Actual assembled and painted / decaled car kit shown. Kit includes detail parts from Tichy Train Group and custom Decals from Rail Graphics. Trucks and couplers not included.
This car would have been a common sight anywhere in the
Eastern and Midwestern US from the early 1880's through the turn of the century,
and many were likely out in the far west, carrying
finished products to the frontier states. In fact, one of our customers
has found evidence that cars like this showed up regularly on the Colorado
Midland RR in the 1891 - 1893 period! It's very likely cars of this
design would have served under any of the New York Central System partners,
including the Boston and Albany (as pictured above), the Big Four and others.
Some of these cars had a permanently installed grain door (a solid barrier to keep the fine
grain from pressing on the outside doors, making them impossible to open) so
it's very likely to have been used for that service throughout the Midwest in
its time, especially for loads returning east. It's possible other roads might have owned some secondhand as
well.
This car design comes from a technical drawing in the book The American Railroad Freight Car by John H. White Jr. It’s capacity was around 20 to 25 tons, and while its design is somewhat unique in terms of the running board integrated into the roof, it is a fairly common car in size and appearance. Those wishing to give it a different look and feel could easily add a separate roofwalk, and end or side ladders. The NYC&HR used grabirons on the ends to reach the vertical brake staff on the car.
Model Features
· This model kit features a one-piece body casting to make assembly easy and
fast. All necessary parts are included; including wire for brake staffs,
grabirons, stirrup steps, monofilament for truss rods, and a brake system kit
from Tichy Train Group.
· The car body includes stops on the inside that help the builder seat the floor
properly without a lot of trimming and fitting.
· Skill level – This model should be easily built by someone with moderate resin
kit building skills, and present a slight challenge to the novice.
This NYC&HR boxcar will be available with two different custom decal sets prepared by Rail Graphics. One set (#110) will include an extra "Diamond S" herald and a five-digit car number. The other (#111) will be for a car with ordinary markings and a four-digit car number. Both are correct numbers and lettering matching the 1892 ORER listings for cars of this type on the NYC&HR.
As far as I have been able to
determine, The Diamond S cars were part of some sort of special service,
probably similar to that of a fast freight line. They were listed and numbered
separately in the ORER car listing and had their own contact and address in the
special instructions for reporting mileage and repairs to. Unfortunately that's
all I really know. I'd very much like to know more about Diamond S service cars
if anyone can shed more light on it.
Trucks and couplers are NOT included.
Last update: March 6, 2010