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[wcfn100]

Yellow Swift with the red/white logo, the Armour, and the URTX plain-jane.

I think I'd avoid the Swift with the Red/White logo.  I don't believe these cars were that common and were NOT the 'delivered' scheme as indicated by Rapido.

All a late 40's modeler need as far as Swift goes is a couple of the Yellow w/ Black lettering.

I never was able to locate a prototype for the Swift car.  If anyone knows of one and could PM me I'd appreciate it.

Jason

[Cajonpassfan]

I happen to love the short 36/37' meat reefers. They were modern cars for their era, with steel underframes and modern appliances. Their short length made them look like older cars, but that was dictated by the spacing of dock doors of old packing house facilities. In the era I model, "circa '50", there were as many short 36/37' house cars as there were fifty footers riding the rails. If anything, I need more short cars to balance the fleet. 36' stock and box cars would be welcome also.
A to the Swift schemes, below is Sunshine's well researched description. Please keep in mind that when a new paint scheme was adopted, cars painted in earlier schemes roamed the country for many years before being repainted. For my era, both the plain yellow and red and white box scheme would be appropriate. I may even buy a freshly shopped car in the all red scheme, for variety's sake. Thanks Rapido!
Regards, Otto K.
,

[bbussey]

So, 1948-49 for the yellow Swift car with the red/white logo.  Which means that, for prior to 1950, the limited-run four-pack is required to get the two plain yellow Swift cars.

[wcfn100]

For my era, both the plain yellow and red and white box scheme would be appropriate.

Appropriate yes, just not in numbers compared to the y/b and r/w schemes.

Love that Sunshine reefer.  With a new under frame you could probably get more miles out of the MTL and Athearn cars.

Jason

[Cajonpassfan]

I'll let someone else research how many of the 4,000 plus Swift cars got the red "banner" over the basic yellow body during the 1948-49 period and how long those cars stayed in that scheme. I suspect quite a few and quite a while. For my 1950 target, the all red car would be the oddity, but by the mid to late fifties, it is likely most of the cars would be all red. There was a good article in I believe the RMC many years back covering all this.... Just wish I could find it.

While we're at it, anyone know when the large "Kingan" scheme went into effect? Mid-fifties, earlier?
Regards, Otto K.

[bbussey]

While we're at it, anyone know when the large "Kingan" scheme went into effect? Mid-fifties, earlier?
Regards, Otto K.

Pretty sure that one is mid-1950s.  I'm not familiar with the regions in which it traveled though.

[wcfn100]

  Which means that, for prior to 1950, the limited-run four-pack is required to get the two plain yellow Swift cars.

Making people buy the four pack to get the yellow scheme is pretty cruddy but may have just been a mistake.  I see they've now updated the info on the website about some of the Swift schemes.

Jason

[Puddington]

Making people buy the four pack to get the yellow scheme is pretty cruddy but may have just been a mistake.  I see they've now updated the info on the website about some of the Swift schemes.

Jason

It was not a mistake at all Jason. We were not even considering that scheme until the idea of collector packs came up (what with it being an early scheme and we're offering the other two Swift.) Look, we can't do 50 schemes, we have offered more schemes in N scale than the initial offering of HO scale, have offered up to 12 road numbers, are offering kits and undecs .... what can I say; we can't please everyone I guess.....sorry.

[u18b]

Buying a whole set of something just to get what I want......

I think I have been doing that with Kato passenger cars for over a decade.

[wcfn100]

It was not a mistake at all Jason.

Fair enough, we'll go with cruddy.

Unfortunately since you guys had the yellow car with the r/w Swift as the 'Delivered' scheme I have to take everything else with a grain of salt.  It's entirely too easy to think that you had the schemes mixed up, especially if the second most needed scheme and the only scheme from 1941 when the car was made to 1948 was such an afterthought.  I don't know who would want these more than steam modelers in the 40's.

You would do everyone a favor if you switched the yellow cars from the 4-pack and individual releases. But that's just my opinion.


Jason

[NYC1956]

Kingan had a huge (27 acre) plant in Indianapolis. They apparently shipped everywhere (see image Otto posted of Kingan reefer in ATSF train).
They were certainly dominant throughout the Midwest and east.
I personally noted a Kingan reefer in a block (New York Central) headed toward New York about 1958.
Kingan was the first meat packer to offer sliced bacon.

[Dave V]

I'm always perplexed by the "'Big Model Railroading' out to screw the little guy" narrative...  Folks don't get into the model railroading manufacturing business to make mad stacks of cash.  It always amazes me that the smaller guys can even manage to stay in business and pay their staff given how thin their profit margins are.  If the only way to offer a broader number of schemes and still stay in the black is to offer a collector set then so be it.  Again, here we have that "questioning the motives" crap that spins me up to no end.  It's not just about recovering the tooling costs and the manufacturing costs and the packaging costs and the shipping costs and the staff payroll costs...you want them to have a little left over to invest in expanding the product line too.

These guys--Rapido and others--are doing the math, and this makes the most sense.  But, as Pud says, some folks will never be happy and will have to have something negative to say no matter what.

On the other side of that equation, in the Internet age, manufacturers don't own the message.  When something is genuinely wrong or bad (witness the Intermountain SD45-2), the word will get out, and no amount of forum moderation will stop it.  That said, much (if not most) of the crap spewed on the Internet comes from the Rectal Data Extraction Model.  Let's resolve to do our part to not to feed the bullsh!t beast by pretending we know the manufacturing business better than the manufacturers do.

[tom mann]

But please, continue to criticize our release schedule without having any knowledge of what's going on behind the scenes.  And I'll go tell Carey Price how he could have saved that one New York goal tonight. 

-Jason

[bbussey]

Fair enough, we'll go with cruddy.

Unfortunately since you guys had the yellow car with the r/w Swift as the 'Delivered' scheme I have to take everything else with a grain of salt.  It's entirely too easy to think that you had the schemes mixed up, especially if the second most needed scheme and the only scheme from 1941 when the car was made to 1948 was such an afterthought.  I don't know who would want these more than steam modelers in the 40's.

You would do everyone a favor if you switched the yellow cars from the 4-pack and individual releases. But that's just my opinion.

Your opinion is based from the perspective of precise prototype modelers, which is a small percentage of the clientele.  Keep in mind that far more of the yellow with red/white logo would sell than the plain yellow scheme.  You should be thankful that the plain yellow scheme is being offered to begin with instead of badgering Rapido with minor issues in the grand scheme of things.  The goal is to sell lots of the popular schemes so that the company can afford to offer the low-demand prototypical schemes.

[wcfn100]

Let's resolve to do our part to not to feed the bullsh!t beast by pretending we know the manufacturing business better than the manufacturers do.

That's a deal if they won't pretend to more about the prototype.

I know it a hard business, and I only make it that much harder.  That's not the intent.  I just think everyone is entitled to all the information, not just the information that helps a manufacturer sell product, especially when it's incorrect.  Regardless, it's obviously time for me to take a break. 

Jason