Southern Pacific Lines

Coast Line Division 

“The Route of the Octopus”

 
 

General Information

Dome Cars

  1. These were typically coach cars that had a raised "upstairs" area with a glass-covered dome. Because of clearance issues, these cars were typically used in the west. The most common dome car configuration has coach seats at both ends, and a lowered lounge area in the middle, with the dome section above it. There is no mistaking a dome car.



Specific Dome Cars

Dome Lounge

  1. All seven SP dome lounge cars were built with full fluting (corrugations). SP dome lounge cars were not short domes. Some call them 3/4 domes, but they were really full domes.

  2. Jeff Cauthen


  4. SP domes, whose end windows are near the end of the car on one end, but a greater distance removed from the other end. They have come to be known as "3/4 domes," even though they are much more like 9/10ths domes. (3/4 dome was not SP terminology, they were just dome-lounge cars.) Think of GN, MILW, ATSF, domes as "full-length" because the end windows of the dome are very near the end of the car.RR,


  6. The dome-lounge cars were not given class designations.

  7. Jeff Cauthen___

Paint

  1. The original domes were painted "UP" (COSF), Daylight, and Simulated Stainless Steel colors. None of SP's domes were ever in the "Sunset Limited" paint scheme. After August 1958 it was the General Service scheme of Simulated Stainless Steel with Scarlet letterboard.

Lettering & Numbering

  1. After August 1958 it was the General Service scheme of Simulated Stainless Steel with Scarlet letterboard. All cars got this scheme except head-end cars. New Daylight, Sunset, and Golden State insignias were created and applied to some cars. These insignia were cancelled in 1963 and replaced by the ball and wing. No dome-lounges ever received a Sunset insignia.


SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car

SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car

  1. #3600


  3. steel, seats 64, lower level has a bar & crew quarters. #3600 has 10 panel dome, others 12 panels, 60’ domes

  4. #3600 was unique 1st dome built shorter than later domes, smaller downstairs windows and the seats facing the lounge end of the car. #3600 was the only car released in 1954 (July), was built on the frame of an older parlor-round end observation #2950 (1937), and was 81 ft. long. All the others were 85 ft. Only Dome car with Dormitory Rm (with small window), only dome car that operates with lower lounge forward.


  6. It was also the only car with a true "3/4" dome - the others had a full-length dome with a 3/4 length upper floor beneath the glass. In 3600, the 1/4 remaining space was sleeper space for OB crew. Retired during 1970 by the SP, was scrapped at the end of 1973.


  1. It was originally assigned to the San Joaquin Daylight. Was seen on Coast Daylight train #99.


  1. One side (the side with 2 large windows) clearly has 8 containers for propane & 2 large boxes to their right.


  3. The left side (4 large windows) has perhaps 2 groups of a large containers with 2 propane boxes to their right. There also appears to be a large tank parallel to the side between them. There appears to be two indistinquishable shapes to the left of the 2 groups of a large container with 2 propane boxes.

Paint

  1. The Sp 3/4 length domes were painted in 3 different liveries-Sunset/Union Pacific/Daylight. The colors for the cars should be DAYLIGHT, UP OVERLAND (yellow and gray) or GENERAL SERVICE silver.


  3. The ends of the Daylight cars could be black, some red, some continue the red & orange stripes around onto the ends, some pictures show the #3600 car in Daylight colors with the end painted orange that maps the mid strip.


  5. It depended on which time period the photo was taken. And, as time passed, the shops received varied instructions on repainting, not only from San Francisco, but also their own supervisors.


  7. SP's Daylight paint specification called for red ends on most cars. Some head end cards (notably the forward ends of the Daylight Chair Baggage cars) carried the orange stripe and the center two aluminum (later silver grey) trim stripes around the front end of the car to the center door.

Lettering & Numbering

  1. #3600 had the stainless steel/flat panel sided/red stripe scheme.


  1. GENERAL SERVICE came with orange/red letterboard stripe with the General Service winged logo in the center of the lower side.

Reference

                                                                            Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Vol 5: Lounge, Dome & Parlor, pg. 382-397, 427

  1. *see                                                                   Model Railroader,  1/94

  2. The 1955-1958 Passenger Train Consist Book has two pictures of the 3/4 domes, both with smooth sides. On page 51 is car #3600. She spent most of her life on the San Joaquin Daylight, presumably including the time of the photograph.

  3. PT2-369.

  4.                                                                        

  5.                                                                         http://www.trainweb.org/web_lurker/SPf/

                                                                            http://streamlinermemories.info/?p=1392

                                                                            http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/p/page-12.html

                                                                            http://www.trainweb.org/web_lurker/SPf/

Drawing

                                                                            Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Vol 5: Lounge, Dome & Parlor, pg. 385

    #3600 drawings                                                Trainlines by Don Munger.

    The drawings are not detailed but there are truck center measurements that will allow one to interpolate the major dimensions.


Modeling SP 3/4 Dome Lounge 3600 Car

The Coach Yard

  1. Southern Pacific (SP) Dome-Lounge #3600 unpainted

Soho

  1. They made these about 15 years ago for the Sunset Limited.

Paint

  1. If your model has fluted sides, either paint scheme is okay, depending on your time period. If it's got plain sides, then the Sunset scheme is more likely correct.

Lettering & Numbering

Decals

Champ

  1. The logo needs to be from Champ.

  2. Ron Plies

Microscale

  1. The lettering and logo from Microscale are all wrong. The numbers and letters SP on the train Idea board on the side of the car can be from Microscale.

  2. Ron Plies

Thinfilm

  1. The lettering needs to be from Thinfilm #158, it is the same as the TT gray sheet.

  2. Ron Plies

Reference

  1. SP #3600, 3/4 Dome rebuild. scratchbuild.     Model Railroader Oct. 1972 -

  2. SP 3/4 Dome update.                                      Model Railroader Jan. 1992 -

   Build the #3600 from a Bachmann full dome  N-Scale Railroading



SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car

  1. #3601-3604


  1. Seats 74, rebuilt using 77-T-2 & 77-DLO-1, no valet room, operated bar- forward and had Waukesha air conditioning.

  2. 1960’s went to Coast Daylight service. Had smooth stainless steel sides attached. 83‘ long.


  1. #3601-3604 had a couple of booths and tables at the back of the dome area and love seats in the front part of the dome.

  2. #3601-3604 were similar in interior configuration.


  1. #3601 was scrapped. Originally painted yellow for service on the Overland, and after 1960, the City of SF.

  2. #3602 originally painted yellow for service on the Overland, and after 1960, the City of SF. and is at Golden Gate RR Museum.

  3. #3603 is the one in Panama. Originally painted yellow for service on the Overland, and after 1960, the City of SF.

  4. #3604 is on a dinner train in Minnesota. #3604 was painted Daylight for 51 & 52.


Reference

                                                                            Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Vol 5: Lounge, Dome & Parlor, pg. 398-424

Drawing

                                                                            Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Vol 5: Lounge, Dome & Parlor, pg. 398

Modeling SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car

The Original Whistle Stop

  1. A brass model of a Southern Pacific 3/4 Dome-Lounge, and box is marked for The Original Whistle Stop in Pasadena, and is labeled "SP #3601-3606 3/4 Dome-Lounge "Sunset Limited". This is a rerun they did about 15 years ago of the original Soho cars for the Sunset Limited. They included the 3/4 dome in the series, knowing it was not part of the Sunset Limited, because of a demand for the car. The reruns were issued with smooth sides or fluted sides.


SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car

  1. #3605-3606


  1. #3605 is reported at Canon City, Colorado.

  2. #3605 originally had been assigned to the Shasta Daylight, and was photographed in SF in 1969, later Coast Daylight (#99).

  3.            rebuilt by SP Sacramento Shops 1955, retired 1971 Amtrak. It had only lounge and table booths and thus the car had to    

  4.            have the lounge lead for cars to match. #3605 came with fluted sides.


  6. #3606 is at Rocklin, California.  *see                http://www.trainweb.org/web_lurker/SPf/

  7. #3606 used on Shasta Daylight, later Coast Daylight (99)   ran 1955 from Diner-Lounge-Observation T&NO 950, rebuilt by  SP

  8.            Sacramento Shops 1955. It had only lounge and table booths and thus the car had to have the lounge lead for cars to match.

  9.            In 1969 it was on the Shasta Daylight, assigned to Coast Daylight in the 60’s.


  11. #3605 & 3606 looked like 3604 from the outside, but had lounge type seating all through the upstairs dome area. 

Paint

  1. #3605 & 3606 were painted in Daylight colors for Shasta Daylight

Lettering & Numbering

  1. Had Daylight insignia reapplied to side after repainting silver in 1959.

Reference

                                                                            Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Vol 5: Lounge, Dome & Parlor, pg. 410-424

  1.                                                                          Trainline-35/23

  2. *see                                                                   PT2-338

  3.                                                                          The 1955-1958 Passenger Train Consist Book, page 29.

  4.                                                                          Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Volume 1: Coaches and Chair Cars", pg. 354. Drawing

                                                                            Southern Pacific Passenger Cars, Vol 5: Lounge, Dome & Parlor, pg. 411

Modeling SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car

Kitbash, Scratchbuild or Brass

 
Southern Pacific Lines S.P. Dome Cars
General Information Specific Dome Cars SP 3/4 Dome Lounge Car
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