Hello all,

I just saw this gallery of Housationic 2002 being scrapped this past March in Falls Village, CT.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/archivethumbs.aspx?id=10703

This car appeared to be in very good condition, with relatively minor body corrosion for a car of its age and storage (outside for at least the past 20 years). I did not see this car being offered for sale anywhere on the internet - and I consider myself to be reasonably informed about such offerings. Was it indeed offered anywhere?

Additionally, the Reading Company Technical and Historical Society is currently recovering a similar car that was a coach-cafe that was last used as a restaurant and has lost its trucks and underbody equipment which could have been supplied by this car.

Why did this happen?

Tom Cornillie

Bummer about that one. It looks like a Harlan and Hollingsworth car built in good ole Wilmington, DE.

I don't have any information about this particular car, but with scrap values being so extremely high in the past year or so I understand that some cars are now worth more in scrap than if they were to be sold at their current market value through the usual channels such as Rail Swap. It wasn't that long ago that we had to PAY to have a car scrapped because of all the non-metal components in the cars such as plywood, not to mention certain other items beginning with the letter A that we won't talk about. But at the moment, an owner strapped for cash might consider the unthinkable if he can get maybe $5,000 to $7,500 or more from a scrapper.

With all due respect to Mr. Cornillie, the scrapping of the car was a mercy killing. I was in that car three years ago, and was VERY careful to only walk directly over the center sill--- the floor was THAT bad. Many large holes, and much rotten Chanarch and "composition" flooring. The vestibules and steps? Heavy rot and corrosion there. Side sills? Ditto. The wheels were rather worn (poor profile on many of them).

The RDG cars used by Housatonic were hack jobs in many ways; the windows were leaky kluge jobs (which helped rot the side sills). No seats on this one, either.

Also, it was on disconnected track. The car was owned by CDOT (as are the other RDG cars at Danbury Rwy Museum), and was offered by CDOT free to anyone willing to haul it away. I seem to recall the RDG people being informed about it, and taking a pass.

Any scrapper is not going to leave the trucks after going through the pain-in-the-neck work of rendering the carbody. The trucks, at 10 tons each, are the gravy of the job, and the easy money for the scrapper.

A few thoughts:
One, there is NO substitute for IN-PERSON inspection. Good, high-resolution, detailed, close-up photos in quantity (don't spare the film or pixels) are a close second; one can't judge from internet foamer site images.

Two, as in real estate, location, location, location is an important factor in something getting saved or scrapped. An off-rail move is expensive. Even the cost to lift, load and haul the pair of trucks may have exceeded RDGTHS' budget.

Three, get used to this. More marginal cars will die in coming years, as rot and rust outpace the building of covered storage, recruitment of members under the age of 40 (who even care about 70-year old passenger cars), and the rising cost of restoration work (coupled with the increasing difficulty of raising money for it).

OK, I'm off the soapbox, my Nomex suit is now zipped up, so flame away, boys.

HP
RMNE/NAUG
(and a bunch of other places since 1970)

Well said. With each passing year, the cost of resurrecting cars that are not properly cared for increases exponentially. The open window commuter car fleet that made up the rosters of so many first generation tourist railroads is creeping up on 80+ years of age. Once water gets in them, it's downhill fast.

I've always admired Wilmington & Western because they keep the entire train stored indoors when not in use and have done so almost from day one. While I'm sure they've invested plenty in maintenance on their Boontons, I'd bet in the long run it has saved them a bundle to be able to keep the cars under roof.

I've been known to take pity on basket cases, the most recent being a forlorn CNJ heavyweight. To date almost $20k just to get the car moved and we're about to spend a similar amount on replacement windows. Then comes the floor, the woodwork, the upholstery. And when we're done, a shed to keep it in.

Alan Maples
Everett Railroad

Amen. The same is true for streetcars.

Wesley

Thank you for further information on the conditions present in that car, and for clarifying the fact that it was owned by ConnDOT.

Passenger cars have numerous places that allow water to enter their bodies and that promote both rust and other decay from the inside out - which makes indoor storage a must if any car is to survive over the long term.

However, there is the fact of how any organization or individual makes notice that a car is going is going to be scrapped. There is no excuse not to post a notice on RYPN (#1 Google hit for railroad/railway preservation) or RailSwap that scrapping is being considered. No matter how deteriorated a car may be, it may have numerous irreplaceable parts that are essential if other cars are to be restored or continue in service. However a person needing those particular parts may not be aware of this car's existence, let alone the fact that the car is available for sale or salvage.

At the same time, I would strongly advise all groups and individuals who are interested in a given piece, class or group of equipment not to wait for that piece to become "available" - contact the owner now to let them know that you are seriously interested. Numerous cases have shown that individuals or groups (and especially museums) give minimal notice before scrapping equipment because they perceive that this will create bad publicity. Instead they will wait until after the fact and spin the scrapping as responsible collection management.

Finally, while one organization/individual may think a car beyond hope - another may very well have the interest and resources necessary to restore it.

Ultimately, in these cases, final outcome is less important than the process that resulted in that outcome.

Tom Cornillie