I don't know where I got these, or when I got them. They've been following me around through 4 moves and end up sitting in the bottom of a drawer. The top two Santa Fe are Rapido cars. The 3 B&O cars are Atlas "Made In Italy". Which oddly enough, seem extremely similar to the Rivarossi passenger set I have for CN. The bottom 3 Santa Fe are made by Lima. The car with the trucks intact look to be insulated trucks, but upon further investigation, there is no power for lights running to the inside. Some have busted trucks, some are missing And no, I'm not cutting my fingernails while taking pictures, I use them to cut all the little stuff like wire and whatnot. I figure maybe I can try my hand at stripping the bottom cars and making something out of them, but the top two I don't know what to do with.
The bottom six I can see repainting, detailing, and installing new trucks/couplers to get something you really want. The upper two, if they were mine, I would probably turn into MOW/track inspection cars, or else kitbash them into something to go with my Daylight train.
The middle three cars were made by Rivarossi for Atlas, part of the "Atlas First Generation". So they would be the same as the later cars Rivarossi offered under its own brand.
The top two are probably Arnold. The RPO is a model of Santa Fe's 63' Budd RPO. I think the RPO in Kato's Super Chief set may be the same prototype. Check out Prototypes for N scale passenger cars for detailed info to help you identify models and prototypes. Upstate Gator
If you model CN, as your icon suggests you have some material there that would be a candidate for modification; the 2 sleepers (12-1's) are very close to Canadian National 12-1's and 10-2-1's in window configuration and the addition of Gold Metal steps; window treatments and perhaps a scratch built a/c roof as well. The coach is just fine as is, with some steps etc... it's a close enough match for several classes of CN HW coaches. Here's what I have done with 12-1 sleepers just like yours: You can see the putty built a/c roof and the steps really change the appearence of the car. The RPO/Combine isn't really useful unless you fill in some doors and maybe add a baggage door - again; here's a version I did: The observation cars have the wrong window configuration for a CN observation car (and there weren't really any CN observation cars after the 1930's except for the special ones such as business cars and the Pacific and Atlantic cars), but by messing with the windows you could get it close to a business car; or just paint it; letter it and say "close enough" !!!!. The Rowa shorties are not prototypical CN cars at all.....parts box potential ! The diner is close; lose the side door, these diners didn't have one, and kill the vents; the main windows would be changed a wee bit and a kitchen window could be added to make it very close. See the changes in the picture below: The HW's would be better in green and gold but some HW's did get re-painted into wiggle worm black and grey; there are some excellent books by Morning Sun and the CN volumes by Gay Lepsky that would give you more details. Hope this helps !
Normally, I would try to talk you out of the Arnold shorties (top two), but I have more on my workbench then I can handle right now. I am putting together re-lettered Kato Santa Fe Chiefs over to make them Rock Island for a Rocket consist, AND at the same time kit bashing a mixed Rock Island "shorty" consist using Bachmann short heavies, Arnold shorties, and shortened CC smoothsides to run on my small layout... But, if you are looking for a home for them, they can go in my shorty kit bash stash, lol..
I had one of those short Santa Fe cars years ago. It was one of my first passenger cars. I threw it away when I was going thru my stuff.
We all have a drawer full of stuff like this, you never know when it might come in handy. As someone said the Arnold RPO is a reasonable model of a Santa Fe car but the rest of their shorty cars were typical of some of the toy like early N scale that still haunts our reputation in the eyes of other scales today. The Rivarossi cars are still the best heavyweights in N scale, though we might have to review that assessment when Micro Train's arrive. The Lima cars were reasonable models of PRR cars with the exception of the observation which is just a coach with a short observation platform tacked on the end to cater to the market that says a heavyweight passenger train must have an observation car at the end.
Wow thanks for all the responses guys! There is a whole lot to digest here, and I've never done this before. Seeing as how I have the day off tomorrow, I think I'll be heading to the hobby shop to find some books on modifying cars and what ever else I can find to start me on my journey. Maybe order up some new trucks and stuff to have them around for if/when I can make these into something fun and exciting. (Had to get to the shop anyways to order a few things, this just makes me want to go there even more now!) Puddington: I'm going to use those photos as reference, and I hope that I can manage to achieve a result thats half as good as what you've done. Where in Ontario are you anyways? I'm always looking for new people up here. Found a club, but haven't managed to get to a meeting yet.
That is actually what I have planned when I get to that phase on my layout. I am using an old junk drawer heavyweight for "The Rusty Rail" tavern.
I'm using my Arnold RPO in a Santa Fe consist. New paint and decals, a new floor for the car and some Con-Cor trucks help a lot. I don't have a photo and it is too darn cold in the train room today to even think about going in there. Ben
Add new trucks and couplers to the heavyweight cars, paint them pullman green and/or boxcar red and put them in excursion service!
Most of my old Arnold cars like that have warped or bowed into hump back bananas. My Rivarossi heavy weights have all been repainted, bashed or at least upgraded the wheels and couplers. I am always picking up more at swap meets to feed my addiction.
