Need More?

I'd like to see more models than just those Athearn has, and see improved tooling.  Neither of Athearn's cars is right for the PFE classes they're supposed to represent.  The R-70-10 has the wrong B end (it should be an improved dreadnaught type), and the R-70-12 compounds that by putting the brakewheel at the wrong end of the car.  I'm not up on how well these cars work as stand-ins for other roads, but I doubt they're truly correct for anything.

"50 foot mech reefer?"

I've got a 50 foot kit by Pacific HO that looks a bit different than an Athearn car. Not sure what prototype it represents IIRC mine is painted for Great Northern. It's an old  flat kit that requires gluing up the body but it seems like it would make a nice car. Maybe check ebay for Pacific HO division of Silver Streak models or something like that.....DaveB

FGE Reefer

Pacific HO

Just looked at ebay and item # 300806527765 is one of the 50 foot kits. Also saw some 50 mechanical reefers by Bachman and someone called Lima-pacific( which might just be custom-run athearn cars?) ......DaveB

Other 50's

The Bachmans

I think I saw some that had slanted side ribs adjacent to the doors?  Trainset cars can often be made to look decent by chopping off the thick stirrup steps and replacing them with thin metal steps, maybe replacing the brake wheel, etc. Then add metal wheels,some cut levers and airhoses and some weathering and they can make good runners. I like to take cheap toys and make them into useful models.....DaveB

Lima Cars

 “I don't think those Lima cars are custom painted  Athearns. …The cars look similar, but in one of the pictures there's a molded hole j ust below the roofwalk for some reason.” 

I actually have one of the Lima cars built into a PFE R-70-10.  They are definitely not Athearn.  The tooling is coarser, and the carbody is narrower, plus they have a bizarre underbody.  The example I had used the same car number as the standard Athearn blue box model of the time (I think it was 300207), but all the lettering was a bit off of Athearn in terms of typeface, spacing, etc. 

Unlike Athearn the roof is a separate piece, and the holes on the ends are where the roof snaps into place.  When I added the new B end to mine, I had to narrow the part I used, although the end was the same width as an Athearn car.  They also have snap-in trucks, and the draft gear boxes are mounted on the trucks.  Lima omitted the fuel tanks for the refrigeration unit.

Pacific HO Reefer

I think I found a picture of the NP prototype that Pacifc HO reefer is based off of.  It's just a thumbnail, but the basics seem to be right.  I might take a chance on it.

Lima 50' reefers

MDC Reefers

" I'll post pictures and report back once I receive it."

I think you'll be happy with the kit. I liked mine enough to pack it away and save it for possible future use when I was selling off most of my older HO scale stuff.....DaveB

NP 50 footer from a WrightTRAK FGE

The early 50-foot mechanical reefers have a fair number of visible design variations (e.g., roofs, ends, doors, side panel construction, ventilation grillework location and type, placard board locations) that some adaptation is needed to model them with high fidelity.  I have read that FGE Alexandria shops and Pacific Car and Foundry did some plan-sharing in the early days of development of the 50-footers (after PFE and others had experimented with mechanical retrofits of ice reefers).   PC&F built reefers for many western roads, including the NP, which I model.  

I adapted the HO WrightTrak resin kit for an early 50-ft FGE reefer to an NP series--major changes were sanding down and re-detailing the sides for a revised body panel configuration, a new scratch-built flat panel roof, and replacement grillework on the motor compartment.   I know there are a number of other NP and Burlington prototypes that are variants of this same basic body plan and can be accurately modeled with similar work on the WrightTrak or old Silver Streak/Pacific HO (OOP) kits.

MDC 50' reefers

If this works here are three that I have seen in the past 6 months.  There have been a few more, but I do not have the pix handy.   Larry           

"three that I have seen "

The blue one looks like an insulated boxcar and the other two are older express reefers ..DaveB

Chris

Actually the blue one is the oldest

I did a google search

Larry - that Walthers 50'

Reefers and Not

If it has an AAR classification of RB, that makes it a "bunkerless refrigerator."  Many cars we modelers tend to think of as insulated boxcars are technically considered to be refrigerators - they have the same insulation to maintain the load at a near-constant temperature, they just lack the means to cool the interior back down.  These cars typically had load restraining devices so carried a code of "RBL."  A mechanical reefer was an RP, and an ice reefer an RS.  Since the car in the photo isn't a mechanical reefer, it isn't what the OP was looking for anyway.

A true insulated boxcar will have an AAR classification starting with "X," and a suffix of "I."  Many of these had load restraining devices so were classified as XLI.  These wouldn't have the same insulation as a reefer.

If the model is of the era when AAR codes were stenciled on the car (usually to the right of the "CAPY" line), check the code.  You may be surprised how many "reefers" your roster has.

"If it has an AAR

"If it has an AAR classification of RB, that makes it a "bunkerless refrigerator."  Many cars we modelers tend to think of as insulated boxcars are technically considered to be refrigerators..."

That's Classified

That would be unusual, but I suppose not unheard of (that would assume the car was no longer benefiting from insulation as far as a shipper needed to know, and had no loading devices ).  PFE had some cars (like old R-70-10s) which ran in top ice service with the refrigeration units removed, so they started as RP and ended up as RB.

WP reclassified cars

Oh Yeah

They actually did have some of those.  They did have several batches rebuilt (or eventually reclassified) as XLIs, but there were some odd ones stripped of everything.  Number series 61101-61296 included some ex-Tidewater Southern cars.

50' reefer upgrade