[PRCo] Re: Jones Cars

[Fred Schneider]

The midwest system --- if we can call it midwest -- Steubenville,  
East Liverpool and Beaver Valley Traction Company.   I don't know how  
long they retained their Jones cars but perhaps they were gone before  
the late 1920s.   The BVT cars came to Pittsburgh when they bought  
the arch roof cars.

I don't think the C trailers in Pittsburgh had K-63 control or at  
least it was not wired completely as a K-63 would have been with  
series-parallel.   The trailers with A prefixes were just that,  
trailers.   They went no where unless pulled by motor cars.    Those  
trailers with B prefixes had two motors and were intended for use  
behind 4800-4939 low-floor cars or 4100s or perhaps 4000s which had  
K-43 control.   The K-43 was heavy enough to allow for six motors in  
series-parallel, three groups of 2 in series or all 6 motors in  
parallel.   Of course both the A and B trailers required the use of a  
hostling locomotive to get them and push them up to the lead car.      
The trailers with the C prefix had a hostling controller which really  
was nothing more than an on-off switch to connect the motors in  
series.   They also had a hand brake.   This allowed the hostler to  
bring the car out by itself, and then he could get a lot of exercise  
as he walked back into the yard to get the next trailer.   The  
company thought the C cars were an improvement but in an era of  
Republicanism, I doubt that they asked the yard men for their opinions.

No, the 4250s matched the 4300s and 4350s.   Only the 4200s had a  
truly unique body.   But they all had Jones three-speed control.    
The three-speed comes from three running points, i.e. three points  
with all motors running on no resistance.   In reality, Jones control  
used resistance only on the first point and beyond that they used a  
myriad of weird motor connections to increase speed.   Examples of  
weird being two motors on series, one on 550 volts, one dead.   But  
the three running points would have been all motors on series (550  
volts divided by 4 would give 138 volts per motor), 2 series pairs of  
motors connected in parallel (275 volts per motor), and all motors in  
parallel (550 volts per motor).   They were probably hard on motors  
and slippery.   The four converted trailers, 4700s, 4200s, 4300s,  
6000s, 3700s, and 2100s had Jones to start with.   Many cars were  
scrapped with Jones control in place.   Those cars that lasted long  
enough, i.e. some 4300s, 4350s, the 4700s and all the 3700s had it  
replaced with something much more conventional.

The 4420 series converted trailers were single-end cars, originally  
with only a center door and later with a single front door added.



On Mar 12, 2006, at 5:20 PM, Holland Electric Rwy. Op. H.E.R.O. --  
Import SPTC 1.48 Models // James B. Holland wrote:

> There is a place in the midwest that had a few of the Jones cars  --
> can't remember off hand  --  have a photo somewhere but even that  
> eludes
> me at the moment.       It was by accident that I came across this  
> fact.
>
> Beaver Traction used the cars and their numbers were 400--411  --
> believe Beaver purchased them New but they could have come through
> PRCo,; can't remember now  --  these cars came to Pittsburgh as
> 4400--4411 when Beaver didn't need them any more.       ALL  were gone
> by the very early 1940s  (although my notes for scrapping of  
> 4400--4405
> are unreadable  --  maybe Ed has something more definitive.)
>
> Outside of that, yes, PRCo is the only place the Jones cars operated
> --  That  I  Know  OF!       It was a PRCo design that is Most  
> Correctly 
> identified as Low-Floor Car, but Jones of PRCo developed some control
> units used in the cars and possibly contributed to other aspects of  
> the
> design!
>
>
> Believe the Low Floor Design started with Trailers to be pulled by the
> High Floor Design    ----
>
> A200--A299
>
> A-, B-, & C-, 300--424
>
> The A's were Pure Trailers;  Bs and Cs each had 2 motors.       Cs had
> K63 control while As and Bs were without.       Controller for shop
> movements etc.       Fred will give more complete details.
>
> Believe that Trailers  A217,  A242,  A283,  and  A284  were  
> converted to
> Full Fledge Single Cars with Center Doors Only in 1928  --  donut know
> why the conversion when All the other Low Floors were already on the
> property!.       They were re-numbered 4420--4423.
>
> 4200--4249 and
> 4250--4299
>
> were Double End  (DE)  and were built in 1914 and 1915.       Don't  
> know
> if their design was the same.
>
> 4300--4399 were DE and of different design  --  this design was  
> carried
> forward in all the cars.
>
> 4400--4411 purchased from Beaver  (Beaver also had a number of 3756  
> Look
> Alikes!)
>
> 4420--4423  converted from Trailers.
>
> ALL  the following Single End  (SE)  cars::
>
> 4700--4799
>
> 4800--4899
>
> 4900--4939
> ++   Above two groups listed as the following three groups:::
>              -- 4800--4824 built by Osgood Bradley
>              -- 4825--4864 built by Pressed Steel
>              -- 4865--4939 built by St.Louis Car Company (SLCCo)
>
> 5000--5099
>
> 5100--5159
>
> 5200--5282
>
> 5400--5464
>
> 5500--5549
>
>
>
>
> mtoytrain at bellsouth.net wrote:
> .
>
>> In looking at all my Street car books, I have just realized that
>> Pittsburgh Railways was the only city using the Jones low floor car
>> (Donora type)?      Am I correct on this? Any other Cities?
>>
>> Jerry
>
>
>
>
>
> Jim__Holland
>
>
> I__Like__Ike.......And__PCCs!!
>
> down with pantographs ---- UP___WITH___TROLLEYPOLES!!!!!!!
>
>