Rapido Trains - 506002 - Passenger Car, NSC, Baggage - Amtrak - 1003

Specific Item Information: 41-BNO-11 Trucks, Standard Ends.

Model Information: Rapido first announced this model in August of 2015 and it was delivered in 2017. A 2-year gap may seem like a long wait, but given Rapido's focus on making sure the models were meeting their exacting specifications before shipping requires this kind of delay. Rapido owns its own factory in China, and now that it is staffed up and they have worked out all the kinks in their design->deliver peipeline, we should be able to expect lower wait times in the future.

This model is an excellent example of 3rd generation rolling stock as produced from 2010 forward. It features the three main attributes that separate 3rd generation models from earlier toolings. 1) It uses high-quality body-mounted magnetically-operated couplers. 2) It features chemically-blackened, low-profile metal wheels. 3) It has a range of separately applied detail parts such as grab-irons, underbody elements and brake details. Apart from one stirrup that was sloppily glued on, these details are of exceptional quality. These cars do not have a lot of print detail but what there is, is well executed.

The following is a list of features as supplied by Rapido:

• Super-detailed underbody
• Body-mounted Micro-Trains(C) couplers
• All air, steam and electrical lines represented
• Insulated 36 inch metal wheelsets (no pizza cutters!)
• Diaphragms and safety bars
• Painted grab irons applied at the factory.
• Four numbers plus unnumbered available in each scheme
• Will operate smoothly on curves down to 9-3/4 inch radius
• Standard End or End Doors as appropriate
• Super-detailled Commonwealth Cast Pedestal tri-axle, 41-N-11 Inside
• Swinghanger or 41-BNO-11 Outside Swinghanger trucks as appropriate for each roadname and car type.

Road Name History: The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak, is a passenger railroad service that provides medium- and long-distance intercity service in the contiguous United States. Founded in 1971 through the government-sponsored consolidation of most of the remaining U.S. passenger rail companies, it is partially government-funded yet operated and managed as a for-profit corporation.

Amtrak operates more than 300 trains each day on 21,300 miles (34,000 km) of track with select segments having civil operating speeds of 150 mph (240 km/h) and connecting more than 500 destinations in 46 states in addition to three Canadian provinces. In fiscal year 2015, Amtrak served 30.8 million passengers and had $2.185 billion in revenue, while employing more than 20,000 people. Nearly two-thirds of passengers come from the 10 largest metropolitan areas; 83% of passengers travel on routes shorter than 400 miles. Its headquarters is at Union Station in Washington, D.C.

The name "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "trak", the latter itself a sensational spelling of "track".

Read more on Wikipedia.

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.