Texas Special cars

Discussion in 'Streamlined Cars' started by friscochoctaw, Mar 10, 2009.

  1. friscomike

    friscomike Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Howdy folks,

    As if I didn't already have enough projects on the work bench, I picked up some OK Enginers/Herkimer cars to begin working on the Texas Special cars. I haven't picked the prototypes to model and haven't compared the prototype and the kits. The cars I'm hoping to match are OK's number 41, 47, 23. Number 41 is an 80' coach, 47 is an 80' diner, and 23 is the observation. Here are links to the OK Engines product sheets: http://www.okengines.com/pdf/catalog1.pdf http://www.okengines.com/pdf/catalog2.pdf.

    Fingers crossed they'll work. In the process, I'll sweep FRISCo_Org for data and create a table for easy viewing.

    Best regards,
    mike
     
  2. Iantha_Branch

    Iantha_Branch Member

    E8 AB set. :rolleyes: ;) :D
     
  3. gbmott

    gbmott Member

    Neither the Frisco nor the Katy ever owned any E-series B units.

    Gordon
     
  4. slsfrr (Jerome Lutzenberger RIP 9/1/2018)

    slsfrr (Jerome Lutzenberger RIP 9/1/2018) Engineer Staff Member Frisco.org Supporter

    Mike,

    Did you get the kit for the undercarriage? If not I can fax you the instruction sheet (it may come with the cars). Anyway, I went to Hobby Lobby and bought the hobby wood in the right size and then cut my own pieces. Not overly detailed but adequate. If you do put appliances on the bottom of the cars make sure you have room for the wheels. (I didn't on the first car)

    I used ZinkChrom primer by Floquil before painting the cars. A good primer for those cars is a must.

    Also, I started to do the interiors but gave up and bought a couple of sheets of Proto Correct Tinted glass (actually plastic) from Railway Classics, item number PG01. It is a little expensive at $15 a sheet but it really looks good! Then all I had to do was the end of the observation and shadow boxes in the Pullman.

    I also sent OKEngines/Streamlines plans for the RPO and 14-4 Pullman copied from Pullman Standard, Volume 15, Western Railroads, by W. David Randall & William G. Anderson. The owner will cut the proper window and door placement if you give him the plans. (for a fee) The Frisco/Katy streamlined RPO’s had only three windows in the RPO compartment. And if I remember correctly the coaches have doors on each end where as the Frisco/Katy cars had doors only on one end.

    The cars are very easy to light because the trucks are insulated from the frame and the wheels are insulated on one side.

    All in all they make a nice car and it is a fun project.

    Jerome
     
  5. friscomike

    friscomike Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Howdy Jerome,

    I just bought the car kits, thinking I could make much of the underbody detailing. Thanks for the tip on the RPO and 14-4. I think I'll try the same thing. I wonder if the owner still has a copy of your plans so he could use them again... I don't have access to the Pullman Book, so I hope he does. I did check the internet and found a copy for $35. It sounds like a good investment for modeling the Texas Special, et al.

    Thanks for all the tips, Jerome. They were just what I was hoping for.

    Best regards,
    mike
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 30, 2009
  6. friscomike

    friscomike Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Howdy,

    Picked up the Pullman Standard Library Volume 15 Western Railroads by W. David Randall & William G. Anderston from Karen's Books. The cost was $35, and it was worth it (to me). It has the diagrams and photos of the PS Texas Special cars, plus the Meteor and KC Florida Special.

    Thanks for the reference.

    Best regards,
    mike
     
  7. friscomike

    friscomike Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Re: Texas Special cars - all that glitters is not gold

    Howdy folks,

    I was very happy at a selection of OK Engines cars I bought on eBay, since they were brand new and looked great. I was saddened when I opened one of the boxes to discover the shell had a corrugated roof. I looked further and all were corrugated except the observation. I sure thought they were smooth tops. Oh well, on the plan B or plan C.

    Has anyone ever ground off or filled in the corrugations to achieve the smooth tops?

    Best,
    mike
     
  8. friscomike

    friscomike Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Re: Texas Special cars - all that glitters is not gold

    I think this may have gotten buried because of a follow-on post. Has anyone converted the corrugated roof to a smooth roof? ~mike
     
  9. cole7015

    cole7015 Member

    Katy had no dome cars for the Texas special

    William
     
  10. friscomike

    friscomike Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Indeed.
     
  11. friscochoctaw

    friscochoctaw Member

    I haven't converted a corrugated roof to a smooth roof, but I have removed and smoothed down the steam generator vents on an old Athearn Santa Fe F7A. Conventional sandpaper ought to do the trick. To get the final product 'silk' smooth you need 400 grit sandpaper, though.
     
  12. cole7015

    cole7015 Member

    Yes it is a very good book, Speaking of the Texas Special and Frisco cars.

    Does anyone have good roof pictures and size data for the variuos roof hatches that were on the cars? The large rectangular type.

    Any help woud be greatly appreciated. You may contact me via Email
    at the addy wba2485811@aol.com

    Thanks
    william
     
  13. TAG1014 (Tom Galbraith RIP 7/15/2020)

    TAG1014 (Tom Galbraith RIP 7/15/2020) Passed Away July 15, 2020 Frisco.org Supporter

    Here's an overhead photo of one of the lightweight cars that was posted here on the chat board (Sorry, I can't recall whose photo this is?? If it's yours feel free to chime in). This view shows all the roof details. Main car is a chair car, the car ahead is one of the (1651-1652) chair-buffet-lounge cars.

    Tom

    Edit: The car ahead isn't #1650 which had small ownership plates at each end of the letterboard.
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 25, 2012
  14. cole7015

    cole7015 Member

    Thanks for reply. One might be able to scale the plans in the book for size, and come very close.

    William
     
  15. Joseph Toth

    Joseph Toth Member

    Re the Lionel O27 Texas Special FAs. I believe Lionel even produced a real el-cheapo in solid red not unlike the cheapened version of the NW2 that Lionel released for the Katy with the stamped metal frame. KMT released a finer looking Katy FA in 2-rail O gauge and may have even released a B/Y Frisco FA. It seems that my memory remembers seeing one, if only in a catalogue?

    It is a pity that the Texas Special didn´t get dome cars. Running through Missouri on the Frisco under a big fat full moon working would be just as beautiful as "somewhere west of Denver". Wonder IF dome cars were considered when the initial talks were being conducted on the idea to streamline the TS as well as motive power other than the EMD E7s?

    Wouldn´t you love to see the notes that got put down on paper including doodles!

    I also think the "shooting star" that was used on the side of the E7 that pulled the Train of Tomorrow would have really improved the overall look of the TS E7s with a chrome "plate" on the nose with both the Frisco and Katy heralds much like the early E units wore on the C&NW/UP/SP "City" streamliners!

    Dream on...

    Regarding the OK Engines Herkimer aluminum passenger cars. I too got caught with the fact that they are not manufactured with smooth roofs and just the corrugated roof design. A pity and perhaps time to contact them with a request to consider providing smooth roofs to their line of Pullman-Standard cars.

    Taking this into consideration for HO models, have any car sides been produced by any manufacturers like Brass Car Sides to model Frisco, Katy or pool line cars for the Texas Special and other trains?

    Joe Toth
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 9, 2011
  16. mktjames

    mktjames Member

    I started a new album Texas Special at the TWMRC under mktjames that shows the Hallmark passenger cars Walthers sleepers and BLI painted E7's with stainless fluting.
     
  17. gbnf

    gbnf Member



    www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQuYIxvMmM4 (2 min, 56 sec)

    8mm film of the Texas Special, Train #1, running southbound from Denison, TX, July 1964.

    MKT Waxahachie depot, MKT Alco passenger locomotive in the MKT Bellmead, Texas yard, passenger train track and shed at Waco, Texas. Later part is the northbound train passing Lancaster, TX, enroute to Dallas and Denison.
     
  18. FriscoCharlie

    FriscoCharlie Administrator Staff Member Administrator Frisco.org Supporter

    Thanks for posting! That's really something to see.
     
  19. gstout

    gstout Member Frisco.org Supporter

    It is a pity that the Texas Special didn´t get dome cars. Running through Missouri on the Frisco under a big fat full moon working would be just as beautiful as "somewhere west of Denver". Wonder IF dome cars were considered when the initial talks were being conducted on the idea to streamline the TS as well as motive power other than the EMD E7s?

    I think if you were to look, you would find very few trains had dome cars unless they were facing direct competition and needed some sort of feature car to gain a competitive edge, e.g., Santa Fe-UP or GN-NP-MILW. For example, the SUNSET LIMITED, which was a very good train never added domes at least in part because there was no competition on the Los Angeles-New Orleans route, so no need to up the ante. The BLUEBIRD added domes to offset the advantage held by the Alton/GM&O with respect to their routes between Chicago and St. Louis. Also, both the Meteor and the TXSP were mostly night trains, and although you might think it would be nice to travel under the stars in a dome, unless the car was totally dark, the glare from even the downstairs lights would kill the view. Lastly, I would say neither the Katy nor the Frisco had the money to really dress up those trains over and above what they did.

    GS
     
    FriscoCharlie likes this.
  20. William Jackson

    William Jackson Bill Jackson

    Shame, moving people, is not profitable, the fare just is not competitive with other transportation.
     

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