Conrail OCS 1 - 800221 - Model

Conrail 1Office Car Models
Written By Wes Reminder

My HO model of Conrail 1 (and sister Conrail 4) were the hardest to make. They started as a Walthers observation car with Laser Horizon car sides. There are so many scratch built pieces on the car it’s hard to count. Many of the parts that aren’t custom made aren’t available anymore. The model has many of the same details as the real Conrail 1, including a full interior. I took over 1,500 shots of the Conrail 1 (as NS 5 “Maryland”) and got every light switch, room, and underbody part. Having real photos and Conrail diagrams really helped bring it to life. The color of carpet and the curtain patterns are from my actual photos.

Hey Rapido (or another manufacturer), Southern office cars were largely the same inside and out. An HO mass produced model would cover many cars including, but not limited to:

  • SOU 1, SOU 4, SOU 5, SOU 7, SOU 9, SOU 11 (maybe more, Southern seemed to like changing the numbers around)

  • Conrail 1, Conrail 4

  • Norfolk Southern NS 6 “Atlanta”, NS 8 “Tennessee”, NS 20 “Ohio”, NS 21 “West Virginia

  • Private car Southern “Intrepid”

Detail changes that would be most obvious are the roof hatches and underbody parts, but getting one car close enough with the correct window arrangements and trucks would satisfy many modellers (without getting flamed). Keep in mind that using a repainted Bachmann heavyweight car is getting long in the tooth. The other option is to custom build them like I did, but it’s not a easy task. Otherwise, these are the same car and it would be a hot seller. Contact me if you are interested!

These original technical data books on the Conrail office cars greatly helped in building the models.

If you are interested in Conrail passenger operations, read about how Conrail operated their OCS train, including stories from those with first hand knowledge. Check back soon for other Conrail Office Car articles by Wes Reminder.

All images are copyright Wes Reminder and may not be used in print, web or any other use without permission.

Wes Reminder

https://www.the-boring-the-adoring.com/
Previous

Conrail OCS 9 - 800364 - Model
Next

The Demise of Conrail 5021