Fox Valley - 83210-11 - Open Hopper, 5-Bay Trinity RD IV - Alliant Energy - 7103

Specific Item Information: A different report number is shown in the image.

Model Information: This Fox Valley model was actually designed by Fox Valley and not acquired from another vendor such as their 5-Bay Ortner model. It is an excellent model; it has good detail and excellent printing. The body mount couplers and high quality chemically blackened low-profile wheels are both nice features. Also, as expected, they have the world-class Fox Valley blackened metal wheels, known to have accurate proportions as well as running smoothly and relatively quietly.

The one thing they got wrong is the cheesy load. It looks like they studied the loads from the Red Caboose/Precision Masters models that they acquired and decided "well if modelers will settle for that, I guess we don't need to work very hard to make something better". And that is what they got - something that is not better, but should be. Fortunately with a little patience you can remove the factory loads and put your own in. They are not glued in.

Prototype History: The 1960s brought about a growth in car size (and capacity). Railroads that transported coal moved away from the older 2-bay 55-ton USRA standard to newer railcars. The Trinity RD IV (or RD-4) has a 4200 cubic foot capacity and is principally used for coal. They are 53 foot 1inches long. And have been used by power plants as well as commercial railroads. The cars are recognizable from their alternating six-thin-and-five-thick exterior post pattern. Information about this railcar can be found in the Simmons-Boardman 1997 Car & Locomotive Cyclopedia.

Road Name History: Alliant Energy Corporation is a public utility holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. Alliant Energy's two regulated utilities include Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL) and Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL). IPL started in 1925 as the Interstate Power Company (IPC) and which was a consolidation of several small utility companies scattered across northern Iowa and southern Minnesota. IPC merged or consolidated with several other Iowa-based utilities before forming IPL, which was later merged with WPL.

IPC expanded greatly in the late 1920s to include operations in Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Manitoba (Canada). One of the largest purchases in the late 1920s was the purchase of what became its northern Minnesota territory from the Wilbur Foshay interests. Also was widely carried along CSX Rail lines.

In the 1930s and 1940s, the effects of the Depression and passage of laws to regulate utility operations at the state and federal level had an effect on IPC as well as its neighbors. In Iowa, the legislature passed laws making it easier for cities to establish municipal utilities (and indeed, there are over 100 municipal utilities in Iowa today). By 1940, the state of Nebraska had passed laws that forced all investor-owned utilities in that state to sell their operations to one of several "public power districts" operating in that state.

From 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.