Rapido Trains - 501009 - Passenger Car, Lightweight, Pullman, Duplex Sleeper Plan 4124 - VIA Rail Canada - 1159

Model Information: The Duplex Sleeper is available with partial skirting or with fixed steps, as appropriate.

• Super-detailed underbody
• Body-mounted Micro-Trains(r) couplers
• Fixed steps or partial skirts, as appropriate
• All air, steam and electrical lines represented Insulated 36″ metal wheelsets (no pizza cutters!)
• "Easy-Peasy" battery-powered interior lighting
• Flush windows with painted gaskets and shades
• Full interior detail including armrests and headrests
• Diaphragms with etched brass end gates
• Painted metal roof grab irons applied at the factory
• Multiple car names and/or numbers per paint scheme
• Will operate smoothly on curves down to 9-3/4″ radius
• Super-detailled 41-N-11 Inside Swinghanger or 41-BNO-11 Outside Swinghanger trucks as appropriate for each roadname and car type.

Prototype information: The Rapido Trains Inc. Duplex Sleeper is everything you need for your overnight passengers, from your branchline, backwater mail train to your hot Limiteds. It features the three most common forms of overnight accommodation - open sections for the budget-minded, roomettes for private day and night travel, and double bedrooms with comfortable seats. Bedroom seats have see-through armrests, and roomettes have curtains for privacy. Public restrooms at the A end of the car include a vanity for the ladies and dental bowls for hygiene.

The Duplex Sleeper is Pullman plan number 4124, a CN and Great Northern prototype with 4 sections, 8 duplex roomettes and 4 bedrooms. Several railroads throughout North America had similar duplex sleepers, and our car is painted in a variety of paint schemes.

Prototype History: The Pullman plan 4124 duplex sleeper is everything you need for your overnight passengers, from your branchline, backwater mail train to your hot Limiteds. It features the three most common forms of overnight accommodation - open sections for the budget-minded, roomettes for private day and night travel, and double bedrooms with comfortable seats. Bedroom seats have see-through armrests, and roomettes have curtains for privacy. Public restrooms at the A end of the car include a vanity for the ladies and dental bowls for hygiene.

Pullman plan number 4124, was used by both the CN and Great Northern railroads. It featured 4 sections, 8 duplex roomettes and 4 bedrooms. Several railroads throughout North America had similar duplex sleepers, and this car was painted in a variety of paint schemes.

Road Name History: Via Rail Canada (reporting mark VIA) (generally shortened to Via Rail or Via; styled corporately as VIA Rail Canada) is an independent crown corporation, subsidized by the Minister of Transport, mandated to offer intercity passenger rail services in Canada.

On January 12, 1977, CN spun off its passenger services as a separate Crown corporation, VIA Rail Canada. At its inception, Via acquired all CN passenger cars and locomotives. Following several months of negotiation, on October 29, 1978, Via took over operation of CP passenger train services, and took possession of cars and locomotives. Passenger train services which were not included in the creation of Via Rail included those offered by BC Rail, Algoma Central Railway, Ontario Northland Railway, Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway, various urban commuter train services operated by CN and CP, and remaining CN passenger services in Newfoundland.

Brand/Importer Information: Rapido Trains Inc. is a high-end manufacturer of model trains and accessories in HO, OO and N (North American 1:160 and British 1:148) scales. The firm's mission is to recreate the entire rail travel experience, from fully-detailed interiors and under-frames on models to fully-wired telephone poles for model railroads.

The name RAPIDO was introduced by Canadian National in 1965 to headline the railway's high-speed intercity passenger services. Until the mid-1980s, RAPIDO stood for fast schedules, frequent trains, and superb service.

Today, Rapido Trains continues the RAPIDO concept with state-of-the-art models and attention to fine detail. This company is not related to the venerable (and now defunct) German manufacturer Arnold Rapido, nor the present-day Arnold (which is owned by the United Kingdom's Hornby), Canadian based Rapido Trains was founded in 2003.