Full Throttle - FT-1049-2 - Covered Hopper, 3-Bay, Cylindrical - Maypo - 2-Pack

Specific Item Information: Road Numbers: SHPX 17473 & 17476

Model Information: After WWII, US railroads were increasingly called upon to haul new and unique "modern" products over long distances. In response, American Car and Foundry (ACF) designed a tank-type covered hopper car. The cylindrical shape created a better weight/volume ratio; plus, the elimination of interior ledges, combined with hatches and outlets placed along a center-line, led to ACF's trademark "Center Flow" hoppers. Through the 1960s the Cylindricals became omnipresent on our nation's railroads, with many styles of hatches and outlets devised according to needs. Because the cars were compartmented, various different loads could be carried in a single unit, and some had aluminum construction to further reduce weight. Here was a "Freight Car for the Future," ready to transport sugar, cement, sand, salt, fertilizers, many types of grains, coke, starch, feeds, chemicals and plastics!

Prototype History: ACF introduced their roundish cylindrical hoppers in the early 1960s. The cars differed greatly from the ribbed sided hoppers of the era. They have been made in 3-bay and 6-bay variations. These cylindrical hoppers were superseded on ACF’s production line by the Centerflow in 1964, a revolutionary design that influenced later covered hopper types. In the late 60s or early 70s Canada came out with 4-bay covered hoppers that appear to be derived from ACF’s pre-Centerflow cylindrical hoppers. These cars were used by CN, CP and various smaller Canadian shippers. There is some question as to why the Canadian builder based their design off the older cylindrical and not ACF’s newer Centerflow. It was likely a patent issue and copying it could have triggered legal action against the Canadian builders. There are also certain structural design differences between the cylindrical and centerflow cars and perhaps the decision to copy the cylindrical was based on the greater volume capacity of the cylindrical design.

Road Name History: The Maltex Company marketed Maltex Cereal, a combination of toasted wheat and malted barley, for years. It developed Maypo maple-flavored hot oat cereal in 1950, but sales remained minuscule in comparison to its competitors. At the time of the "I Want My Maypo" ad, Maltex became a subsidiary of Connecticut-based Heublein Inc. When the brand was not selling well, Maypo advertisers decided to push the product very heavily using advertising. The result was the famous Maypo commercial featuring the character 'Marky Maypo.'

The black and white animated commercial was sixty seconds long. The setting was a breakfast table with Uncle Ralph trying to get his nephew, Marky, to eat his new 'surprise' cereal. However, Marky seems more interested in wearing his cowboy hat than eating the oatmeal. The frustrated Uncle grabbed the hat from Marky, who demanded it back, refusing that he wouldn't eat the oatmeal otherwise. Then, the Uncle resorts to pretending that a spoonful of Maypo is an airplane and Marky's mouth is the hangar, but accidentally puts the spoon in his own mouth, and liked the taste. Marky then grabbed a spoonful of Maypo and ate it greedily. As the uncle then eagerly ate the rest of the oatmeal, Marky yelled "I Want My Maypo!"

The commercial would not only turn Marky Maypo into a household name, but would also produce phenomenal increases in sales of Maypo cereal. Sponsor Magazine reported that the new advertising campaign led to sales increases, "an average of 78 percent . . . and as high as 186 percent in some markets." The ad also led to a new package design that featured Marky prominently as a new logo.

From Wikipedia

Brand/Importer Information: Greetings, I'm Will, a Fine Arts graduate of Kutztown University in Pennsylvania who grew up in the Delaware Valley. I worked for 30 years with the Pennsylvania German Folklife Society. For ten years I had a permanent booth, each month showing my "PA Dutch" wares, at the country's largest under-roof Antique Market in Atlanta, GA. When Mom and Dad started to have health issues, I was forced to give up the nomadic life, but during my travels I came to love Z Scale Model Railroading, as I could easily take small layouts with me to the motels and play with my trains in the evenings!
Now that Mom and Dad are gone, and after many years of providing care for my "Pappy" in Florida, I find myself a homebody in the "Sunshine State" with a neat little business, supplying interested Z hobbyists with rolling stock and unique quality products!