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1 - 11 of 11
Was there ever a mechanical reefer with the refrigeration unit visible in the A end?
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Jeffrey White
I was going through the cars I inherited from my friend deciding what to keep and what to sell and I can across a PFE mechanical reefer that looks like part of the refrigeration unit was protruding through the A end. I looked at the mechanical reefers section in Tony Thompson's PFE book and couldn't find anything that looked like it. My question is, did anyone ever build a real car that had the reefer protruding through the A end? It is a rather unique looking car but if it's a design that never existed it's going in the $2.00 a car train show box.
Jeff White Alma IL |
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Photo? Road number? At one point, truck trailer style refrigeration units were added to older cars (and, indeed, are used on some modern refrigerator cars).
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This may not have happened during the time frame of this list (pre-1960). Thanks! Brian Ehni (Sent from my iPhone) On Jan 23, 2023, at 7:00 PM, Jeffrey White <jrwhite@...> wrote: |
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B.L. Griffith
1965 to 1968 time frame. See page 211 of the PFE book, second edition.
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What you saw may have been an experimental unit to test the idea of mechanical, self-regulating refrigeration in a rail car before building one for regular service.
One problem in putting an appliance like a refrigeration unit through the "A" end of a car is that it could reduce end clearance when coupled to another car. Also, having a unit in the "A" end of a car also puts it in a space where oncoming air needed to cool the unit would be partially blocked by the car ahead of it. Having the refrigeration unit accessible through the car sides makes maintenance and repairs easier to do as well. . Below is a PFE mechanical refrigerator I made from an Atlas plug door boxcar, using information about the prototype from a Railroad Model Craftsman series about PFE refrigerator cars over the decades of their service. The "A" end of this model's prototype carried a Deutz diesel motor to power the compressor and also carry the evaporation unit, its cooling fan and the interior's cooling controls. Under the car were two 500-gallon diesel fuel tanks. This arrangement allowed the car to maintain its pre-set cooling level whether rolling in a train, standing still in a yard or on a siding for several days if need be. Ed Bommer |
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B.L. Griffith
Per page 211 in the PFE book referenced above; It is obvious from the photo that the reefer unit barely protruded beyond the open framing at the original car end. An interesting detail is the Morton type mesh replacing the solid roof panels over the open framing despite the car having an Apex or similar type roof walk. |
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B.L. Griffith
To the original poster- can you post pictures of the model that started this thread?
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Benjamin Hom
Jeff White asked: "I was going through the cars I inherited from my friend deciding what to keep and what to sell and I can across a PFE mechanical reefer that looks like part of the refrigeration unit was protruding through the A end. I looked at the mechanical reefers section in Tony Thompson's PFE book and couldn't find anything that looked like it. My question is, did anyone ever build a real car that had the reefer protruding through the A end? It is a rather unique looking car but if it's a design that never existed it's going in the $2.00 a car train show box." B.L. Griffith replied: "To the original poster- can you post pictures of the model that started this thread?" From Jeff's description, this model sounds like the Model Power "Thermo-King Reefer", which is a 50 ft car with a prominent horizontal seam reinforcement on the sides and the refrigeration unit on the A end. eBay auction with photos at the link, with a page from the Model Power 1981 Catalog posted on the HO Seeker website attached. Ben Hom |
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PFE never had such cars, which would be a rebuilt ice refrigerator. I think your model may be from a low cost Mehano (guess?) model based on someone's imagination -- I think I bought one cheap at a railroad flea market just because of the refrigeration unit that was embedded in the end of the car. On 1/23/2023 8:00 PM, Jeffrey White wrote: I was going through the cars I inherited from my friend deciding what to keep and what to sell and I can across a PFE mechanical reefer that looks like part of the refrigeration unit was protruding through the A end. I looked at the mechanical reefers section in Tony Thompson's PFE book and couldn't find anything that looked like it. My question is, did anyone ever build a real car that had the reefer protruding through the A end? It is a rather unique looking car but if it's a design that never existed it's going in the $2.00 a car train show box. --
Tim O'Connor Sterling, Massachusetts |
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Neat little model of an R-40-30 ! How did you create the louvers ? On 1/23/2023 9:25 PM, Edward wrote: What you saw may have been an experimental unit to test the idea of mechanical, self-regulating refrigeration in a rail car before building one for regular service. --
Tim O'Connor Sterling, Massachusetts |
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Bruce
Ah! I had forgotten that PFE experiment, which was unsuccessful, and that was the end of that. But other owners' rebuilt ice reefers (all meat or frozen food reefers) converted to RP operated for a number of years. On 1/23/2023 10:53 PM, B.L. Griffith wrote:
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Tim O'Connor Sterling, Massachusetts |
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Jeffrey White
Thanks Ben and everyone else who replied. It's some iteration of this Model Power car. I had already looked at the picture on page 211 of the PFE book and rejected it as the prototype to this car. Upgrading it would be another project to add to my already long list of projects. Thanks to Tim for the prototype photo. Looks like the car is too new for my layout. It goes in the train show box. Jeff White Alma IL
On 1/24/2023 8:36 AM, Benjamin Hom wrote:
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