Review

Atlas Model Railroad Company has released a collection of forty-foot wood reefers in N scale. In addition to an undecorated version, they also have released two road numbers each of Burlington, Edelweiss Beer, Fruit Dispatch, Grand Union, Narragansett Beer, Santa Fe, Kraft-Phenix Cheese, Tivoli Beer, Northwestern, Erie, and Blatz Beer. The cars come assembled and ready to run in clear plastic jewel cases.

The Prototype

Around the turn of the last century, railroads discovered the magic of insulation for rail cars. With inner and outer sheathing, insulative materials could be sandwiched between to help control the temperature of the inside where perishable products might be carried. Soon, a bulkhead was built at each end, lined with metal, and filled with ice. The result was a car which not only was insulated but also cooled, helping in the preservation of food cargoes.

It was never that simple, however. If the cooling was not properly distributed, some products would be destroyed by freezing while others would spoil for a lack of sufficient cooling. The floors were designed to contain the brine which resulted from mixing salt with the ice to make it cool more. These channels also provided a conduit for cold air to be drawn from the precool fans might be used to continue the forced circulation.

The fancy paint on the outside gave an image to the watching world, but inside, reefers were hard work, with icing being required every day they held perishable products. Often, the billboard images only indicated a long-term lease agreement, but the car was still owned by one of a few large leasing services who often managed the scheduling and dispatching of the vast fleets under their ownership. If all went well, the products would arrive in a distant market where each pound was worth a pretty penny and a princely profit. Small wonder that so many growers, packers, processors, and shippers entered into the market.Reefers of wood construction and with ice bunkers could be found on Americas rails long after W WII, though their decline commenced when the war ended. The combination of steel and mechanical refrigeration conspired to render them obsolete Thane that were basically sound soldiered on in light freight service, though the sawdust, horsehair, or other natural insulation lead long since failed, often being removed. A few such cats have been restored for historical purposes.

The Models

History and model railroading go hand-in-hand, and these ice reefers represent both. Beginners will like these cars because they are colorful and ready to go. Experienced modelers will appreciate the quality of construction and decoration.

History-minded buyers will enjoy references to a time before WWII when the world was a different place. Our selection of six cars includes: Edelweiss Beer (URT), Bananas, Fruit Dispatch Company (URT), Narragansett Ale (NBRX), Grand Union Food Markets (OREX), Burlington Refrigerator Express (BREX), and Santa Fe (SFRD).The reporting marks in parenthesis represent the actual operators. URT stands for Union Refrigerator Transit Co, for example. The letter "X" on the end of marks usually indicates a private owner as opposed to a railroad. The Burlington set up a separate company to manage their reefer, and while Santa Fe did the same thing, they named the company Santa Fe Refrigerator Dispatch.

Atlas has become so clever with molding and painting that it an be difficult to tell what has been molded on and painted from separately-applied parts. The roofwalk and wheel are separate, and tire ice hatches actually can be opened. Operators often sent shipments that didn't require refrigeration with the hatches open to provide ventilation, or you may wish to model amn icing station with the hatches open and tiny people pushing tiny blocks of ice. Door hinges and most ladders and rungs are molded and cleverly painted.

The extreme width of these cars is 10 feet 1.44 inches. This is very close to the measurement range for cars of this type. The roofwalk length is 41 feet 7.68 inches, just about right for a 40 foot car, since the forty foot measures the interior space. Wooden reefers were not especially tall, so a measurement of 14 feet 5-1/8 inches is just about right. These cars represent that period of history where they rolled on Bettendorf 50 ton trucks but still had vertical brake wheels.

 Much of what these cars represent can only be seen with a heavy magnifier. Using a 12X hand lens, the board siding is not just a collection of grooves; the individual planks have actual wood grain in the. All of the tiny lettering on the side is actually legible. Lettering and paint have been beautifully applied to a surface that can be almost hostile for paint and decals.

Operation

Using the roofwalk length, the NMRZ-recommended (RP20.1) weight for these cars would be .5 ounce plus .468 ounces, coming to just under a full ounce. The cars each weigh a perfect ounce; I tried putting all six on the scale and they added up to exactly 6 ounces. As a result, I could put them at the front of a train of some thirty cars, and they didn't offer to stringline on me. They also tracked very well through curves and switches, even on relatively tight 9 3/4 inch radius curves.

The couplers are a two-piece magnetic knuckle coupler, which is Micro-Trains compatible. These couplers are held in place with a snap clip, and a couple of min came loose when I opened them up. I would recommend checking all of them right out of the package to make sure the dip is properly snapped into place.

Wheels and axles are a hard and durable brown plastic which adds to the overall appearance, since most wheels and. ankles of the period turned brown with rust within months of their manufacture. The trucks are attached with industry-standard pushpins, and they work well with the fishbelly girders of the frame. The wheels roll smoothly and this contributes to the fine performance of these cats in a train.

Summary

As always with N-scalers, the decision boils down whether you will collect or run your cars. In this case, it doesn't really make any difference which you choose to do. These cars are so well executed that they would make good items in a collection; but they also run so well that they belong in a train rolling around your layout. To quote the slogan on the Edelweiss Beer reefer, it's "A case of good judgment!"