Passenger Cars

Below are links to the various reports that show all of the S-scale passenger cars ever produced. Click whichever report gets you to the information that wish to find, some of which are designed to help you identify passenger cars. The bottom of this page has additional references that might be of interest.

Contact person: Webmaster

1. By Model Manufacturer
   All entries are shown first grouped by the manufacturer of the S-scale model. When you click the name, this report will show the road names for which this manufacturer produced passenger cars. After that, you can drill further down by selecting a type of car to see their listing.
2. By Model Manufacturer ID
   This report only contains those entries for which the model manufacturer set a product ID, SKU, or PLU number, and if it is known to us. The purpose of this report is to quickly look up a product number for a particular manufacturer, for example, to verify an entry you see on eBay. As above, the first page shows the list of model manufacturers. When you click the name, you will see a listing of known product IDs, which you can click to view that model's details.
3. By Road Name
   All entries are shown first grouped by the road name of the car. This can be either factory-decorated for that road name, or the model was designed specifically for that road name but was sold unpainted or not lettered. When you click the road name, you will see a listing of the model manufacturers who made passenger cars for this road name. After that, you can drill further down by selecting a type of car to see their listing. Note that unlettered or undecorated cars are listed in a single, separate group as well. This is so that should you think a car was intended for the XYZ railroad, it might well be found in the undecorated listing.
4. By Prototype Manufacturer
   This report is limited to those entries for which we know the manufacturer of the matching real-world car. The first page shows the manufacturer's name, and the next selection will be the road name. After that you can further narrow-down the car in which you are interested.
5. By Type
   This report shows every single entry. Use this if you know what type of car you have that you want to find in the listing, or you want to add a type of car to your collection and want to know what has been produced in S. After selecting the car's overall era, you will be presented with a long list of all of the passenger car configurations. Once you select a configuration, you will see a page listing all of the road names for which that type of car was made in S, which you can click to view all of the cars for that road name and that configuration.
6. By Doors & Windows
   This report shows only the entries for which we have been able to determine the number of doors and windows that the car has. This makes it possible for you to try to find a match for a car you have or that you see in a magazine article or on the Web that you want to find in S-scale.
7. By Gauge
   This report lists all cars, grouped by their wheel gauge, or the wheel gauge for which they are designed. See our definition at the bottom of this page for what that means.
8. By Model Introduction Year
   This report is limited to those S-scale models for which we know their year of first introduction for sale to the public. When you click the year, you will see a listing of the companies that released cars in that year. From there you can drill further to learn more about the cars. This report is an interesting walk through S-scale's passenger cars history.
9. By Material
   This report lists all of the different materials used for the body of model passenger cars. You might use this if you are interested in a car made out of a particular material. Manufacturers can use this report to see if a model was previously created in another material type. For example if a car was previously made in brass only, a manufacturer may still choose to release that model using 3D-printed components as a lower-cost option.
10. By Photo
    A mini photo album of sorts, this report shows the primary or best photo for an entry. It is limited to only those entries for which we have a photo. Note that this page is quite large and may take some time to load. However, you can then scroll down and enjoy the collection of photos. The entries are sorted as follows: Road Name (use the Quick-Jump letters at the top to go to a particular railroad), Era, Car Type, (optional) Configuration, Model Manufacturer, and Road Number. Click the photo to see more data about that entry (note that these entry pages are launched as a new tab in your web browser, because reloading the full photos page takes a long time).
11. Videos
    This report simply shows all of the S-scale videos that we have found that feature one or more of the passenger cars in our listing. The videos are also visible from the full-detail pages of each entry, but it might be fun to just watch a number of them back-to-back. Note that one video may be duplicated if multiple cars are shown in the same video.
12. Missing Photos
    This report lists all of the entries for which we do not, yet, have a photo. If you have this model and can take a photo of it, please contact the webmaster. Note that some entries will have external links to other web sites that show a photo of the model.
13. All Entries
    This report lists all entries in one page, and you can click on an entry to see its model information.
14. All Entries (text only)
    This report lists all entries in one page, but there is no link to an additional page for more information. This may be useful to quickly see if a product is listed, or for printing a full listing.
15. Downloadable Text File
    This is a downloadable text file that contains all of the entries, with most of their key data. Note: To import or open this file in a spreadsheet software application, use the hat, ^, character as the column separator (see the "6" key of your keyboard). Most spreadsheet applications will let you pick the separator or delimiter; if not, open the file with a text editor and replace all "^" with a character of your choice, and then try it again.

Report Definitions

These definitions may clarify some of the terms used in the reports linked to above:

• Doors & Windows
  Where known, the number of doors and the number of windows the passenger car has is indicated. This is because passenger cars are notoriously hard to identify since their purpose is usually only defined by their interior configuration. If there are two numbers separated by a slash, this indicates that that car has a different count of windows or doors on either side of the car. So, a single number indicates that the same number of windows or doors appear on both sides. Note, however, that even if the number is the same for both sides, it does not mean that the windows or doors are of the same size or arranged in the same order on both sides; those can still be different from side to side. These data are to be used to help you narrow-down which possible car you have or what kind of car you are searching for.
• Finish
  Where the "|" (vertical bar) is used in the text, it indicates that the model was available in more than one finish, where each finish format is separated by the "|" symbol.
• Gauge
  "AF": for models that come only with A.C. Gilbert-style or -compatible wheels and couplers, and generally have no built-in support for scale couplers (e.g. no pre-drilled holes compatible with Kadee-style couplers).
  "S": for standard-gauge (4'8-1/2" rail-spacing) models that come with either no wheels and couplers, with scale wheels and/or couplers, or with "hi-rail" wheels and couplers but have scale wheels and couplers included in the package.
  "Sn3", "Sn2", "Sn42": for the various narrow-gauge rail spacings.
  
• Road Name
  The railroad name (prototype, freelance, or fictional) for which the model was decorated by the factory, or, if undecorated, for which the model was specifically designed. If no road name is listed, then it is a generic model.
• Road Number
  If the model was factory-decorated with a road number, it will be listed. If the model was released with more than one road number but otherwise is identical, then each road number is listed separately. However, if a series of question-marks appear, then that indicates that a road number was released but we don't know what it was. Each series of question-marks represents one unknown road number, thereby indicating the total number of unique road numbers with which we know the model was released.
• Type
  There are a large variety of interior arrangments, and thus the purpose, of the cars. The combination baggage/dormitory cars, for example, provided quarters for the observation, diner, and lounge employees of the railroad. This freed up space for the paying customers in the sleeper cars. "Coach" and "Chair" cars are both labeled as "Coach" in our listing, as they only really differ in the style of seats used in the interior (two-person bench vs. two side-by-side dedicated chairs).

Additional Products

• Port Lines Hobby Supplies Passenger Car Diaphragms

Additional Notes

In 2009, P-B-L did a one-time run of 1,008 Sn3 passenger cars, all brass, all built by Boo Rim in Korea, and all sold-out. When they arrived, they were so busy shipping them to their customers that they forgot to photograph at least one of each final model. So their web site shows only the pre-production photos. We show those, unless we have received photos from modelers (we always prefer to show modelers' photos; hint, hint).

Magazine References

• 1:64 Modeling Guide - 2012 Winter: Building Osgood-Bradley "American Flyer" Coaches - Pt. 1, pg 14.
• 1:64 Modeling Guide - 2012 Spring: Building Osgood-Bradley "American Flyer" Coaches - Pt. 2, pg 15.
• 3/16 'S'cale Railroading - 1990-04/05: Creating your own passenger car sides out of brass, pg 10.
• 3/16 'S'cale Railroading - 1990-10/11: Adding a vestibule, pg 23.
• 3/16 'S'cale Railroading - 1991-06/07: Heavyweight Passenger Cars From Spliced Flyer Combines (part 1), pg 28.
• 3/16 'S'cale Railroading - 1991-10/11: Detailing American Model's Passenger-Car Trucks, pg 25.
• 3/16 'S'cale Railroading - 1991-10/11: Heavyweight Passenger Cars From Spliced Flyer Combines (part 2), pg 16.
• 3/16 'S'cale Railroading - 1991-12/01: Heavyweight Passenger Cars From Spliced Flyer Combines (part 3), pg 20.
• NASG Dispatch - 1984 #4 Fall: Minor Adjustments: Fixing the American Models Passenger Trucks (1984 AM cars), pg 12.
• NASG Dispatch - 1989 #6 December: D&H Passenger Car Modeling, pg 8.
• NASG Dispatch - 1994 #2 April: Six Wheel Passenger Trucks, pg 24.
• NASG Dispatch - 2000 #6 December: Enhancing American Models Heavyweight Coach, pg 26.
• NASG Dispatch - 2002 #6 December: Creating a Southern Streamline Passenger Set, pg 28.
• NASG Dispatch - 2004 #2 April: The NASG Pullman Car Project, pg 8
• NASG Dispatch - 2007 #6 December: Interior Detail Sets for S Scale Pullman Cars, pg 12.
• NASG Dispatch - 2009 #2 April: Passenger car review, pg 5.
• NASG Dispatch - 2017 #2 March: Window Glass for Flyer or Seltzer Budd Cars, pg 24.
• NASG Dispatch - 2018 #5 September: Circus Advance Car, pg 24.
• NASG Dispatch - 2023 #6 November: Fix issues with Lionel Polar Express passenger car, pg 28.
• S Gauge Herald - 1986-12/01: Review of American Models 85-foot cars, pg14.
• S Gauge Herald - 1986-12/01: Convert an NH A.F. coach car into a diner, pg 33.
• S Gauge Herald - 1987-02/03: How to Add Working Rear Platform Lanterns, pg 37.
• S Gauge Herald - 1987-06/07: Santa Fe Business Cars of 1907, pg 14.
• S Gauge Herald - 1988-08/09: Building Heavyweight Passenger Cars Using A.C. Gilbert Car, pg 30.
• S Gaugian - 1981-07/08: Drawings of 20th Century Limited, pg 27
• S Gaugian - 2001-09/10: The Budd Cars: Stainless Fleet of Modern Trains, pg 16.
• S Gaugian - 2001-09/10: Review of Older S Passsenger Car Manufacturers, pg 40.
• S Gaugian - 2002-01/02: Modifying American Models' Streamlined Passenger Cars, pg 27.
• S Gaugian - 2002-05/06: Add details to American Models' heavyweight baggage cars, pg 16.
• S Gaugian - 2002-07/08: Add handrail and brake wheels to American Models' heavyweight baggage cars, pg 16.
• S Gaugian - 2003-09/10: Make American Flyer passenger cars look more realistic, pg 18.
• S Gaugian - 2004-07/08: Historical Passenger Cars of S Scale, pg 20
• S Gaugian - 2004-09/10: Detailing a Pullman Underbody, pg 16.
• S Gaugian - 2005-01/02: Chester Industrial Arts Company passenger car kits, pg 12.
• S Gaugian - 2005-03/04: Sylvania Models (originally Midgage Models) passenger car kits, pg 12.
• S Gaugian - 2005-11/12: Modeling the Shasta Daylight (part 2), pg 24.
• S Gaugian - 2006-03/04: S Scale Sleepers for the SP Lark, pg 28.
• S Gaugian - 2006-11/12: Detailing streamlines American Models passenger cars, pg 14.
• S Gaugian - 2007-01/02: Create Your Own 'Polar Express' Using Heavyweight AF Passenger Cars, pg 24.
• S Gaugian - 2008-03/04: Building the Gilbert 'Radio' Car, pg 23.
• S Gaugian - 2008-05/06: The Accurate American Flyer Streamlined Passenger Car, pg 14.
• S Gaugian - 2009-03/04: Illuminating Observation Car Marker Lights (Lionel cars), pg 25.
• S Gaugian - 2009-05/06: Early 1863 B&O Truss Rod Coach, pg 27.
• S Gaugian - 2011-09/10: Review of current passenger cars, pg 12.
• S Gaugian - 2014-07/08: Add Realistic Diaphragms to Your AF Passenger Cars, pg 15.
• S Scale Resource - 2018-08/09: Building the Budd 10-6 Sleeper, pg 36.
• S/Sn3 Modeling Guide - 1995-02: Kitbashing a Mail-storage Car (part 1), pg 18.
• S/Sn3 Modeling Guide - 1995-04: Kitbashing a Mail-storage Car (part 2), pg 22.
• S/Sn3 Modeling Guide - 1995-12: Modeling New Haven's Pullman-Standard passenger coach cars, pg 15.
• S/Sn3 Modeling Guide - 1996-04: Parlor Cars, pg 32.
• S/Sn3 Modeling Guide - 1996-10: New Haven Railway's RPO car, the PRR's B-60 baggage car, the PRR Theater Scenery car, and the New Haven baggage express car, pg 22.

Additional External References

Click the red header text for the external web site. The sentence below it provides a high-level description of what you will find on that web page.

• A/C Systems
  Historical information about how A/C systems were implemented in passenger cars.
• Pullman
  George Pullman founded the company after the U.S. Civil War. While they did build freight cars, they are better known for the high-quality passenger cars they produced. Pullman became Pullman-Standard (P-S) in 1934 when they merged with the Standard Steel Car Company and the Osgood Bradley Company. Pullman-Standard closed after the Amtrak Superliner I models were built in 1982 (Superliner II cars were built in 1991 by the Canadian company Bombardier).
• Railway Express Agency
  The Wikipedia's entry about REA.
• Railway Express Agency
  The full history of the REA.
• Railway Express Agency
  Trains.com's brief history of the REA.
• Railway Express Agency
  The Smithsonian's REA forms, manuals, federal regulations, accounting instructions, and personnel materials.