Wordy Wednesday - Pere Marquette 83332

San Diego, California, November 22, 1954, Col. Chet McCoid photo, Bob's Photo Collection

A couple Wednesdays ago, I posted an image and promised that I would endeavor to become a more regular Wednesday poster with some of my favorite images. Many of my peers post "Wordless Wednesday" content. I am going to take that idea, but go in a slightly different direction by providing some background text, as well, creating "Wordy Wednesday" posts. They won't be terribly wordy, but in contrast to the wordless posts of others, they will be wordy. Hence, the modifier "wordy".

About the photo... this is the first of what will be many images from Col. Chet McCoid during his wanderings in San Diego. Many of his photos from there were recorded when the light was low and the subjects rendered relatively low contrast and saturated, perfect for highlighting subtleties such as surface details and weathering. Pere Marquette 83332 was built in 1930 by Standard Steel Car Company as part of a group of 1,500 cars, nos. 82000-83499. The cars followed the "Modified" ARA design (based upon 1923 ARA and closely related X29 designs), but with the crossbearers located under the door posts in what would become the "standard" location. This design was ordered by other Van Sweringen roads C&O and Erie, as well. The PM versions used the Hutchins Dry Lading roof, a departure from the cars on their cousins' lines.

Yankee Clipper offered HO scale resin kits of these cars many years ago. They are currently unavailable in the Funaro & Camerlengo line. I am fortunate to have one in my unbuilt kit inventory that will become one of my two "signature" PM cars when I build it. The other is one of the single sheathed automobile cars.

For more about these Pere Marquette prototype box cars, see "Pere Marquette 1930 Steel Box Car" by Jeffrey Koeller in Mainline Modeler, May 2001.