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Still looking so I brought this topic back.

Original post: "Atlas O just released their 53'6" wood express reefer in several liveries, including a dark green REA scheme.  However, this one like nearly ever other model of a REA reefer has the red diamond herald.  I would like to get a REA reefer that does not have a railroad name on it, but since my layout era is late 40s ones with the diamond herald do not interest me.

With the exception of GGD's 6100 series cars painted silver with green stripes (which I have), there does not seem the be any other accurate, scale 3-rail models of REA reefers suitable for my era.*   Any forum member know of any that where made? 

Thanks.

*The REA silver 6100 series car were repainted dark green without the herald in 1950 or 1951 due to the difficulty in keeping them clean, and GGD produced this car.  However, this is too late for my era."

Last edited by CAPPilot
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jim sutter posted:

Jim,

I did a search of the forum before I posted, looking for non-RR specific REA cars that fit my era.  Other than the GGD green and silver car of the REA one produced after WWII, there really isn't any.  The link you provided kind of supports this, as it shows a Seaboard and a Pennsylvania.  It is very hard to find the pre-1953 color scheme of Pullman Green body with black ends and roof, and no herald and no railroad name.  It is even hard to find a picture on the web.   They all have the post-1953 "Railway Express Agency" red diamond herald or the post-1961 "R E A" over a large white X herald.  This looks like another repaint project in the future.

 

Last edited by CAPPilot

Thanks everyone for the comments.

John, I bought the car in your top photo before I learned that car was repainted to that scheme from the silver scheme in 1951.  It was a "rats" moment and I sold it.

Here are some HO REA cars painted in the 1929 to 1952 scheme, although in the 1940s some of the cars were painted in the dark green and simplified lettering scheme shown in PRRRONBH's picture of the cars with the herald, but without the herald.

s-l225WALTH-5485

The Atlas 53'6" car would be my choice to repaint if I ever get around to it.

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  • WALTH-5485
Last edited by CAPPilot

 GGD REA 6328GGD head end REA logos

Ron,  May 2012 GGD offered Santa Fe road numbers 4000 and 4030 with the square on point logo and REA reefers 6325 and 6538 without the logo.  The SF with logo is still on our layout if you need another picture.  I know a man in Colorado who has the REA car if you need other photos.  John in Lansing, ILL

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  • GGD REA 6328
  • GGD head end REA logos
Last edited by rattler21
rattler21 posted:

 GGD REA 6328

Ron,  May 2012 GGD offered two Santa Fe road numbers of cars with the square on point log and two REA reefers without the logo.  The SF with logo is still on our layout if you need another picture.  I know a man in Colorado who has the REA car if you'd like photos.  John in Lansing, ILL

John,

That REA 54' reefer paint scheme is like the one I'm looking for, but on that reefer it is a year too late for me.  When that 54' reefer first came out in 1947 (+/-), REA painted their own cars this way:

GGD 54' Express Reefer

It didn't take long for REA to realize this scheme was too hard to keep clean, so they repainted it in 1950 to their all green standard scheme at the time.  Three years later they repainted it, and all their cars, with the diamond scheme.

Since I've settled on 1949 as my layout's era, the green paint scheme on this particular car is a bit too late.  I have all the numbers of GGD's silver painted ones which are correct for my era.

So, I'm still looking for an REA owned express car in the pre-1953 paint scheme (no diamond), except for the 54' reefer.  

 

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  • GGD 54' Express Reefer

Wow, I did not realize I have been looking for a car with the pre-1952/3 REA paint scheme for 5 years

Thanks, guys.  I have already expanded my layout’s era from 1949 to “late 40s”, specifically 1947-49.  But I am not going into the 50s so no diamond.  The ARE scheme was long gone by WWII.

I may buy that GGD 54’ reefer in the scheme I want, even though that particular car was not painted that way until late 1950.  Or not.  I have all three of the GGD silver/green cars, which is really plenty.

@CAPPilot posted:

Wow, I did not realize I have been looking for a car with the pre-1952/3 REA paint scheme for 5 years

Thanks, guys.  I have already expanded my layout’s era from 1949 to “late 40s”, specifically 1947-49.  But I am not going into the 50s so no diamond.  The ARE scheme was long gone by WWII.

I may buy that GGD 54’ reefer in the scheme I want, even though that particular car was not painted that way until late 1950.  Or not.  I have all three of the GGD silver/green cars, which is really plenty.

Ron

Weaver made Pennsy REA box cars in green and Tuscan with NO REA herald.  Only the Pennsy Keystone with "Riaiway Express Agency" spelled out right under the PRR Keystone. This matches up to my REA reference book "Railway Express" An Overview by V.S. Roseman.

According to my inventory have five id'd as REA Frt and three as pass.  Unfortunately all my pics are on "silver" no digital.

Ron

Rails Unlimited offered a resin kit for the 1932 ARA car. I got one along with some 3D printed louvered vents from Bill Lane and turned it into a Seaboard Express car.  Here's a photo of the real deal, I was taking photos of my model and the batteries quit and need recharging:

sal 1932 rea express 730car

Here's what the kit looked like:

DSCN0955_741

And the vents from Bill Lane.  I think this photo showed O, HO, and N scale vents:

vents

Seaboard_741

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  • sal 1932 rea express 730car
  • DSCN0955_741
  • vents
  • Seaboard_741

Thanks for the inputs, but I am looking for a REA company car, not a Pennsy REA, Seaboard REA, or any other RR specific REA car.  If it has a railroad name on it, it is not what I am looking for.

Also, American Railway Express was sold the REA in 1929, so that scheme was long gone by the early 30s.

As I posted earlier, REA painted their company cars in this basic scheme from 1929 to 1953, when they added the red diamond. 

There were two significant variations of this scheme.  The picture above was on wood cars from about 1945 until 1953.  From 1929 to 1945, the lettering "Express Refrigeration" was more centered on the car, instead of being lower on the car as in the picture.

Again, the red diamond did not appear until 1953 so it is well past my layout's era.  No red diamonds on my layout.

The paint scheme I am looking for is found on a lot of N and HO cars, but not O. 

@CAPPilot posted:

Thanks for the inputs, but I am looking for a REA company car, not a Pennsy REA, Seaboard REA, or any other RR specific REA car.  If it has a railroad name on it, it is not what I am looking for.

Also, American Railway Express was sold the REA in 1929, so that scheme was long gone by the early 30s.

As I posted earlier, REA painted their company cars in this basic scheme from 1929 to 1953, when they added the red diamond.

There were two significant variations of this scheme.  The picture above was on wood cars from about 1945 until 1953.  From 1929 to 1945, the lettering "Express Refrigeration" was more centered on the car, instead of being lower on the car as in the picture.

Again, the red diamond did not appear until 1953 so it is well past my layout's era.  No red diamonds on my layout.

The paint scheme I am looking for is found on a lot of N and HO cars, but not O.

Ron are you stating that the Railway Express Agency red and white  logo/herald did NOT exist until 1953 or just not on rail cars???

@PRRronbh posted:

Ron are you stating that the Railway Express Agency red and white  logo/herald did NOT exist until 1953 or just not on rail cars???

The REA diamond existed at least from 1929, but only on trucks.

It looks like the diamond was first used on trucks used by American Railway Express as far back as 1919 (oldest photo I have found).  It was adopted by REA for their trucks when it acquired ARE in 1929.  REA trucks were moving billboards at least through the 50s with a large paper ad in the center of the truck (one source says it was changed monthly), two small REA diamonds with one on each side of the ad, and "Railroad Express Agency" across the bottom.  For semis, there also was a large diamond on the door of the tractor.  I don't have any public pictures of these to post.

There are many photos showing the trucks without the ad, especially going into the 40s, just a large open area where it is suppose to be.  Probably couldn't find any advertisers.

Last edited by CAPPilot
@CAPPilot posted:

The REA diamond existed at least from 1929, but only on trucks.

It looks like the diamond was first used on trucks used by American Railway Express as far back as 1919 (oldest photo I have found).  It was adopted by REA for their trucks when it acquired ARE in 1929.  REA trucks were moving billboards at least through the 50s with a large paper ad in the center of the truck (one source says it was changed monthly), two small REA diamonds with one on each side of the ad, and "Railroad Express Agency" across the bottom.  For semis, there also was a large diamond on the door of the tractor.  I don't have any public pictures of these to post.

There are many photos showing the trucks without the ad, especially going into the 40s, just a large open area where it is suppose to be.  Probably couldn't find any advertisers.

Ron where did you find this info on the REA logo use?

And yes the US Government "created" the American Railway Express Agency in July 1918 then in March 1929 transferred the assets to the Railway Express Agency.

Now my REA reference book has two photos of wood refers with the large Railway Express Agency red diamonds.  One photo looking rather weathered.  Unfortunately not dated but I would have thought these wood sided refers would have been long gone by 1953.

Ron

Ron,

I have V. S. Roseman's "Railway Express, An Overview" and Model Railroader Books "Express, Mail & Merchandise Service" by Jeff Wilson.  Roseman's book has diagrams of the five different paint schemes used on REA cars, and both have lots of dated (and undated) pictures.  (There were actually 6 paint schemes, but one was short lived so I guess Roseman didn't think it important.)

As far as wood cars in use, per a chart in Roseman's book:

48'11" wood body on steel underframe (SUF) lasted to 1965.

53'2" wood-bodied SUF gone by 1965

53'6" wood-bodies SUF gone by 1967.

There were several other types of wood-bodied SUF cars listed, but no dates.

@CAPPilot posted:

Ron,

I have V. S. Roseman's "Railway Express, An Overview" and Model Railroader Books "Express, Mail & Merchandise Service" by Jeff Wilson.  Roseman's book has diagrams of the five different paint schemes used on REA cars, and both have lots of dated (and undated) pictures.  (There were actually 6 paint schemes, but one was short lived so I guess Roseman didn't think it important.)

As far as wood cars in use, per a chart in Roseman's book:

48'11" wood body on steel underframe (SUF) lasted to 1965.

53'2" wood-bodied SUF gone by 1965

53'6" wood-bodies SUF gone by 1967.

There were several other types of wood-bodied SUF cars listed, but no dates.

Thanks I did not think wood cars last to that late!

Ron

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