your car would match the cars from the K-Line Spirit of St Louis set.  I don't have the set numbers but some of the individual numbers are:

@RJT posted:

Ron: Thank You that was the information I was looking for now the search is on. Are those cars all 18 inch as I see a lot of 15 and 21 inch cars for sale?

Yes the business cars were 18". Only the ATSF business car Mountaineer was both 18" and 21"

@RJT posted:K4680-38424/obs

Would you have the names and numbers on the side of the cars as I am having trouble finding them under the K Line number on this K Line web site

Some cars had names. Some had numbers. Some had both.

PRR1950 and Bill King Thank You that is the information I am looking for it will help me to locate the cars. All of you folks on this forum are simply great. I posted a question about a 1991 Lionel Santa Fe Set and got the answered very quickly So fast that I was able to find them that same night and they will be here end of this week to early next week. Just hoping I have the same good luck locating these PRR K Line cars. Again Thank You to everyone!,

Let me muddy the waters a bit more. I was looking for my K-Line catalogs to verify the suffixes on the multi-packs. The same base K4680 is used for 15", 18", and 21" sets. Suffixes are everything for K-Line and only rarely make sense. Well, in the 2005 1st Edition catalog it has six more 18" cars not listed above. They do not break down the individual numbers, but while investigating them it turns out there was another thread on the cars last year here.

It looks like they were in the 2004 catalog earlier. Note that nowhere in the 2005 catalog blurb does it mention "Spirit of St. Louis".

K-4680R has: K4680-30007 "CHAMBERSBURG INN" Pullman (same scheme as other Pullmans), K4680-30008 "JAMES McREA" Flat End Observation (same as Cassatt, but no numbers),  K4680-34524 Diner ("4524" over trucks), & K4680-39374  Baggage ("9374" centered low on body).

K-4680T has: K4680-30011 "TIPPECANOE RAPIDS" Pullman (same Pullman scheme) & K4680-34234 RPO (no pics - similar to baggage?)

K-4680S is the 2 pack with K4680-30009 & K4680-33600

Also found a K4680-30012 "TOWER VIEW" Observation (rear deck, no numbers, just name) and a scale "PRR Express Service" boxcar K761-1897.

That should keep you busy and your bank account light!

The K4680C Spirit of St Louis was sold as a 4-car set, and to my knowledge, there were no add-on cars made for this set. I have spent the better part of a year looking, and have seen no evidence that they were produced. A few months ago, I found and bought the K4680T 2-pack add-on (Tippecanoe Rapids and RPO car), but when I received them, I discovered the colors of the cars and lettering don't match the cars in the K4680C 4-pack. Instead, they are an exact match to the K4680R, also the Spirit of St. Louis, although not promoted that way in the catalog. The photos below show the difference in the colors.