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GN express reefers, Mobilgas

John Nehrich <nehrij@...>
 

I'm looking at a flyer from MDC on 6 versions of the express reefer in HO
painted for GN. While I know (or think that I know) that the cars were
somewhat similar, they did have a saddle-type freight car type roof, which
probably could be kitbashed since the roof is separate.
What I'm wondering about is the paint schemes.
Two different in having the herald, one with "Railway", one without.
One would seem to be the original herald-less version with "American Railway
Express" (prior to 1929), one Western Fruit Express, car no. 101. It
appears that the freight car version in box car red, as car no. 2977, should
be on a 40 foot car. But any help would be welcome.

Also, it appears Mantua copied the Walthers decal set for Mobilgas, with two
flying horses, in bright red on a silver car. The car reporting marks is
SOVX, which aren't listed in '40 - my '24, '27, and '32 ORER's are at home.
But has anyone seen a prototype car so lettered? - John
Richard Hendrickson
 

John Nehrich writes:

....it appears Mantua copied the Walthers decal set for Mobilgas, with two
flying horses, in bright red on a silver car. The car reporting marks is
SOVX, which aren't listed in '40 - my '24, '27, and '32 ORER's are at home.
But has anyone seen a prototype car so lettered? - John
John, I've puzzled about where Walthers got the idea for these decals for
many years. The decal set dates back at least to 1941, as I have a
Walthers O gauge catalog from that year in which a model tank car is shown
lettered with that set. But I've never found SOVX reporting marks in any
pre-1940 ORER, so I've concluded that the art work is entirely bogus -
unless it was used on a single display car at some event like the NY
World's Fair that never ran in revenue service. Mantua isn't the first
model RR manufacturer to copy the set; the evil that men do lives after
them. Of course, you have to remember that Walthers also produced a decal
set for an SP overnight merchandise car with a big orange winged emblem and
other embellishments which never existed except in someone's overheated
imagination. No doubt the tinplaters (forerunners of today's train set
bozos -I CAN say that here, can't I?) thought these fictional paint and
lettering schemes were hot stuff. Bottom line: don't trust any of
Walthers' decal sets unless you've got prototype documentation.

Richard H. Hendrickson
Ashland, Oregon 97520
John Nehrich <nehrij@...>
 

Richard - I did a little more research. It wasn't until '34 that
Socony-Vacuum combined the Socony horse with Vacuum Oil's Mobiligas
brandname (so it wouldn't be much help to look at a '32 or earlier ORER).

----- Original Message -----
From: "Richard Hendrickson" <rhendrickson@...>
To: <STMFC@...>
Sent: Wednesday, February 21, 2001 8:36 PM
Subject: Re: [STMFC] GN express reefers, Mobilgas


John Nehrich writes:

....it appears Mantua copied the Walthers decal set for Mobilgas, with
two
flying horses, in bright red on a silver car. The car reporting marks is
SOVX, which aren't listed in '40 - my '24, '27, and '32 ORER's are at
home.
But has anyone seen a prototype car so lettered? - John
John, I've puzzled about where Walthers got the idea for these decals for
many years. The decal set dates back at least to 1941, as I have a
Walthers O gauge catalog from that year in which a model tank car is shown
lettered with that set. But I've never found SOVX reporting marks in any
pre-1940 ORER, so I've concluded that the art work is entirely bogus -
unless it was used on a single display car at some event like the NY
World's Fair that never ran in revenue service. Mantua isn't the first
model RR manufacturer to copy the set; the evil that men do lives after
them. Of course, you have to remember that Walthers also produced a decal
set for an SP overnight merchandise car with a big orange winged emblem
and
other embellishments which never existed except in someone's overheated
imagination. No doubt the tinplaters (forerunners of today's train set
bozos -I CAN say that here, can't I?) thought these fictional paint and
lettering schemes were hot stuff. Bottom line: don't trust any of
Walthers' decal sets unless you've got prototype documentation.

Richard H. Hendrickson
Ashland, Oregon 97520




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thompson@...
 

Richard Hendrickson said:
Of course, you have to remember that Walthers also produced a decal
set for an SP overnight merchandise car with a big orange winged emblem and
other embellishments which never existed except in someone's overheated
imagination...
In fairness to Walthers, they only produced this decal set after Varney
offered one of the embossed paper-side car kits with the scheme; Gordon
Varney knew it wasn't ever on a prototype car, but liked it anyway. (!) The
"overheated imagination," Richard, was at the Southern Pacific: they DID
use that double wing as the logo for the Overnight service in the 1930s. It
appeared on a number of brochures, one of which is reproduced in the Signor
"Coast Line" book, p. 133.
They also DID consider it for a car scheme, but only prepared it as an
inked representation on a print of a car photo (of which Steve Peery has
the original, ink lines and all). The Varney and Walthers versions are
quite faithful to that photo, so calling it completely imaginary would not
be correct. It was never on a physical car, though, so it sure ain't
"prototype," either.

Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA
2942 Linden Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 http://www.signaturepress.com
(510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@...
Publishers of books on railroads and on Western history

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