MODULE 17H ACCUCRAFT PASSENGER CARS
Please read Module 17 first if you have not already done so:
Accucraft Passenger Cars
Accucraft are well-known as a manufacturer of high quality large-scale locomotives but they also produce an equally attractive accurately scaled passenger cars for both standard gauge (1:32) and narrow gauge (1:20.3) via their AMS Division.
Accucraft Narrow-Gauge Passenger Cars
It may not come as a complete surprise but Accucraft (based in Union City, California) have also elected to produce scale replicas of the popular Jackson-Sharp Passenger Coaches built for the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad (D&RG) in the early 1880's. Over the succeeding years the D&RG (and its successors) rebuilt the cars to enlarge the windows and introduce improvements as and when necessary. These regular overhauls of their rolling stock enabled these wooden cars to be retained in use for 80 years or more.
By the 1920's the cars were showing their age and more extensive modifications were carried out in the company's workshops including the lowering of bodies and platforms; reinforcement of the underframes and installation of side-bearings. Accucraft's models are of the later rebuilt cars which also found their way to the rosters of Colorado & Southern (C&S) and Rio Grande Southern (RGS) Railroads.
Specifications
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1:20.3 Scale / 45mm Gauge
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Plastic body, Brass casting Construction
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4 ft. Mini. Radius
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Length: 27.5 in. (699 mm)
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Width: 5 in. (127 mm)
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Height: 7.38 in. (188 mm)
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Weight: 6 lbs. (2.73 kg)
Features
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Die-cast sprung trucks
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Metal wheels
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Full interior details
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Full underbody details
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Operating doors
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Working knuckle couplers
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Interior lighting
Reviews:
Model Railroad Press reaction to these passenger coaches on their initial release in 2008 proved extremely favourable, especially so as these were the first ready-to-run, accurately scaled (1:20.3) passenger cars to be made available to the large-scale modelling fraternity. They were also praised for the superb quality and ruggedness of their construction and prototypical accuracy. The only negative observations were concerned with the weight of each car (around 6.5 lbs) and the unrealistic roof finish - the latter which can be easily remedied. Much the same response greeted the Combine versions when these became available in 2011. In the intervening years it is difficult to discern what design changes, if any, may have been introduced but they have stood the test of time and it now seems unlikely that Bachmann will enter the market with a competing version now that they appear to be making a strategic withdrawal from the 1:20.3 Finescale Rolling Stock scene.
The gallery below illustrates some of the excellent models available in this range (please note that all items are rarely available in stock at the same time and production runs tend to be short and intermittent - check out Accucraft's inventory to see what is currently available):
The next video feature shows an Accucraft K28 pulling mixed train of AMS rolling stock on the D&RGW Chilli Line which illustrates how good the Phoenix Sound Systems were way back in 2011:
The first few scenes in this next video feature an Accucraft C19 pulling heavy brass AMS Passenger cars and whilst all the remainder of the video is confined to goods traffic on the Palo Verde & Southwestern Railroad it is still well worth watching not to mention the hand-built brick viaduct.
The next video feature shows an Accucraft K28 pulling mixed train of AMS rolling stock on the D&RGW Chilli Line which illustrates how good the Phoenix Sound Systems were way back in 2011:
This is a real treat to end with. A majestic Live Steam Coal Fired Accucraft K28 locomotive pulling D&RGW "San Juan" Passenger Cars which appear to be from the AMS 1:20.3 scale range.
ACCUCRAFT AMS 1: Scale Standard Gauge Passenger Cars
The further I progress writing this manual I realise that Accucraft's contribution in the large-scale passenger car domain is far greater than I realised and deserve an exclusive module of their own.
For now, we will examine the company's manufacturing presence in the standard gauge arena.
Accucraft (AMS/AML) certainly produce an impressive range of eye-catching reproductions of smooth side (or "streamlined) passenger cars typical of what is often referred to as the "golden age" of rail travel in the USA (the 1940's and 1950's).
Their catalogue of Gauge 1, 1:32 scale coaches would is regarded by many large-scale railway enthusiasts as "top of the range" being of accurate prototype length and feature brass metal construction, die-cast tracks, metal wheels, working couplers, full underbody details and nice paint schemes. These beauties weigh in at 5 lbs (of which more later). These products are probably as far removed from "toy trains" as it is possible to get.
A lot of trouble has been taken in the design and production of these eye-catching coaches and the high (near "Museum) quality of these faithful replicas is very much reflected in the price. At around US $340 each a full 6 car set is still likely to set you back over US $ 2000 even with discount (that's before sales tax, shipping and handling costs) and is quite possibly beyond the realms of many enthusiasts who would like to acquire them.
Manufacturers tend to face a dilemma in balancing the quality of a product against anticipated volume of sales and although these coaches have been on the market for some time we must wait and see whether Accucraft have got it right here - they know their customers and undoubtedly have a well-earned reputation as a premium supplier to maintain. It seems that many dealers are out of stock and may be reluctant to hold inventory on such a high-priced low-volume seller so you may well have to pre-order in the hope that another production batch will be forthcoming.
The specification for each car is almost identical apart from the type of coach and livery:
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Correct 1:32 Scale (Standard gauge)
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45mm gauge (Gauge 1)
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Brass Metal body
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Plastic floor and underframe
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Smooth sides
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Glazed windows
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Die-cast unsprung smooth running metal trucks with insulated metal wheels
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Soft diaphragms between cars
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Different paint schemes
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Non-operating knuckle pattern couplers
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Silver coloured wire handrails
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No illumination, car road numbers or road names
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Length:Observation car 31"(788mm) x 3.8"(96.5mm) x 5.2" (132mm) Others: 29.5" (750mm) x 3.8" x 5.2"
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Weight: 5 lbs (2.27 kilos)
These cars are as long as the prototypes and whilst Accucraft do not specifically mention a recommended minimum radius they need the widest possible curves to look realistic - around 10' radius is suggested.
Cars are available unlettered and in 8 other railroad liveries:
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Unlettered
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Southern Pacific (Lark Grey)
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Union Pacific (Grey)
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New York Central (Grey)
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Southern Pacific Daylight (Red & Orange)
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Union Pacific (Yellow, Red Strip)
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Norfolk & Western (Maroon, Black Roof)
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Pennsylvania (Maroon, Black Roof)
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Canadian Pacific (Maroon)
and 5 styles:
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Coach
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Baggage Car
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Diner Car
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Pullman Sleeper Car
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Observation Car
The Streamline Passenger Cars are also available in a set of six to create longer trains comprising: 1 Baggage Car, 2 x Coach, 1 Dinner Car, 1 Sleeper Car, 1 Observation Car.
These latter sets announced to date are depicted in the gallery below although not all off the versions may have been released in any significant volume and many may now be out of stock:
Note the weight factor. If you intend to run prototypical length trains your locomotive power needs to be up to the task of drawing a combined weight of at least 30 lbs (13.7 kilos)
AM34-381 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Unlettered Grey
AM34-382 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Southern Pacific Lark Grey
AM34-383 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Union Pacific Grey
AM34-384 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - New York Central Grey
AM34-385 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Southern Pacific Daylight Red & Orange
AM34-386 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Union Pacific Yellow, Red Strip
AM34-387 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Norfolk & Western Maroon, Black Roof
AM34-388 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Pennsylvania Maroon, Black Roof
AM34-389 Passenger Cars (Set of 6) - Canadian Pacific Maroon, Black Roof
You may be able to see the examples of individual coach styles in more detail in the next "slider" gallery.
AL34-315 Coach - Southern Pacific Daylight Red & Orange
AL34-322 Southern Pacific Baggage Car Lark Grey
AL34-378 Observation Car - Pennsylvania Maroon, Black Roof
AL34-315 Coach - Southern Pacific Daylight Red & Orange
Accucraft "Compagnie des Wagon-lits Coaches
Incidentally the prefix 'AL' for the product codes seems to be interchangeable with 'AM'.
Accucraft also have a number of other 1:32 scale models in their sales portfolio including a limited batch of Compagnie des Wagon-Lits (CIWL ) LX Sleeper cars to pre-order with four different car numbers as used in the famous ‘Blue Train’ with the prospect of accompanying cars being released at a later date. For more detailed information click the link button below:
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Brief Specification:
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Scale 1:32
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Gauge 45 mm
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Construction Brass & Stainless Steel
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Features Ball Bearing Trucks
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Metal Wheels
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Sprung Brass Buffers
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Detailed interior with battery lighting
Accucraft Japanese, Australian & British Coaches
In addition to these fine looking sleeper coaches Accucraft also produce a somewhat eclectic range of Japanese, Australian (New South Wales), and British outline standard gauge cars - also in 1:32 scale for running on 45mm gauge track.
Accucraft has chosen these coaches air-conditioned ‘HUB’ set as used on the ‘Newcastle Express’, the 'Riverina Express', the 'South Coast Daylight Express', and the 'Central West Express' to go with their C38 locomotive.
The were operated by the New South Wales Government Railways from April 1948 until April 2000. The 4 sets coded ‘HUB’ were numbered 116-119, The first set entered service in April 1948 on the Sydney to Newcastle service. The set of 7 cars were permanently coupled with the loco being turned at each destination and re-coupled to the opposite end for the return journey.
Specifications
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1:32 Scale / 45 mm Gauge
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24" Length (62 cm)
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8.2lbs, (3.7kg)
Features
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Metal wheels
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Deep indian red and lined
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First class cars #3,4,5 have green seats
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Second class cars #1,2,6,7 have red seats
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Etched brass body, Full profiled
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Rivet detail
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Glazed windows
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Interior detail
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Battery lighting
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'2AN' metal bogies
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Knuckle couplers
Models
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AL94-104S* Full Hub Set, 7 Coaches (AP104S)
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AL94-104C* Centre Coach, car #2,3,4,5,6 (AP104C)
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AL94-104E* End Coach, car #1, 7 (AP104E)
For more information click on the link button on the left:
ACCUCRAFT AMS 1:20.3 Scale Standard Gauge Passenger Cars
In addition to North American, Continental & Australian Outline Passenger Cars Accucraft also manufacture a nice line of standard gauge British Outline rolling stock in 1:32 scale which are probably a "must have" for UK modellers seeking to produce a British layout in the correct proportions. Their British Railway (BR) Mark 1 recreations would look good on any layout representing traffic in the late 1950's and early 1960's. These were eventually replaced by Mark 2 and Mark 3 designs although many of the original cars can still be found in service on preserved or heritage railways.
The coaches have appeared a several liveries predominantly Chocolate & Cream, Green, Carmine & Cream and Maroon) and some are illustrated in the following gallery:
For more information regarding the full range of UK outline passenger cars click on the relevant button links:
This video features a live steam Accucraft Adams Radial Tank Locomotive pulling a rake of Chocolate & Cream Mark 1 Passenger Coaches.
Another example of how impressive a live steam gauge 1 layout can be. This is another splendid Accucraft Live Steam A3 Flying Scotsman locomotive with a rake of Mark 1 Passenger Coaches in Green livery.
To finish is this assembly of Gauge One locomotives and passenger Cars at a garden meet in SE England.
Copyright © John Prescott 2014 and respective copyright holders.
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