<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=2>Ed -
<BR>
<BR>I have bought a few over the past few years at $10 - $15 not on e bay. Also
<BR>from e bay for an average of $15. but in none of these purchases was I
<BR>helping PTM or any other preservation group. Knowing where the revenue is
<BR>going it would seem like
<BR>$20. would be a fair price.
<BR>
<BR>I have participated in a lot of e bay auctions mostly with West Penn. Some
<BR>photos I can seem to win for little more than the asking price, while others
<BR>I either lose or bid my socks off to get. One recent example was a shot of a
<BR>passing siding near Youngstown on the Latrobe line that ended up at about
<BR>$55. It wasn't worth that to me.
<BR>
<BR>One other photo that I bid on was on the Brownsville line that was up early
<BR>last year.
<BR>I have a real interest in the Brownsville line and this shot was at New Salem
<BR>behind
<BR>the store where loading took place, with a large gob pile behind the car and
<BR>just an excellent shot. One other person was bidding against me and we were
<BR>at the 50 cent increase level for 5 days, and when it hit $26 I got real
<BR>interested. I e mailed the chap in Richmond Va and he was from New Salem and
<BR>believed it was he as a child in the picture. I quit bidding right away and
<BR>appologized for running it up. It ended up we corresponded and he sent me a
<BR>quality xerox copy of the shot plus some notes on where it was taken. While
<BR>he was not a railfan, I sent him the PRMA West Penn booklet for his trouble
<BR>and he promises me he will take his children to Arden on his next trip back
<BR>to experience what a trolley is.
<BR>
<BR>There has been a few real eye opening stories on this group recently about e
<BR>bay bids. I have purchased back some books I sold years ago, and if patient
<BR>you can usually do OK, but it is hard to steal anything on e bay. I have
<BR>watched CERA 110 on West Penn sell for $20 and for $120. Since I already
<BR>have 2 copies I didn't feel I needed any more and have passed, but most of
<BR>the out of print dealers are still asking $65 - 85 for that book.
<BR>
<BR>Probably the most interesing one is Joe Saitta's Traction Extra #2, The
<BR>Presidents'
<BR>Car. He lists one copy a week, obviously from the stock he has left (my copy
<BR>is #83 from 1986). He always starts at $65 which rings a bell that says we
<BR>paid that it if was purchased new at that time. But the bidding takes it up
<BR>to $80 - 90 - 120 quickly and as soon as a winner is declared up pops another
<BR>copy.
<BR>
<BR>Parkinson's book on Pittsburgh I picked up on e bay for $8.00 and I was
<BR>tickled pink.
<BR>
<BR>E bay takes a lot of time which can be better spent doing research on
<BR>Pittsburgh Railways or our other favorites. And I do have a question for the
<BR>group and a need.
<BR>
<BR>Was the South Greensburg (Huff) barn facing away from Greensburg towards
<BR>Youngwood. i.e, as I look at photos looking into the barn, am I also looking
<BR>towards Greensburg so that cars pulling in for storage would go past the
<BR>barn, manually
<BR>set the switches, and pull into the appropriate track. Did the old line to
<BR>Youngwood stop after a few cars beyond the yard lead into Huff in later years?
<BR>
<BR>I am looking for Interurban Special 58 and 59, Mac Sabree and Paul Ward's
<BR>books on the Trolley Coach in North America. Any leads will be most
<BR>appreciated.
<BR>
<BR>Since we include Wheeling in this group, and it was a dinner discussion topic
<BR>on our fall West Penn Excursion (Ed, Fred, Fred III, Derrick), I got a long
<BR>letter from Fred
<BR>Maloney of Boston and Seashore. I was under the misconception that when they
<BR>published a photo of the car all painted up about 25 years ago that
<BR>restoration was well under way. Not true at all. I'm not sure exactly how
<BR>they fund their projects, but obviously must carry their own weight to get
<BR>money. The car has had substantial
<BR>roof work done, a new headliner, some insulation on the sides, one ex Chicago
<BR>4000 door motor restored for a rebuilt door, seats available but not rebuilt
<BR>from a 4000, a set of type 5 Boston trucks available but in need of much
<BR>work, end platform castings needed, the whole body scraped and repainted, I
<BR>presume all new windows.
<BR>They are going to restore it as Wgh Traction 639, which I think might have
<BR>been dark red in color. When Co-Op took over during the depression, they
<BR>dropped the first digit on the curved side cars and 639 became 39. I would
<BR>guess that the car is 3 - 5 years from being done. They have salvaged some
<BR>orig. wood, the original wire window glass for the bottom panels of the
<BR>doors, and not much else. Whatever their philosophy on restoration which I
<BR>read as restore it as you got it, with the 39, there is so little left of the
<BR>car they decided it would be "ok" to take it back to the 639.
<BR>
<BR>If we exclude the CA&E cars from Cinn. are their any other of the curved
<BR>sided Cinn. builts left beside 832 at PTM and 39 at Seashore? I don't think
<BR>so. Fred, what is left of York and Lancaster, and were they Cinn. built? </FONT></HTML>