BLMA - 18039 - Boxcar, 62 Foot, BX-166 - Santa Fe - 621318

Model Information: The ready-to-run models have etched metal brake wheel platforms, fine scale under body detail, and separately applied air hoses and wire cut levers.

Prototype Information: Built by the Santa Fe at the railroad's Kansas City car shops in 1974, a total of three-hundred of the 61 foot 6 inch long double 8' sliding door insulated Bx-166 boxcars were produced.

From their original Indian Red color, with large white cross logos and "Shock Control" lettering, to their mid-life, minimalist, Mineral Brown paint with small white Santa Fe logos, all the way to BNSF?s modern "Powerbar" logos, it has been reported that Bx-166's have been seen in thirteen different paint schemes.

Used for beer distribution throughout North America, some 40+ years later, re-stenciled to reflect the merged Burlington Northern and Santa Fe railroads (BNSF), a fair number of the remaining cars continue to haul beer, though many have been relegated to non-beer hauling tasks, such as the hauling of bundled corrugated and paper recyclables.

Learn more about the Bx-166 prototype and models in this BLMA You Tube video.

Prototype History: The BX-166 was a product of Santa Fe's Topeka, Kansas shops in the late 1970s. The BX-155, BX-161, BX-166 and BX-177 were all similar designs. The BX-166 was the double plug door design and was 62 feet long. When built, they were painted in the railroad's Indian Red paint scheme with the 'Shock Control' logo on the sides. In later years, the cars were repainted in a simplified mineral red scheme. Some repainted cars had a small circle-cross herald applied in the upper left corner, while others had reporting marks only.

Many of these cars are still in service, four decades after being built. Some are used for beer service while others carry recycled paper. These cars have twoe 8-foot insulated plug doors on each side.

Road Name History: The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (reporting mark ATSF), often abbreviated as Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. Chartered in February 1859, the railroad reached the Kansas-Colorado border in 1873 and Pueblo, Colorado, in 1876. To create a demand for its services, the railroad set up real estate offices and sold farm land from the land grants that it was awarded by Congress. Despite the name, its main line never served Santa Fe, New Mexico, as the terrain was too difficult; the town ultimately was reached by a branch line from Lamy.

The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport, an enterprise that (at one time or another) included a tugboat fleet and an airline (the short-lived Santa Fe Skyway). Its bus line extended passenger transportation to areas not accessible by rail, and ferryboats on the San Francisco Bay allowed travelers to complete their westward journeys to the Pacific Ocean. The ATSF was the subject of a popular song, Harry Warren & Johnny Mercer's "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe", written for the film, The Harvey Girls (1946).

The railroad officially ceased operations on December 31, 1996, when it merged with the Burlington Northern Railroad to form the Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Railway.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Brand/Importer Information: BLMA Models was founded in July of 2000 to bring Z, N, and HO Scale products of superior quality and originality to the model train community. At BLMA Models, we understand that quality and accuracy count in producing realistic scale models. Our passion revolves around accuracy, diversity, innovation and satisfaction to prototype model railroaders by providing exceptional products and service that goes beyond your expectations.

BLMA was acquired by Atlas Model Railroad in January of 2016.