old "rail" truck?

[worldrailboy]

I had been looking at this for a while and thought it might be best to finally ask here

http://saikatsutramway.sakura.ne.jp/saikatsu_tramway/tramway8.png
is that modelled after something real in japan?  would had been interesting to know when considering this 'crude' usa one below
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2400/2326837406_8b394423f6.jpg
its basically your usual road sedan with the chassis and tail gone, and mated to an old boxcar that also lost its own chassis as well. they're called 'galloping goose' which I never understood why yet

[keitaro]

yep http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%95%E3%82%A1%E3%82%A4%E3%83%AB:Gasoline_railcar_used_in_Kakuda_Tramway.jpg

http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%A7%92%E7%94%B0%E8%BB%8C%E9%81%93

[marknewton]

G'day worldrailboy,

A number of minor lines in Japan used rail trucks like this. The Nemuro-Takushoku Railway in Hokkaido had a number, some of them streamlined.

http://www.kk-net.com/~tabuchi/dragon.htm

Similar types of cars ran on the Kujukuri Railway, and one of the narrow-gauge Kintetsu predecessors had them as well.

I don't know the origins of the nickname "Galloping Goose" for the Rio Grande Southern railcars, but the boxy rear bodies were purpose built for them, they weren't old boxcar bodies.

Cheers,

Mark.

[The_Ghan]

There's "classic" and then there's "ugly", Mark, and that ain't "classic"!

Cheers

The_Ghan

[marknewton]

Nige, which one are you referring to? I think they all have some appeal - even if they do look like they were built by drunken apprentices at the end of a three-day pissup! 

Cheers,

Mark.

[keitaro]

http://www.kk-net.com/~tabuchi/dragon.htm

this one looks like they chopped of the front of a bus and welded it to a boxcar like a wafu or waki and added windows

[worldrailboy]

thanks, and btw looking at the first photo of that gas one it looks like it could had been quite easy to model your own even in Z scale. just take any short motorized chassis and chop off all the underchassis 'mess' especially fuel tanks then build the body out of a few flat sheets of brass or plastic. the hood/bonnet (say what does japan actually call it?) curve might be another thing tho

I take it that the gas railcar there would had been used where even the smallest steam locomotive with only a single passenger coach would had been a bit too expensive to run for long?

[marknewton]

Yes and no. There were a number of small railway companies in Japan that only ever had petrol railcars, no steam locos at all. Many of these were 762mm gauge light railways, or "keiben".

Cheers,

Mark.

[The_Ghan]

Nige, which one are you referring to? I think they all have some appeal - even if they do look like they were built by drunken apprentices at the end of a three-day pissup! 

Cheers,

Mark.

I was referring to the NEMURO TAKUSHOKU RAILWAY KI1 Railcar.  I think the light blue colour doesn't help either .... 

Cheers

The_Ghan