Looking for photos of work trains and tool cars.

Pro,  Look at Bing.com    Images  MOW cars or Work trains.

  A pretty good place to start for almost any type of car you need photos of. Prototype as well as Multiple gauge models.

  Search "The Forum" for a thread recently started on MOW cars. 

Here's one I'm working on since it looks like I now have the components to build it:

There were a whole series of this PRR cars - XL MoW cars.  Series of articles on building them in The KeyStone Modeler a few years back, too.

I have found an interest in MOW. It exposes the unique needs of a railroad due to it's geography, weather, and primary revenue sources.

One type of car that lasted post WWII into the '70's used by many rr's due to the surplus nature were the military troop cars. The troop sleeper, troop kitchen and troop hospital combine were modded to support the crews.

It seems from my early research, that the tool cars were usually old flats with anything and everything as needed lashed, built, attached on to them.

Another interesting car was the use of old oil fired steam loco tenders as supply for fuel and water for the crane. Various tanks on flats were seen also when the task required it.

Here's my favorite RR's page, with this shortcut directly to the MOW. You can see the older military conversions and various flats. I am not sure if someone does a PRR site like this.

Pro Hobby,

I model the Pennsy in the very late 40s, and I have several of the same cars you have.  The crane and tender are really nice.  You can find data on the PRR work trains by also googling MofW as well as MOW.  My problem with PRR MOW cars is my time period; before 1953 these cars were painted grey with black lettering.  You just don't see any O gauge MOW cars painted grey.  Some day I'll have to sit down and paint them all.

Ron