SPC Jackson & Sharp Parlor Car in HOn3

[r3feetr]

Happy Holidays Everyone,

Santa was very generous this year and brought me a test printing of a SPC Jackson & Sharp Parlor Car. The Parlor Car design is based on dimension information from Randy Hees, the few photographs of the car in service, and Jackson & Sharp plans of a bullnose roof for a Sandy River Parlor Car. I am very pleased with the way the body came out. It's just the roof that needs work. After printing it out I don't think the bullnose is correct for the SPC Parlor car. The curve of the clerestory roof is too abrupt on the ends. That's probably because I used a 1900 design for a 1880 car. In addition the connecting tabs are too short and the roof doesn't correctly fit to the body.

In order to keep the design time at a minimum I used the floor, platforms, steps, and the center portion of the duckbill roof from my Carter Coach.

Here is an image of the design and a photo of the printed car. The railings, truss rods, brake wheels, etc. have not been installed. Does anyone know what the Jackson & Sharp trucks looked like? They don't show in the photos I've seen.

Parlor Car Design

SPC Jackson & Sharp Parlor Car in HOn3

[dsp&p_fan]

That is a gorgeous car. What sort of trucks were used under them? Are the standard D&RG trucks a good approximation? I presume you won't be printing out HO scale Miller Couplers. Eventually, I'd like to create a pair of them for a model the Oahu Railway's Pearl.

Again, beautiful work!

[Andrew Brandon]

I didn't know I needed to have a model of that car, until I saw that... Nice work John!

Michael: I would love HO scale Miller couplers for my V&T cars, and I can imagine there are a few others out there who would enjoy them.

[Brian Norden]

The SPC had two of these cars. One went to the Nevada & California (former C&C), and later was leased to the Lake Tahoe Ry & T Co.

So a model of the car could be also used when modeling these two lines.

[dsp&p_fan]

OK. I'll draw up Miller Hooks. That would be a fun little item. Not certain how close I could make them to the prototype in HO (and be functional)...or what concessions would be required...but I want them in O scale.

I'm going to dig through White's book, the D&RGW passenger car book, and the Car Builder Dictionaries to see if I can find the standard J&S trucks of the period. As I recall, the D&RGW standardized their truck design in 1881 and based it on the Pullman design of the period (with a shorter WB), so any J&S cars built in 1880 should be J&S trucks and hence more useful to the rest of us. Personally, I love the early-mid 1870s strap iron pedestal trucks.

[r3feetr]

Thanks everybody for your kind comments on the Parlor Car.

Michael: Are you aware of the Delaware Public Archives Photo Collection of Jackson & Sharp cars?
http://cdm15323.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/search/collection/p15323coll6/searchterm/jackson%20and%20sharp/field/all/mode/all/conn/and/ Unfortunately there isn't a photo of the SPC cars. There is a close up photo of narrow gauge trucks. They look like 2 foot gauge and may be the trucks for the Sandy River car which was built in 1900. The trucks are not as ornate as some of the earlier standard gauge trucks. http://cdm15323.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/p15323coll6/id/1500/rec/2

I thought about making Miller hooks for my car but I have a 16" radius turnback that doesn't allow close enough coupling for the hooks.

[dsp&p_fan]

Yep, 16"R probably isn't enough for Millers without substantial modifications.

It didn't occur to me to search there. I spent a fair bit of time to download all of their Cincinnati narrow gauge items a while back.

I found a builder's photo of a D&RG J&S coach, #80 I think, in 1881. The trucks appear to be around 4'4"wb...definitely not the mass produced D&RG standard trucks. I hope to see a couple photos of those same trucks under non-Colorado cars to confirm that they were a standard J&S design...or at least used standard J&S castings/parts.

[Randy Hees]

Very nice model John.

I can find some stuff on D&RG J&S trucks... there was one pair in Durango into the 1960's...

Slight correction on the history... one of the cars was burned in the November 1903 pier fire... at the time the other was not listed on the roster... Possibles already in Nevada. Eventually the surviving car is leased to the Lake Tahoe line... It was burned somewhere near Truckee with the other rolling stock leased from the SPC

Randy

[r3feetr]

Randy, thanks for the comments. I look forward to seeing the D&RG Jackson & Sharp trucks.

I'm sure it's a typo but a slight correction on your slight correction. The pier and terminal burned down in November 1902.