Berg's Hobbies Products - Passenger Coaches

The long awaited H type air conditioned steel carriages, built by Tulloch in Rhodes, NSW were introduced into service in April 1948 on the Newcastle Express.

The carriages are of the open saloon type with centre aisle, the second class cars having two and two seating. The first class originally were fitted with movable tubular chairs arranged one on one side and two on the other side of the aisle. In 1961 the tubular chairs were replaced by fixed two and two seating. Each first class seat is individual with arm rests and reclining lever. Long luggage racks run the full length of the saloon above the window heads. Fluorescent lighting is recessed in the ceiling troughs behind translucent material. Individual reading lights are located beneath the luggage racks. Doors at the extreme ends of cars give access to the main saloon through short corridor fitted with a baffle door. Lavatories provided with hot and cold water are located at both ends of intermediate cars but the terminal cars HFH and PFH have only one. Iced drinking water is available in the entrance vestibules. The RBH car had a compartment seating six adjacent to the buffet for judges on circuit and others requiring privacy adjacent the main saloon. All windows are sealed double glazing with slightly tinted glass.

Outwardly the cars are similar to the N type except for the omission of crown lights. The intermediate cars have square ended semi-elliptical roofs and canopy roofs for the other ends of the terminal cars. All cars are 65 ft. overall body length with 8 ft. bogie wheel base. Instead of the usual axle driven generators and storage batteries beneath each car, electricity for lighting, water heating, air conditioning and other services is supplied by two diesel engines with generators, carried in a compartment of one of the terminal cars PFH. Power is conveyed thru jumper couplings between the cars.

Ability to maintain an even temperature of 68 to 70 F throughout the year, coupled with sealed windows, excluding soot and dust improved travel conditions considerably and earned the cars instant popularity.

There are six different codings in a seven car sets Nos 116 to 119 which has the code HUB as follows:-

A further 8 cars coded RDH Unclassified Buffet were built from 1975 from existing HUB buffet sitting cars.

Bergs Hobbies have reproduced all seven cars in HO scale Kits. The kits contain all the parts required including assembly instructions, bogies, wheels and window glazing. All that is required are assembly tools, glue, paint, decals and couplers of choice.

Decals and couplers are available from our shop.