Dave and Anyone Else Who Cares,
The Chester cars and the JC Models cars that followed them, along with
several other bits of S Scale history (Mid Gauge?) are best used to model cars
from Pullman Standard or ACF prototypes because of the smooth roofs. By
"smooth" I mean that they didn't have corrugations running the length of the
roof. That being so, they could make decent models of Southern Railway cars.
To say that they are patterned after SOU cars is a bit brash.
I am holding in my hand a Chester baggage car kit. It is not a match
for any SOU prototype I can find. It only has two doors per side while the SOU
cars had three. There is a baggage car owned by the Atlantic Coast Line that
is a much better match for the Chester kit. I'm planning to use the kit to
model that one complete with purple letterboards!
I own a corrugated "Roomette" sleeper from either Chester or JC, and it
is a model of an 18 Roomette car. The only prototypes I have been able to find
for that car are AT&SF cars with Indian names. (The smooth sided 18 roomette
from JC is a decent match for cars that ran on the PRR and NYC. All of these
18 Roomette cars look great sitting on River Raisin Models Pullman 43R trucks!
Thanks, Dan.)
Southern owned several styles of coaches from both PS and AFC. Some of
which may be reasonably close to the Chester/JC cars. Likewise, I would
speculate that the observation is a decent match for a SOU car without getting
mine out to count the windows. I think the L&N had some identical
observations.
I'm not sure of all the Chester body styles. I had a shorty RPO, but I
cut it up to make a diner. I just don't remember what other kit I joined the
pieces to. It could have been Chester or JC. I'm not sure. I know the JC
Models kits came in a coach, baggage/dorm, and the 18 roomette at least in the
smooth sided versions. I would guess they had matching fluted cars in the same
configurations. As I said, I have a sleeper. I think there was an RPO and
straight baggage. I have never seen a smooth sided observation.
Jamie Bothwell
Always willing to talk about passenger cars in
Bethlehem, PA
On Sep 28, 2013, at 10:33 PM, David Engle <riroc...@att.net> wrote:
>
> I have surmised for many years that the old Chester streamlined cars with
> the stamped aluminum sides were patterned after the cars of the SOU's
> Southern Crescent passenger train. Are there any known exceptions to this?
> Dave Engle
>
>
