AHM - 4330 - Boxcar, 40 Foot, Steel Combo Door - Port Huron & Detroit - 1347

Model Information: These cars were made by Roco under contract for AHM. Later the body style was produced for Con-Cor and JC Timmer. It features a distinctive combo door configuration along with standard 1st gen rolling stock features such as Rapido Couplers and nickel-silver plated wheelsets with deep flanges.

Prototype History: The plug-and-sliding-door or combo-door boxcar is a versatile car that can act as either a double door boxcar or a plug door boxcar. If you were loading 8' studs in the car, you would load the car just like any other double door boxcar. But if you are loading paper, you would seal the far doors with duct tape, load the car and close the slider. Seal the slider with duct tape, and then shut the plug door to seal the car.

The main reason all the large box cars today have mostly plug doors, is that large sliding doors just get too hard to move. Trying to open regular 8' sliding doors, unless the cars were fairly new, is quite challenging. After a sliding-door car was several years old, you'd see where the sliding door was getting all banged up from people using forklift blades to open and close the doors. Plug doors, however, run on wide runners and rollers, and are therefore easier to move. Also, since the doors are out away from the car side, there is no problem when a car side becomes bulged out due to wear and tear.

Road Name History: The PH&D was established in 1917 to purchase and extend the Port Huron & Southern Railroad. While there were grand plans to build to Detroit, the PH&D only got from Port Huron to Marine City, Michigan, 14 miles away. Nevertheless, the PH&D kept busy hauling auto parts, coal, salt, steel, chemicals, rubber and sugar beets. In the steam era, PH&D hosted a fleet of 0-6-0 switchers. These were gradually replaced with a trio of Alco diesel switchers. The Duffy Family who had owned the railroad since 1922, sold it to Chesapeake & Ohio in 1984. C&O successor CSX officially merged it into their system in 1989. CSX continues to operate the route.

Brand/Importer Information: AHM is the initials for Associated Hobby Manufacturers, Inc. The company was founded in 1959 as a reseller of other companies' model railroad components. Initially an HO company, they entered into N Scale in the early 1970's as an importer of products made by Roco in Austria. For N Scale products, AHM apparently contracted to use the exact same molds as were used by Roco to produce early Atlas models. They also contracted with Rivarossi to make locomotives.

When AHM went out of business IHC picked up some of their line. Also, at least one body style was taken over by Eastern Seaboard models.

Manufacturer Information: The company was founded in 1960 by Ing. Heinz Rössler and started with a plastic Minitanks series of military vehicles. After export to the USA became successful, the model line was expanded with model trains in HO scale and the smaller N scale. TT scale was also subsequently added to the product line. The model rail product line covers many European countries including Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Sweden and the Netherlands, and also the USA.

On July 15, 2005 ROCO Modellspielwaren GmbH was declared bankrupt. From July 25 the company continues as Modelleisenbahn GmbH, but still uses the Roco brand and associated logo. On October 1, 2007, distribution of the 'Minitank' product series was assigned to the German model car manufacturer Herpa.

Since February 2008 Modelleisenbahn also owns Fleischmann, which like Roco had gone bankrupt. The two companies continue as separate brands under Modelleisenbahn GmbH, while benefiting from economies of scale through joined development projects, marketing and procurement.

From Wikipedia