RAPIDO NEW HAVEN 8600 CLASS PASSENGER CARS

NEW HAVEN 8600 SERIES PASSENGER CARSIn order to attract customers back to the rails after the end of WWII, the New Haven decided to modernize the fleet with new lightweight passenger cars. In December 1945 a large order was placed with Pullman-Standard for a variety of car styles, including 103 coaches, 25 parlor cars, diners, grill diners, combination baggage buffet lounge/parlors, and two tavern lounge observation cars. These were produced in the old Osgood Bradley factory in Worcester, MA, so they bear more than a passing resemblance to the Osgood Bradley Lightweights delivered in the 1930s.The New Haven’s stainless cars were not built entirely from stainless steel like the cars produced by Budd in Philadelphia. Instead, they were constructed from Cor-Ten steel and sheathed with stainless steel fluting panels. The New Haven touted the 8600s as “the newest of the new in coach equipment – gleaming stainless steel on the outside, the last word in attractive decoration and design on the inside.” The 8600-series coaches were ubiquitous, used on trains system-wide from delivery until the Penn Central years. Penn Central later sold 74 of the 8600s to MBTA and they remained in service in the Boston area until 1988! Northeastern modelers have waited far too long for accurate models of these iconic cars. The wait will soon be over.Our HO scale model of the 8600-series coach is being produced in association with the New Haven Railroad Historical and Technical Association (NHRHTA). Features:HO Scale Model Features:Accurately scaled from original blueprints with input from NHRHTACorrect cross section with accurate Pullman-Standard flutingRapido™s renowned stainless steel finishPartial skirting or no skirting as appropriateFull underbody detailsOperating diaphragms with end gatesSeparate grab irons, factory-installedVastly improved 41-BNO-11 trucks that roll like a dreamFull interior detail including see-through armrestsTrack-powered constant lighting for DC and DCC layouts22 minimum radius (18 radius with modification)Macdonald-Cartier metal magnetic knuckle couplersMany car numbers plus No # per paint scheme