Vintage Passenger Car lettering

Really nice!

@BobbyD posted:

Really nice!

... absolutely! 👍

Mark in Oregon

Gorgeous! Did you make the awesome lettering? JohnA

Thanks for the nice comments.This is my first post with photos, figured it was about time to share my efforts.

John A. The lettering was done on an Alps printer with a font that was close to the photos I had of the prototypes. Trust me, it was a labor of love.

The eagle on the baggage car was photo copied and then printed on decal paper.

I loved seeing the narrow vestibule car, where you see the varnished door inside. This design was pretty neat, and we have a Soo Line coach awaiting restoration, that has this design.

This is as good as it gets, Purplepapa ! you could conduct a master class in passenger car modeling. Where do i sign up?

- Mike

Those are stunning models!!

@Brother_Love posted:

Those are stunning models!!

...and this coming from someone who is known for building "stunning models! 🙂👍🙂

Mark in Oregon

Thanks to all for the positive comments.

Brother Love, I have seen your cabooses and that compliment from you is much appreciated.

Mike, Happy to share any knowledge or methods with you.

I hope to inspire some company to produce cars similar, especially the narrow vestibule shown on the  ‘AVIS’.

The Elizabeth has no known prototype as it was made to honor my wife.

Sincerely,

Leon Butler

Yes!  Those are world-class models!  Wish I had the patience to do that.

@Purplepapa posted:

Thanks to all for the positive comments.

Brother Love, I have seen your cabooses and that compliment from you is much appreciated.

Mike, Happy to share any knowledge or methods with you.

I hope to inspire some company to produce cars similar, especially the narrow vestibule shown on the  ‘AVIS’.

The Elizabeth has no known prototype as it was made to honor my wife.

Sincerely,

Leon Butler

Wow!

@bob2 posted:

Yes!  Those are world-class models!  Wish I had the patience to do that.

...says the guy who can take a pile of brass and make a steam engine! 😁 👍

Mark in Oregon

Very nice.

I'm certainly no artist when it comes to decals, but I do have a question.  I'd like to remove the POLAR EXPRESS decals from this tender and put a Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) decal lettering and/or logo in their place.  Any recommendations on how to do this and also where to source the decals from?

Beautifully done, Leon.   If only the era was better represented on the market I'd dump my depression era stuff.  I have made attempts at a coach with narrow vestibules but never completed.  Eventually I'll need something better than what MTH made to mate with their ESE 999.

Bruce

Richard VB- use Black Cat decals.  You may want to  use the S scale ones, as your engine is “semi-scale “. JohnA

Work like that, along with Santiago's and Erik's, deserve high resolution photos.  You guys should do a coffee table book.  Erik already did one for scenery and structures; I anxiously await his efforts with trains.

Meantime, Purple, you have a website or photo hosting site we could drool over?

I too would love a short string of this genre - Scott told me a long time ago there are just too many variants, so it wouldn't happen in production models.

@bob2 posted:

1. Work like that, along with Santiago's and Erik's, deserve high resolution photos.  You guys should do a coffee table book.  

2. Erik already did one for scenery and structures; I anxiously await his efforts with trains.

3. Meantime, Purple, you have a website or photo hosting site we could drool over?

1. I agree; but only if that book includes your stuff too, Bob!

2. 👍

3. see #2...

Mark in Oregon

@bob2 posted:

Work like that, along with Santiago's and Erik's, deserve high resolution photos.  You guys should do a coffee table book.  Erik already did one for scenery and structures; I anxiously await his efforts with trains.

He did?  I've not ever seen it.

I too would love a short string of this genre - Scott told me a long time ago there are just too many variants, so it wouldn't happen in production models.

I have repeatedly proposed that Scott do a Yellow Kid train,

I just opened these on the big Dell screen.  They have very good resolution, and are even more stunning when viewed at full size.

I miss access to good Alps printer decals.  My masters went to LaBelle, but I get the impression that the new owner doesn't want to fool with it.  At $25 per sheet, I am sure he would be losing $ by the handful if new art was involved.

Guys,

I am overwhelmed by the comments.

I do not have a website, but I will try to post one or more photos in an effort to raise interest in the narrow vestibule style of wooden passenger car.

I tried a few years ago to suggest this to LaBelle, both narrow vestibules and arched window options. No luck as far as I know.

Thanks again. hope someone will fill this niche in older passenger cars.

I would love to see a ‘yellow kid’ set along with undec. versions.

Leon Butler

Wow... 😳 🙂

Mark in Oregon

@RichardVB posted:

......  I'd like to remove the POLAR EXPRESS decals from this tender and put a Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) decal lettering and/or logo in their place.  Any recommendations on how to do this and also where to source the decals from?

Scalecoat used to offer a product called "Scalecoat II Wash Away" I want to say in a pint bottle. It's a safer paint remover than some of the other more toxic or damaging alternatives, albeit it smells nauseating. I don't know if the successor company that picked up the Scale Coat line offers this product, but if you can find it, it is an excellent decal and or factory silk screen remover as well. You just have to apply it to and work the specific area immediately with brush, dowel or burnishing tool before the fluid has time to soften up the underlying paint, and then wipe it off completely. I have gotten great results with this, especially on injection molded styrene and PVC car bodies.

Once you've removed the silk screen or decal, lightly wet sand with uber-fine OOO grit auto grade abrasive sheet or steel wool the area to smooth out any ridging left from the original  applique, and then apply a good gloss coat if you intend to use decals, or if using dry transfers, flat coat.

I find most of my decals on either Ebay, or at P&D or Des Planes Hobbies or a good O Scale meet, if unable to locate a specific set for a CPR steam locomotive, I'd shop around for an appropriate font & size lettering set in the correct color (Champ sets for CPR steam were offered in both Bronze and Dulux)  

Note, though, that Mr. Papa above makes his own decals.  Might want to sweet-talk him out of a quickie set.

Back to the wood coaches - I am blown away!  Yes, I have a LaBelle 60 footer awaiting construction, but I view it with trepidation.  I think if you had hit LaBelle in the beginning you could have gotten narrow vestibule kits - but now there is no future in wood kits.

Maybe someday plastic.  I won't hold my breath for brass under $600 a car.

These cars and decals are spectacular!  Yes, more photos please.

I agree. These cars are very well done. Museum quality.
I think there is a future in wood passenger car kits. But I believe the future is in laser cut kits with good instructions. I don’t think anyone’s going to get rich selling them. But the recent pricing of the Lionel, MTH tooled woodsided cars might get a few interested in trying a build. I have done one Labelle kit. A baggage car. Figured I’d start with something simple. I still deviated from the instructions and probably overbuilt the inside that’s not seen. Hard to identify parts and not much as far as instructions. The laser kits offer easily indenifiable parts and tab construction. A friend of mine use to build scale RC planes. He could do it the old school way cutting pieces to fit a template. His latest builds were all laser kits.
The Mullet River caboose kits demand a high price and people are on the lookout for them. Probably as much work as a Labelle car but very little cutting and fitting.

@Dave_C posted:

But I believe the future is in laser cut kits with good instructions.

Good instructions are a rarity!

The laser kits offer easily indenifiable parts and tab construction.

I've had more than a few laser cut kits that had parts that are next to impossible to ID, some with extra parts that were not supposed to be in the kit ( now where does this part belong?) and then some missing parts. Laser cutting does not guarantee anything....

His latest builds were all laser kits.

The Mullet River caboose kits demand a high price and people are on the lookout for them. Probably as much work as a Labelle car but very little cutting and fitting.

Some of the newer issues of Labelle kits are made up form laser cut parts.  Last one I did some parts were miscut short, but it was salvageable....

@bob2 posted:

I miss access to good Alps printer decals.  My masters went to LaBelle, but I get the impression that the new owner doesn't want to fool with it.  At $25 per sheet, I am sure he would be losing $ by the handful if new art was involved.

You might give Josh at Bedlam Creations a try.  At my suggestion Rich just added them to the Scenery Sourcelist.

I needed the special later B&M logo that graces the front/rear of that line's RDC's...

...for a makeover of a Lionel 400.   It's my first request of them.  I approved the proof via email, but until I return home (MI) from our current vacation in Florida, I haven't seen the finished decals.  I plan to finish the project and post the results on the forum when done...in April, I hope.  Of course, the real bugaboo in this logo is the white fill in the black-bordered 'M'.  I needed access to an Alps service, also.

FWIW...

KD

BTW...seeing those GORGEOUS passenger cars by the OP reminds me that back 50+ years ago there were a handful...one in particular whose name escapes my aging gray matter...of artisans in the hobby who did an incredible job of hand painting the lettering and filigree details on cars of this type...as well as freight cars.  We're fortunate to have the equipment available to make this job more easy...at some $$$ expense, of course. 

Thanks for the interest bob2 and  Dave C.

I have a few photos of cars interior and under construction. Hope you enjoy. The second photo is my method of  changing the straight windows to arch windows.

...d*mn...😳 👍

Walthers seats...?

Mark in Oregon

Strummer,you are correct. Walthers seats with paint dry brushed on to add dimension.

When superb modelers above have spoken, there is nothing l could add....best model passenger cars l have ever seen, in a meet in person or photo.  I have bashed a LaBelle kit into a combine caboose..it would be embarrassed posted here.

How about some Seaboard Air Line in the form of the Atlanta Special.

All are LaBelle kits somewhat modified. Old photos I took while not quite finished. As I would build these models I would sometimes just take a few photos to mark progress. You will notice the lack of handrails and diaphrams. I post these to illustrate another style of decoration.

Again, I sincerely appreciate all the kind words, kinda glad I decided to learn how to post pictures.

Purplepapa

@Purplepapa posted:

...kinda glad I decided to learn how to post pictures.

Purplepapa

So are we!  🙂👍

Mark in Oregon

You could go into the decal business,

Can you comment as to how you covered the roofs ?  It has the look of canvas. I used medical tape painted black on my baggage car that gave the wood some texture. No where near as nice looking as yours.

The roof is wood as it comes in the LaBelle kits. It is then painted with several coats of lacquer sanding sealer and rubbed or sanded between each coat with fine steel wool and /or fine sand paper. The wood grain will disappear and then paint and again lightly sand with fine sand paper a time or two. To my knowledge there is no quick way to get the effect of a smooth roof. Sure hope you understand what the process is. I am not accustomed to explaining things, I just do it the old fashioned way.

FYI, I am retired and have no intention of going into the decal business.Hopefully someone reading this will step up and fill the void. I have not built anything nor printed any lettering since about 2017.

You will notice a wood rasp that I use to roughly round the ends

Is this a great forum or what. Again, thanks for your interest.

Purplepapa

@Purplepapa posted:

FYI, I am retired and have no intention of going into the decal business.Hopefully someone reading this will step up and fill the void. I have not built anything nor printed any lettering since about 2017.

Was a bit of joke (retired and not producing kits or doing custom building anymore either...); your work and designs are all rather nice and I think others might like having some of this loveliness on their cars!

You will notice a wood rasp that I use to roughly round the ends

I like using a 4-in-hand after I get the 1st 75% of the wood gone with the upright belt sander.

The secret ingredients: laborious effort and meticulous attention to detail....vs. the race against time, to get something together and running.

On the subject of Labell kits I picked these up locally in Adelaide South Australia, another surprise find. I did not build them, and the decals I don't knew about either. I love these old time cars. There not custom as the beautiful cars above ( love the curved windows ) but Im blessed to have found them.  cTr.... ( Choose the Right )

Thank you Stephen for sharing your models, and thanks for your kind words  

That Burlington caboose really has character, and the baggage car and coach look well built.

I can’t help but wonder how they ended up in South Australia.

Purplepapa