Texas Is Special!
I am excited to say the announcement that ‘we are producing this train’ has been met with much enthusiasm and support.
This is a photo of a pre-production sample, hence no couplers. Soon, we will be announcing three Texas Special coaches.
The Texas Special’s paint scheme is a real eye catcher, as you can see. As I dig deeper into the history of this train, I see connecting cars to the east by the B&O, Pennsylvania & New York Central – all cars that would be fun to bring to this series. According to the book ‘More Classic Trains’, there were two lightweight consist sets for this train in 1948, but three train sets were needed to operate the San Antonio to St. Louis line, so heavyweight cars were brought into service.
According to Steve Goen’s book Miss Katy, by Four Ways West, there was a total of eight of these older cars that were painted red and silver, and shadow-lined to blend into the consist. Although it is hard to say that any heavyweight car can ‘blend in’, it was the common practice in that era to enlist older cars, and it served well to fix the schedule problem. These heavyweight cars were interspersed into the streamlined consists so as not to have one train set be all streamlined or all heavyweight.
Although I plan to produce a complete streamline Texas Special, it would be accurate and fun to bring some of these shadow-lined red and silver beauties, as well.
Aren’t trains fun!
Lowell,
I am really looking forward to these.
For a time, there was also a Chicago-San Antonio car on the Texas Special. This car line used 14-4 MKT/Frisco cars and 12-4 Wabash cars in the “Blue” series.
The TRRA Historical Society produced a wonderful special edition on the Texas Special about 10 years ago. There was also one on the Meteor. I think both are out if print, but they both have information about the connecting cars.
Paul
The 2009 issue on the Texas Special is long sold out, but 2015’s issue #75 on the Meteor is still available.
http://trra-hts.railfan.net/bkissues.html
http://trra-hts.railfan.net/issue75.html
Rich Zellich
TRRA H&TS webmaster
Lowell, Yes these look wonderful, they will be intermixed with my Con Cor set which used semi-accurate cars and the bright red also made them look great.
Yes, the 2009 Issue (#69) on the Texas Special is out of print – it sold out almost immediately when it was released. The 2015 TRRA H&TS issue on the Meteor (#75) is still available, however: http://trra-hts.railfan.net/issue75.html (my personal apologies for not having a detailed Table of Contents listed on that page – I have 5 back issues yet to be gone through to create an online ToC for them).
You can order issue 75 at http://trra-hts.railfan.net/bkissues.html
It sells for $40, plus $5 shipping in the US. An additional $10 postage is required for non-USA shipping, for a total cost of $55.
The latest issue (2018, #78) on the B&O’s National Limited and related trains has a lot of information on through cars, including some on the Texas Special:
http://trra-hts.railfan.net/issue78.html
(this one _does_ have a Table of Contents listed)
* The Texas Special
Washington, DC – San Antonio
Pages 72-77, with B&W and color photos, advertising, consists, St. Louis
Passing Sleeper list
* Baltimore – San Antonio
Pages 112-115, with B&W photos, advertising, car diagram
-Rich Zellich, TRRA H&TS Webmaster
Please let there be a “Anson B. Jones” baggage-RPO, a “Sam Houston” dining car, and. “Stephen F. Austin” lounge-obs car.
You bet Steve!! I cannot wait either! all of the above!
Lowell: Are you going to produce or have produced matching locos for the Texas Special?
You bet I am Roger!! I hope to make formal announcement in 2 months. But I did say that I was doing them in an earlier blog post about the RailSmith cars and specifically the Texas Special. Spread the word! thanks!