A PFE Reefer

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CharlesH.

CharlesH.

Member
Well, I did it again. It seems to me that no steam era roster would be complete without a Pacific Fruit Express car, so after doing a fair amount of research (That is, squinting long and hard at pictures of models to glean the data), I went ahead and built one. A rebuilt R-40-2, to be specific.

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Construction is all card, paper, wire and an old Life-Like chassis. Drawing the sides was probably the hardest part as I had to match the lettering as closely as possible, draw the UP Overland herald, and of course, get the right data.

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The only commercial parts I used were the chassis, trucks, wheelsets, couplers and a brake wheel from an old Mantua hopper. Weathering is the usual chalk dusting.

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Since these cars were made by the thousands and not having a large clear picture of one, I wasn't too concerned with minute specifics. Besides, it seems like everyone has his own idea of what these really looked like, as I don't think I've seen two models of the same kind that look exactly alike. It's probably a rivet counter's nightmare, but it works.

Now I'm tempted to do a stock car sometime....
 
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CharlesH. said:
Besides, it seems like everyone has his own idea of what these really looked like, as I don't think I've seen two models of the same kind that look exactly alike. It's probably a rivet counter's nightmare, but it works.

Now I'm tempted to do a stock car sometime....
Click to expand...

That's not a matter of opinion, just a result of there being so many types of them on the road at any given time. There were several dozen different designs each different from the other. In the forties and fifties there were both steel and wood cars. A large well done book has been written on the subject.
 
Charles, let me get this straight. You drew the UP Overland herald...and all the dimensional data? If so, that is truly outstanding work. The whole car is outstanding. As Alan said, there have actually been several books done on nothing but PFE reefers and there must have been hundreds of factory and field variations on these cars. Your's certainly look like the ones I saw in the waning days of wood reefers I saw in LA in the late 60's.
 
Thanks for the comments.
I've seen one of those books from Signature Press, problem is, that I could get three kits for this car (plus decals) for that price!
Now, just to clarify, I didn't actually draw the sides by hand. It's practically impossible to make something so sharp at that scale, even with a fine nib. I drew the sides using Corel Draw, sampling text (and herald) from pictures and re-drawing an existing font. Still, I had to arrange everything letter by letter to get the proper alignment. I tend to go nuts when two letters are so much as a wee bit off.
 
Still pretty darned impressive work, Charles. I'd love to have a few PFE books too but they do cost an arm and a leg.
 
Guys,

The books are just as important as any tool in your toolbox.

I would not want to spend the kind of thime Charles has on a model and have it not be 100% correct in the finish & lettering department, and at some point, you're going to need the books for that. The SP boxcar that Charles did before this one, remember the data he needed? It came from one of those books. They're not cheap, but online at places like Ron's Books, you can get that PFE book for less than the cost of one of Athearn's new RTR switchers, or one of the new Walthers City of whatever passenger cars. It isn't that they're that expensive, it's that you'd rather spend your money on soemtning else, isn't it? Be honest now:D

I have a fairly extensive library, and it has enhanced my enjoyment of the modeling. I get a kick out of recreating something from photos and information and learning about the prototype in the process. Try it, you'll like it! ;)

BTW, Nice work Charles!
 
Alan, what you say is true. Before I moved from California, I had a pretty extensive library of reference books, including two of the PFE reference books. Since my plan was to live the rest of my life in my RV, I sold most of them and donated a lot to the local library. I'm slowly building my library back up, but it is a pretty expensive proposition, especially if you model a couple of railroads. I'm kicking myself now for getting rid of all those books, some of which can't be found at all, but my crystal ball was a little cloudy then. :)
 
I'll agree with the comments on references being a good thing, but if I put all that work into a car and someone pointed out a letter was a little off, it would not bother me one bit. That's beautiful work, Charles. Now I know you've saved that art work to make a fleet of these things, right?
 


True, good references are pretty much a necessity. Problem is, a veeeeeery short supply of dough! However I did manage to find some key aspects in model catalogs and the like, as well as some valuable nuggets scattered all over the place (including a colour pic from the 40's showing half a car!).
Still, one of these days, I'll be starting my very own library. And yes.... the artwork is still there, ready to be re-numbered!
 
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