Awhile back, concerned that some of the freelance modeling he was seeing did not even come close to prototype practices, Jeff Saxton wrote two "Manifestos." One on mainline narrow gauge practices and one on industrial and estate railroad practices. Jeff made these available to us and we include the first one in this issue and will publish the second in the next issue. Thanks Jeff!

Editor

The "typical" narrow gauge car proportions I allude to are not hard and fast, but can be simply arrived at with some extrapolation. These are not RULES; but based on the way railroads evolved here in the U.S.; they should hold about normal, all things considered. Railroads are must make the largest cars to fit their gauge, or else they are wasting effort. Teeny tiny cars pulled by teeny locos work for industrials, but when you have to be called on to regularly move consignments of ALL freight, economics say the least effort is the most profitable.

Therefore, cars on the Maine two-footers in the U.S.A. evolved to eventually be on average about 6' to 6' - 2" wide, and normally flats or boxcars were around 24' long in the early days, and 30' long by the late era. The Sandy River had some 33' cars if memory serves. We only have Maine two-footers to reference in the U.S.A. -- but you wouldn't model Maine inspired cars with odd proportions, and call it correct, would you? Thus, a "classic" Maine two-foot car was around 6' x 30'.

Cars on the Colorado, West coast, and generally on the Eastern 36" narrow gauges also began small, and grew larger as needs increased. The early eight wheel cars are about 24' long, and evolved up to around 30' long. Widths began early around 7', and quickly pegged out at 8' or so. Some roads had long cars ... up to 36'. Most of the cars in use in the teens era for "classic" 36" gauge cars fall in a range of 8' x 30'. The Waynesburg and Washington in Pennsylvania had some biggish cars, too; but I am willing to bet that was the later owner PRR's influence.

Thus, for a 30" gauge road, split the differences, and say a 7' wide x 30' long car would be the "classic" epitome of the development HAD they evolved here in force. The Mexican and South American cars follow these general proportions. Early 30" cars could be on the order of 6' x 24' -- like the two-footers used.

Now don't go and quote Yosemite Short Line 18' boxcars -- that road was a fluke, and never amounted to more than a developer's dream to skin some investors -- I have one of their $100 Gold Bonds (coupons intact) in my collection! But if you model YSL as Lennart Elg did, use those proportions, as you are modeling an actual prototype.

The point is that length tends to be moot in these discussions. Standard MCB (Master Car Builders) car building practices served to make cars on standard or two-foot gauge 30' long for a long time period. 40' standard gauge cars really only arrived in force with the steel under frame that could support the longer length

The "typical" Maine two-foot freight truck is a 48" wheelbase diamond arch bar with brake extensions, in either swing beam bolster, or common bolster. Swing Beam bolsters, for the uninitiated, supported up to 70% of the US freight car fleet up until the early 1890's. The Maine wheels are normally 20" diameter. Gilpin's largest trucks sported a 33" wheelbase, with 20" wheels.

Typical 36" gauge cars ride on -- what ho? 48" wheelbase trucks! Swing beam or common bolster....hmm...sound familiar? Wheels are normally 24" or 26". Don't say, yes, but what about the Rio Grande 3' - 7" trucks -- these particular trucks are special home-road trucks, and NO ONE ELSE EVER USED THEM. Yes, there were 3' - 7" trucks that were in use, but on average, many roads gravitated to 48" wheelbase trucks. Why? I suspect it was ride quality on a suspension level. A longer wheelbase would serve to dampen some of the harmonics of the truck as it humps up and down over rough track.

Thus, 30" gauge trucks are typically 48" wheelbase, split the wheel diameter difference and say 22" -- although I am willing to bet 24" would have been the norm. Bigger wheels means a bigger axle...which means a larger journal, which means a higher capacity -- and we are back to the most in the least analogy.

The rest of the hardware is moot. Brake wheels are 15" to 16" diameter in nationwide narrow gauge usage; and bolts, door hangers, etc. are based on car-building practices. Hand grabs and stirrups, on the other hand, are regulated by Federal and State LAW -- thus, they go in specific locations, and MUST match specific dimensions, or else you get fined!

Most narrow gauges ended up using ¾ size MCB couplers. Coupler height is a function of car design -- or what you interchange with. An example of the latter is the Tweetsie had their couplers mounted higher to hook up to locos, which could switch dual gauge track; but then their trucks were "humped up" at the bolster to add height, too. But for almost ALL other roads, narrow or standard, coupler height is brain dead simple.

Why? Because for whatever reason, over here it evolved that wheel diameter was equal to coupler centerline height. Why? I suspect it has to do with clearance of the draft timbers over the axles, and wheel swing, and any of a myriad of other part interface concerns. Now the Sandy River did use a 16" centerline on 20" wheels, but many other roads have coupler centerlines at the top of the wheel diameter. Not a hard and fast RULE, but it happened way too often to be mere happenchance.

Jeff Saxton