Fox Valley - 90351 - Boxcar, 50 Foot, M53 Wagontop - Baltimore & Ohio - 380942

Model Information: Fox Valley introduced this model in January of 2013. It features : Body-mounted Micro-Trains couplers at correct height; Chemically blackened metal wheelsets in gauge; Weight: 1 ounce (correct per NMRA RP-20.1).

This car has some very nice separate detail parts - mainly the running board and brake wheel - but even the molded details are well-defined and correctly placed. The main components of the brake system are molded in the underframe. The detail level of the underframe in general is not as nice as many contemporary models but isn't awful either. The body-mounted couplers and Fox Valleys' renowned metal wheelsets are huge wins. The placement of the herald, large B&O lettering and other stencils matches photos of M-53 boxcars during that time frame. The minor detail discrepancies are not deal breakers. Overall the ready-to-run model provides an easy way to add this unique boxcar to an HO or N scale car fleet.

Prototype History: The Baltimore & Ohio's classic wagontop was a custom design the railroad manufactured itself during the height of the depression in the 1930s to not only reduce expenses but also increase the car's strength in the way it was manufactured (by using a "U"-shaped design). In an era when the major design elements of the 40' box car seem to have been well standardized, the Baltimore and Ohio employed an innovative design in which the roof and sides were constructed from single panels of cooper-bearing steel. The quality of this steel and the seamless roof design protected lading from roof leaks and made these cars battleships on the rails. Some of these cars remained on the rails up to the early eighties.

Road Name History: The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (reporting marks B&O, BO) is one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal (which served New York City) and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which would have connected Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. At first this railroad was located entirely in the state of Maryland with an original line from the port of Baltimore west to Sandy Hook. At this point to continue westward, it had to cross into Virginia (now West Virginia) over the Potomac River, adjacent to the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers. From there it passed through Virginia from Harpers Ferry to a point just west of the junction of Patterson Creek and the North Branch Potomac River where it crossed back into Maryland to reach Cumberland. From there it was extended to the Ohio River at Wheeling and a few years later also to Parkersburg, West Virginia.

It is now part of the CSX Transportation (CSX) network, and includes the oldest operational railroad bridge in the USA. The B&O also included the Leiper Railroad, the first permanent horse-drawn railroad in the U.S. In later years, B&O advertising carried the motto: "Linking 13 Great States with the Nation." Part of the B&O Railroad's immortality has come from being one of the four featured railroads on the U.S. version of the board game Monopoly, but it is the only railroad on the board which did not serve Atlantic City, New Jersey, directly.

When CSX established the B&O Railroad Museum as a separate entity from the corporation, some of the former B&O Mount Clare Shops in Baltimore, including the Mt. Clare roundhouse, were donated to the museum while the rest of the property was sold. The B&O Warehouse at the Camden Yards rail junction in Baltimore now dominates the view over the right-field wall at the Baltimore Orioles' current home, Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

At the end of 1970 B&O operated 5552 miles of road and 10449 miles of track, not including the Staten Island Rapid Transit (SIRT) or the Reading and its subsidiaries.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Brand/Importer Information: Fox Valley Models is a small supplier of model railroad and related products. FVM started by finding solutions to different challenges that model railroaders were faced with. Our first products resulted from a need to equip custom built passenger cars with tinted windows made of an ideal material; thin, flexible, easy to cut, simple to install, available in multiple colors and be affordable. We met those needs and even included a frosted version for the car's lavatory windows.

Other challenges inspired additional products including wooden grade crossings, trestles and different lineside structures. As our product line expands, input and requests from friends and customers help shape the product selection further.

Future products, under development, include more parts, structures, details and rolling stock. We strive to offer a good quality product at an affordable price.