Broadway Limited Imports 1941 Morning Daylight parlor-observation car

One of the most recognizable name passenger trains of the 20th century, the Southern Pacific RR’s Morning Daylight, gets the star treatment with Broadway Limited Imports’ HO scale 1941 Daylight parlor-observation car.

The Daylight ran along the SP’s famed Coast Line between San Francisco and Los Angeles from 1922 until 1971, when passenger service was taken over by Amtrak. For many years the trains bore a striking red, orange, and black livery that earned it the advertising slogan of “the most beautiful train in the world.”

Our sample represents SP car no. 2955, one of a pair of parlor-observations built to Pullman-Standard plan 7419A in 1941. They served the Morning Daylight until 1949, when car 2955 and its twin, 2954, were relettered for service on the new Shasta Daylight. Broadway Limited’s models depict 2954 and 2955 with their original paint scheme and skirting.

A gem of a model. Our sample matched all the dimensions I checked against a builder’s diagram in The Official Pullman-Standard Library, Vol. 5: Southern Pacific Prewar Cars by W. David Randall and William M. Ross. The paint scheme and placement of details match both this diagram and one printed in Southern Pacific Daylight by Richard K. Wright, as well as numerous photographs. The underbody detail is likewise faithful to the builder’s plans.

The model’s one-piece plastic body is nicely molded, with fine rivet work along the roof line and around the rear door. The paint is smooth and even, with sharp division lines between colors. The non-working full-width diaphragm, striped like the prototype to match the body, is press-fit and can be removed if you want to run the car on tight curves. The radio antenna on the roof is thicker than it should be, but a modeler could easily replace it with .008″ brass wire.

Broadway Limited paid almost as much attention to the interior as the exterior. Although they don’t swivel and recline like the prototype, the 22 parlor seats are individually molded parts, with the anti­macassars painted in light blue. The placement of all interior furnishings match the builder’s diagram, including the table lamps in the observation room.

A constant lighting circuit that works under direct current or Digital Command Control illuminates the interior, marker lights, taillight, and tailsign. In DC the lighting shone steadily at 3V and reached full brightness at 4.5V. A capacitor helps keep the lighting steady when traveling over dirty track.

There were a few problems with the exterior lighting. The taillight is white, though on the prototype, it was red. On our sample, one of the red marker light lenses fell out. The red light-emitting diode (LED) that illuminates the tailsign shines through the plastic body shell, making the end of the car glow.
All the car’s metal wheels were in gauge, and the Kadee couplers were mounted at the correct height, though the trip pins hung slightly low.

Broadway Limited has kicked off its 1941 Morning Daylight train with a handsome and accurately detailed car. It’s a great first step toward assembling “the most beautiful train in the world.”

Price: $89.99

Manufacturer
Broadway Limited Imports
9A East Tower Circle
Ormond Beach, FL 32174
www.broadway-limited.com

Era: 1941 to 1949
 
Features

• Ample underbody detail
• Constant-brightness lighting
• Detailed interior with painted seats
• Factory-applied grab irons (some wire, some plastic)
• Kadee magnetic knuckle couplers
• Lighted markers, taillight, and tailsign
• Recommended minimum radius: 22″
• Weight: 63⁄4 ounces (1⁄4 ounce heavy, according to National Model Railroad Association RP-20.1)