A few things from St. Louis

New York Central System Historical Society

I brought home a few things from the St. Louis RPM. The first is a Sunshine Models kit of a Northern Pacific fifty-foot heavy insulation refrigerator car. I missed these when originally offered and managed to find one at the Resourced Rails table at the meet. The prototypes were built by the Despatch Shops in East Rochester, New York in 1946. At the time they were unusual for their length as well as the extra insulation for frozen food shipments. The kit looks like a fun project. I will create my own decals with NYC-style typeface stenciling to match that of the prototype. PS - you can order high res scans for $5 each of these cars at the NYCSHS site (links here and here) A more through post about these prototypes will follow at some point.

The next of the loot is a Monon container gondola offered by Forbes Train Models (Doug Forbes.) It's a 3D print of the prototype. Doug also offers a few other versions of the cars. The modeler adds the details such as grabs, wire, trucks, couplers, etc. The first page of the instructions, including Doug's email is included below. These are well-rendered straightforward kits, but are designed to allow varying levels of detailing, from basic up to completely tricked out. The images above are the 3ZD-printed body with a shot of Tamiya fine surface primer (aerosol can.)

From Dave Hussey's PBase gallery... link below

Last and out of era for me is the Cannon & Company kit for the Northern Pacific's 5300-series combination door waffle cars from Pacific Car & Foundry, kit FC-5015. I know it's too modern for me. However, I have always liked the premise of these kits (as well as the Modeler's Choice line) and relish the challenge of building one up someday. Link to Dave Hussey's PBase image gallery for the prototype and model.

Some models from the St. Louis RPM

 

The powerhouse from Maynard "Mitch" Mitchell was the highlight of the meet for many observers. It was extremely impressive in person. 

As I noted in the post with my clinic file from the event, it is a large event on many levels, with more models on display than anywhere else I can think of, more vendors than other RPMs by a factor of 3-4X, and more people than other RPMs by a factor of 3X. I didn't have as much time as I would have liked to take it all in, but I did manage to snap some pics with my phone to document things that caught my eye. No slight intended to those not included. There was just a LOT to absorb...

This attractive Rock Island covered hopper was the work of Zach Pumphery (although I may have mixed that up... if you know, please drop a comment below)

This long-nosed KCS unit is the fine work of Dan Schueth

S scale is alive and well. This CN overhead bunker reefer is the work of James McAuliffe

These reworked (by the Southern) PS-1s were reworked models by Rusty Evans

This diorama of the CNW's Tama, Iowa elevator was created by Ron Christensen. It was another of the most impressive models on display

Mont Switzer had a display of TOFC equipment from his beloved Monon. These are modified Penn Line flats with modified and resin cast Mini Metals trailers

Lloyd Keyser's RSD5 was my favorite model from the event. Lloyd heavily modified a Stewart RS3 plus an Atlas power chassis and cab plus lots of elbow grease. Lloyd's fine model was painted by Bill Strauss.

Eric Hansmann is not just a freight car modeler. He built these 1923 Mack AC trucks from Jordan Highway Miniatures kits.

This NYC Pacemaker car was built to represent a car with ghost lettering shown in a 1967 Jim Sands photo as recreated by Timothy Alund

This is an in-progress diorama of The Chicagoan by Chris Zygmunt

Steve Hile kitbashed the Rio Grande's Burnham Terminal Coaling Station (Denver) using a couple Walthers coaling towers. It is another of the gems that was extremely popular

Al Brown modeled a TH&B refurbished USRA double sheathed box car using a Westerfield kit

If you attend RPM events, St. Louis should be on your calendar at some point, as either a yearly pilgrimage or a bucket list trip

My presentation from the St. Louis RPM

This past weekend, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to present at the St. Louis RPM, at the convention center in Collinsville, Illinois. If you have not had the chance to attend, the only way I can describe the event is a supersized RPM times two. The attendance figures are approx. 1,000 and the sheer number of vendors and display models is mind boggling. It is an experience all who attend RPMs (and even those who do not) should enjoy at least once. 

My presentation was the Pennsylvania Railroad's early welded box and automobile cars, an evolving project as my models come to fruition. The file can be found at the Speedwitch files page, linked here.

Over the next couple days, I will also post about an interesting model kit from the meet and some photos of display models. Please check back

Pennsylvania Railroad X43A Model Complete

I recently completed the pilot model for the PRR X43A box car (as built and Shadow Keystone repaint models.) They were postwar AAR-design box cars, but with welded sides and underframe. More info about the prototypes can be found in a previous post via this link. The models capture all of the details of the prototypes, down to the random waviness of the side panels ("oil canning") although sadly that very nice subtle detail doesn't render well photographically on the finished model. I am biased, but this is one of my favorite projects ever. I am quite pleased with the finished model!

My model represents a 22 month old car so weathering was minimal. I added a very dilute overall wash of titanium white artists' oil and a little wash of burnt sienna artists' oil around the side sills and underframe. As some of you will no doubt inquire, the 50s PRR freight car color is a mix of Tamiya paints: Red (60%), Hull Red (~10-15%), Red Brown (~5%), and Orange (20-25%). The chalk marks are from National Scale Car set D135 (note that if they show as out of stock, he probably needs to pack more.) 

These were unusual (for Pennsy) in that the roofs of the cars were coated with black car cement. I used Tamiya flat black for the roof and trucks.

The underframe components were welded, in addition to the sides. The crossbearers, crossties, and brake arrangement all faithfully follow the Pennsy's cars.

These kits also feature Apex Tri-Lok running boards and brake steps sourced from a new commercial etcher. The grid material is "taller" than "wider" and with the correct number of strips, exactly as on the prototype.

All-in-all, I am thrilled with how this car replicates the details of the prototype. On to the Central of Georgia Emergency box car kits...

Southern Railway Postwar AAR Box Cars - an extremely interesting quirk

 

As an expansion from my previous post, the Southern purchased 1,000 Postwar design AAR box cars from Pullman-Standard between 1946-1947, Lot 5855. The most visible details were 8-foot door openings, not unheard of at the time, but not all that common, either, and their Superior 7-panel doors or Improved Youngstown doors with 6-6-5 arrangement (top to bottom.) Other details included prominent push pole pockets and specialties as noted in the table below.

Series Start	Series End	Side sheathing	Subsidiary	Hand Brake	Running Board	Doors
330000	330499	Irregular	NO&NE	Miner	Morton Open Grip	Youngstown
23000	23241	Regular	Southern	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Youngstown
23242	23268	Regular	Southern	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Superior
23269	23299	Regular	Southern	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Youngstown
23300	23472	Regular	Southern	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Superior
23473	23486	Regular	Southern	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Youngstown
262000	262049	Regular	CNO&TP	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Youngstown
307025	307027	Regular	AGS	Universal	Morton Open Grip	Youngstown

One interesting quirk that I noticed in photos years ago, but hadn't researched thoroughly was that 500 cars had a highly unusual, if not unique arrangement of side structural posts (zee bars where the side sheathing panels overlapped and were riveted.) On 500 cars, the structural posts were marginally closer together (3'0-1/2" vs. 3'1-7/8" on a standard arrangement) and an additional structural member was added extremely close to the adjacent end, necessitating an additional row of rivets close to the ends and corner posts. I have not seen this feature on any other cars and have no documentation as to why it was done. The only reason for this arrangement that makes sense to me is that four of the panels on either side of the door were generated from tooling for a car with a 7-foot door opening (the edges closest to the car ends were crimped to overlap the next panel) and then the last panel on each side, adjacent to the ends, which did not have a crimp (it was just sheet/plate steel) was made wide enough to span the leftover distance. A plausible (yet thoroughly speculative) reason is availability of such side sheathing panels when the first cars were built beginning in 1946; maybe panels for 7-foot door opening cars were already being cut and pressed for the Nickel Plate order, but presses for 8-foot door opening sides were not tooled yet. This rationale is a weak explanation for the presence of the zee bar structural member 6-7/8" from the corner post. Nonetheless, it results in an extremely cool feature if you're a freight car geek, like I am. Click on the photo to see a larger view

This photo of Southern 23000 illustrates another interesting detail that I have only found on this car. It was equipped with roping staples at each bolster. I am unsure if there were other cars wit hthese, but it is noteworthy. I could find no reference to it in the Southern book*.

There is (was) an incredible reference for Southern box cars, Southern Railway Equipment Drawings and Photographs, Volume 1, Book 1, 40' Steel Box Cars, George Eichelberger, Southern Railway Historical Association, 2004

Good times, great oldies... Forty-foot Postwar AAR Box Cars

 

This Georgia car is a decorated Branchline kit, save for a Southwest Scale Improved Youngstown doors with 6-6-5 (top to bottom) arrangement of corrugations and matching paint on the door and Ksto ASF A-3 trucks

Way back in the early times of Speedwitch over 20 years ago, I had offered several sets of parts to replicate the various details and nuances of forty-foot Postwar AAR box cars, using the fine Branchline kits as fodder. They were a fun way to model the distinctive details of these cars. Anyway, I stumbled across a tote of parts in the barn yesterday and it had various bits for the Santa Fe's Bx-44 cars, with their distinctive interim Improved Youngstown doors. That also got me thinking about the cars in general. What a fun ride they were. Here are some pics of those cars with notes about some of the details.

The Santa Fe's 500 Bx-44 box cars were distinct for their interim Improved Youngstown doors, with wide panel overlaps. The cars also had Pullman-Standard "notched" tabs below the side sill and a flattened area on the end corrugation where the hand brake housing was mounted.

The Wabash continued their use of full-length side sill support sections that spanned the bolsters, as also added to earlier Modified 1937 AAR box cars. They also used pressure head cylinders with integral lever brackets, Superior seven panel doors, and Wine style ladders, among other specialties.

The Southern and subsidiaries purchased postwar AAR box cars with eight-foot door openings with either Superior seven-panel doors (shown) or Improved Youngstown doors with the 6-6-5 corrugation arrangement as well as Pullman-Standard "notched" tabs below the side sill. PS - the washout on the Southern medallion is what happens when you accidentally use solvent cement as a decal softener!

The Pittsburgh & West Virginia cars had Improved Dreadnaught ends with an "abbreviated" (shortened) top main rib and prewar-style Youngstown doors plus Wine-style ladders. The repainted version above was modeled by the late Paul Lyons and the model below shows an as-built car

The Erie purchased 1,200 cars that also had an abbreviated top rib on the ends and prewar-style Youngstown doors, plus Universal Rotary Type brake adjusters and a variety of hand brakes, trucks and running boards

The Louisville & Nashville has distinctive cars with three door styles (prewar Youngstown, 6-6-5 Improved Youngstown and seven-panel Superior) and ends without any lower corner additions below the end sills

These were a lot of fun to create and are highly illustrative of how different "standard" cars can be

J'accuse!

Okay... this post is nothing so serious as the original "J'accuse!" when Émile Zola penned a letter about the French government's role in/handling of the Alfred Dreyfus affair (google if you're curious.) At any rate, my accusation is towards Model Railroader ("MR") and is not nearly so weighty, but it's been gnawing at me for awhile so I thought I would get it off my chest. Like many of you out there, I came of age in the era when Model Railroader was the publication in the hobby. However, by the late 80s and into the 90s, Railroad Model Craftsman was publishing some excellent modeling content,* Mainline Modeler was well on its way to becoming the serious mainstream publication and Model Railroading and Railmodel Journal also had a stable of talented modelers writing for them, with the last three publishing longer form detailed modeling articles with greater photo coverage than MR. 

Two things occurred over the intervening decades: the internet and social media became outlets for serious material through blogs and other avenues for sharing content and MR chose to become mainstream to the point of publishing banal, armchair content. If there is a specific moment when MR tacked in a different direction, I trace it to when Andy Sperandeo was replaced as editor.

Since Andy's departure, MR has, actively or passively, become a publication of its mantra that "Model Railroading is Fun" and not much more, morphing into a rather vanilla shell of its former self. Gone are the days of multiple scale drawings in an issue, scratchbuilding and kitbashing taking center stage, and regular articles with detailed coverage of the skills required for serious modeling. I am not saying that these things don't appear any longer in the pages of MR, but they are far less frequent compared to more "fluffy" content or "reviews" of RTR products. Interestingly, the page count has had a corresponding decrease, much of that due to fewer ads, but also a lot less content like that noted above.

For me and many others, the act of reading publications devoted to our passions is inspirational and aspirational. We don't crave to read about the mundane and easily achieved; we want to be dazzled and challenged by content that throws down a gauntlet to learn and practice new and difficult techniques and skills. Even if you do not actively pursue all of these things, the mental thought process when reading about them is far more engaging than a series about yet another project layout. Sadly, since Andy's departure, there has been too little of the former and too much material that looks pretty from a presentation perspective, but does little to nothing to stimulate the modeling juices. While I don't have visibility into the business affairs of MR, I would bet that publishing more aspirational content would help stem what I am sure is a decline in the hobby's flagship title, although that moniker may have already shifted to Railroad Model Craftsman.

I type this not to be hypercritical or a troll. I do so because I ardently believe that content that is stimulating and challenging can drive sales and subscriptions. However, I doubt that the powers at MR and Firecrown are tuned in to what I say, but I care enough and thought about it enough to put these thoughts down in digital form. I want to see MR succeed. We all benefit if MR is strong. Comments and opinions pro and con are always welcome via the form below.

Postscript... I do occasionally buy MR and did buy the recent June 2026 issue with a cover photo from Jim Dufour's stunning B&M layout. There is some promising content, including the scratchbuilding articles by Dean Deis and Nelson Moyer, the bridge building piece by some of the staff and Mont Switzer's kitbash of an ex-kitchen troop car turned caboose. However, the most recent issue of RMC that I have, May 2026, had just as much modeling content plus a prototype profile with drawings of a Pullman-Standard 4650 cu. ft. covered hopper. This issue is standard content for RMC while for MR this much modeling fodder was more than normal.

*ironically enough under the leadership of Tony Koester, who eventually moved to Kalmbach (now Firecrown,) publisher of MR