Erie Baggage cars- Trainfest report

[thomasjmdavis]

From the MR Trainfest report-

"N scale passenger cars

Erie class C-18 Standard Steel Car Co. 70-foot heavyweight baggage express car. Injection-molded plastic model with prototype-specific underframe and roof details, six-wheel Commonwealth Equalizer passenger trucks, 36” wheelsets, and body-mounted Magne-Matic couplers. Road names and price to be announced. Micro-Trains Line Co., 541-535-1755, www.micro-trains.com"

Hoping Joe from MT might chime in here.  In any case, a big "THANK YOU" from those of us asking for this car.  I want 2 in Erie, 2 others in other roads that had similar cars, and maybe 4 undec if I am lucky enough that M&R sides will fit them.  Would it be simpler if I just send a blank check?

There is no release date.  Did anyone at the show see a sample or get an idea of when these would be available?  Seems like we were discussing this on Railwire just last summer.

[arbomambo]

I'm in for double that if the M&R sides fit!!!!!
~Bruce

[skytop35]

There is no release date.  Did anyone at the show see a sample or get an idea of when these would be available?  Seems like we were discussing this on Railwire just last summer.

There was no sample yet, just a drawing with a ( I think) Spring 2015 release.

[arbomambo]

I can live with a Spring release...like Thomas, I plan to use them to build a fleet of ATSF 70' baggage cars using M&R sides...I've constructed 2 from Rivarossi cores and I believe the MT car will provide for a superior bash, if my experience in building an ATSF RPO and 3000-series chair car is any indication. Likewise, I'll need a couple of actual Erie versions to run as head end baggage/express.- Bruce

[thomasjmdavis]

This might be useful
http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/el/pax/paxbook.html

The diagrams are from the EL period, but other than window configurations, should be correct for most cars.  Erie also had similar cars with arched roofs, so perhaps could be mixed and matched with WoT cars. 

What I really love about the MT choice is that the Erie heavyweight baggage car just looks so much like a baggage car.  It is about as "generic" as any car out there.  You could paint it in almost any road, and it would look correct to anyone not an expert in the road's equipment.  Put a sill under it, and it would look "Santa Fe."  And you could start up a cottage industry making alternate doors for modernized cars, or with different numbers of windows.

While I own two or three each of the past MT heavyweight releases, I am going to have to get a second job to pay for all of these I am going to want. 

And a bonus for those of us who model ATSF- there will be about 25000 old Rivarossi baggage cars out there on eBay for cheap.  While kitbashes are not near as nice as the cars from M&R sides, a nip here and a tuck there, and you can knock out a half dozen of the baggage cars rebuilt from coaches or other cars with a belt rail.

For me, anyway, MT has hit a home run with this one.

Tom D.

[Chris333]

The car should be close to this:

[CBQ Fan]

Please offer multiple road numbers with each release!   Please!!!!!!!!!!!

[thomasjmdavis]

Second on multiple road numbers.... or decals are fine with me, if they actually match the printed lettering.

I should probably not give advice on marketing to MT, but....  One of the things I might bite on would be a multi-road runner pack.  There are plenty of roads with similar cars.  Would make those of us who model the "Fast Mail" and similar trains very happy.  You could do different combinations by region (my vote would be a Dearborn station, Chicago circa mid-50s set, but I am sure you could also come up with one for New York, or southwest, or wherever).

Of course, as with all free advice from customers, remember that my best case scenario is that they sell well enough that you don't go out of business, but poorly enough that I can pick up the overstock at a huge discount.

Tom D

[CBQ Fan]

Second on multiple road numbers.... or decals are fine with me, if they actually match the printed lettering.

I should probably not give advice on marketing to MT, but....  One of the things I might bite on would be a multi-road runner pack.  There are plenty of roads with similar cars.  Would make those of us who model the "Fast Mail" and similar trains very happy.  You could do different combinations by region (my vote would be a Dearborn station, Chicago circa mid-50s set, but I am sure you could also come up with one for New York, or southwest, or wherever).

Of course, as with all free advice from customers, remember that my best case scenario is that they sell well enough that you don't go out of business, but poorly enough that I can pick up the overstock at a huge discount.

Tom D

This is a cool idea for a runner pack!

[bbussey]

I will get one Erie whenever it is released. Hopefully, it will be the first release.

[arbomambo]

I will get one Erie whenever it is released. Hopefully, it will be the first release.

I second that....
This one MT release will do the most to put a major dent in my pocketbook...I can easily see myself acquiring 2 Erie 'as released' and, at least 10-12 for kitbash fodder
~Bruce

[Ngineer]

One of the things I might bite on would be a multi-road runner pack. (...) (my vote would be a Dearborn station, Chicago circa mid-50s set (...)).

Did an Erie baggage car (in mail service) ever travel to Los Angeles on the ATSF?

Javier

[arbomambo]

Did an Erie baggage car (in mail service) ever travel to Los Angeles on the ATSF?

Javier

Absolutely...
Erie  head end baggage and express cars were frequent additions to ATSF's trains 7&8, the Fast Mail, in addition to other ATSF transcon passenger trains.
~Bruce

[Chris333]

Absolutely...
Erie  head end baggage and express cars were frequent additions to ATSF's trains 7&8, the Fast Mail, in addition to other ATSF transcon passenger trains.
~Bruce

Any pics of this?  Just curious, I had no idea.

[arbomambo]

Any pics of this?  Just curious, I had no idea.

Erie, NYC, PRR were major contributors of 'foreign' head end cars to Santa Fe's transcon trains, most notably the Fast Mail, but on the Grand Canyon as well, which was pretty head end heavy, and quite frankly, any of the transcon trains...these cars were interchanged in Chicago and Kansas City (Erie and NYC cars were usually added in Chicago-PRR cars in Kansas City via MoPac from St. Louis).
It's important to note that DL&W cars were NOT seen on any ATSF trains, so 1960 was the cut off date.
A great source for this is the 1997's second Quarter issue of "The Warbonnet" which devotes it's entire issue to ATSF's Fast Mail.
I'm working on a 200 series smoothside Erie baggage for my consist, and I've purchased a couple of Atlas Erie 1937 AAR boxes with the buckeye ends to convert to express boxes, converted from Express milk cars (drawings in the latest Model Railroader), this was another Erie car seen on the Fast Mail.
So this Erie Prototype baggage is very Welcome news to me!
~Bruce