1:20 SCALE READY-TO-RUN TOOL CAR
Manufacturer: Little Railways, 1621 Cherry Street, Williamsport, PA 17701. Price: $24.00 plus $2.50 shipping per order; Pennsylvania residents please add 6-percent sales tax.
"AW, COME ON," you protest, "no railroad ever ran a car like that." Wrong, engineers. The mining and logging shortlines of Pennsylvania did. Such eclectic oddities are right up Little Railways' alley. The owner, Tony Ferraro, spends a lot of time researching such things and a lot of money copying and mailing the photographs he turns up to document the authenticity of his models. Typically, such four-wheel flats would trail behind a Porter saddle tank switcher or, maybe, a Vulacn. And, yes, the authenticity extends to the unusual chain/hook couplings at either end of the car; the hook is even the correct size.
Vital statistics? The solidly built little flat consists of precision cut poplar with no evidence of glue on the visible parts. Construction is board-by-board, with a weathered finish. Over that, a protective acrylic coating. And the size, in actual inches, is 3 by 5 3/8, or a scale five feet wide by nine feet long. The height above the rails is about 20 scale inches, partly because of the tiny black plastic wheels; they're only 14 scale inches in diameter. The axle journals seem simplified but none of Tony's photos confirm or deny that. The wheels are free-rolling and the car will negotiate almost any curve broader than a right angle.
The car comes with all the items in the photograph: A beautifully turned hardwood oil drum and Little Railways' exquisite cast pewter shovel, pick, wrench, and oil can.
Our sample had very realistic and durable rusty weathering on the hook and loop couplings. The weathering on the wood appeared less realistic. I thought the car was too dark and the shade of gray too blue. Tony insists that is how the cars really looked because of all the coal dust constantly falling on them. Well, heck, it's my car now so I spent ten minutes with some 400 grit wet or dry sandpaper and transformed the little flat into the slightly graying, natural wood specimen you see in the photo, with the added benefit of a silky-smooth finish. I'm delighted with the result and Tony thinks I'm a heathen.
The tool car looks just right behind the new LGB Porter. A string of them carrying cordwood, piles of coal, or teams of loggers would look even better.
You'll rarely find Little Railways' excellent rolling stock at your local hobby shop. You owe it to yourself to study the photo and, if the car appeals to you at all, to order one of your own. But be forewarned. It'll grow on you.
Bet you can't buy just one.--RR
