Arnold - 0386 - Passenger Car, UIC, Type Y - SNCF - 51 87 81-90 332-4

Specific Item Information: Arnold 0386 TEE compartment car 1st class , red, white stripe with inscription 'Le Capitole'. Model: UIC Type Y A9

Prototype History: The UIC (Union International des Chemins de fer) type Y is a type of passenger car defined in UIC bulletin 567 together with UIC type X. Initially ordered by the Italian Ferrovie dello Stato (FS), with 24 manufactured, they have primarily been produced for the French SNCF with 1,327 manufactured from 1963 to 1976.
The East German railways (DR) derived their OSJD/OSShD type B cars to deliver from 1966 to 1970 a new series close to the UIC-Y, and then from 1969 a series of type Y/B 70 that is compatible to UIC-Y standards. These Eastern German cars have been acquired by several railways of Eastern Europe: : Czechoslovakia (ČSD), Poland (PKP), Hungary (MÁV), Bulgaria (BDŽ), Romania (CFR).

• Ferrovie dello Stato (FS): 20 Az (1st class), 1 ABz, 1 Bz, 1 AcBcz and 1 Bcz;
• French National Railway Corporation (SNCF): 185 A9 (1st class), 43 A7D (1st class + Baggage), 53 A4B5 (1st/2nd class), 305 B10 (2nd class), 118 B5Dd2 (2nd class + Baggage), 175 A4c4B5c5x (1st/2nd class sleeper), 448 B9c9x (2nd class sleeper);
• Eastern Germany Railways (DR) - type Y : 22 Age (1st class), 66 ABge (1st/2nd class), 142 Bge (2nd class)
• Czech Railways (ČSD) - type Y/B 70 : 43 Ame (1st class), 60 Bme (2nd class), 7 BDmse (2nd class + Baggage).

With a standard length of 24.50 m (80' 4-9/16")), they are shorter than the UIC-X and UIC-Z types. They are qualified for at least 120 km/h.
The east-German UIC-Y cars have a higher roof than the French and Italian ones.

From Wikipedia (in French)

See also these detailed articles (in Italian) for more information about both the prototypes and the N scale models: UIC-Y and UIC-Y from SNCF.

Road Name History: SNCF (Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français; "National society of French railways" or "French National Railway Company") is France's national state-owned railway company and manages the rail traffic in France and the Principality of Monaco. SNCF operates the country's national rail services, including the TGV, France's high-speed rail network. Its functions include operation of railway services for passengers and freight, and maintenance and signalling of rail infrastructure.

SNCF employs more than 180,000 people in 120 countries around the globe. The railway network consists of about 32,000 km (20,000 mi) of route, of which 1,800 km (1,100 mi) are high-speed lines and 14,500 km (9,000 mi) electrified. About 14,000 trains are operated daily. The company has its headquarters in Saint Denis (93200), near Paris, 2 place aux Etoiles.

In 2010 SNCF was ranked 22nd in France and 214th globally on the Fortune Global 500 list.

It is the main business of the SNCF group, which in 2014 employed 245,763 people and had 27.2 billion € of sales in 120 countries.

From Wikipedia

Brand/Importer Information: Founded in 1906 by Karl Arnold in Nuernberg, K. Arnold & Co. began its life producing tin toys and related items. They produced an extensive line of model ships, doll house items and other toys. In 1935, K. Arnold & Co. hired Max Ernst as their managing director. Ernst, not to be confused with the German realist artist of the same name, was a significant factor in the future of Arnold.

There are several distinct phases of Arnold's model train production. In the period of 1960 - 1962, Arnold marketed the Arnold Rapido 200 product line; this line was very crude yet it also was a sensation because of its much smaller size than TT.

The next phase was from 1963-1967, when the rapido product line begins to swing toward scale representations of the trains. It is during this period that the "Rapido Coupler" comes into production, beginning its widespread use by all model train manufacturers in N-Scale. It was in 1964 that the term "N-Scale" came into use. Between 1968 and 1970, rapido line of trains reached maturity, notably with its turntable and roundhouse. Arnold entered into a business relationship with the U.S. company Revell around 1968, beginning the marketing of Revell Rapido model trains. This relationship was marked by the beginning of production of more accurate North American prototype models by Arnold. This relationship continued for several years, ending in the late 1960s or early 1970s. Arnold continued their expanded production, with new models until the early 1990s.

On Max Ernst's 1976 retirement, Arnold employed perhaps 200 to 250 people, using three facilities in the Nurnberg area. The Company continued under family control until 1995, when Arnold went into bankruptcy and was sold to Rivarossi of Italy. Rivarossi, in turn, also went bankrupt, leading to the sale of all assets to Hornby of the United Kingdom. Production is carried out in China.