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Full Throttle - FT/B-9003-1 - Reefer, Ice, Wood - Pacific Fruit Express - 2-Pack

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Z Scale - Full Throttle - FT/B-9003-1 - Reefer, Ice, Wood - Pacific Fruit Express - 2-Pack Image Courtesy of WDW Full Throttle
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BrandFull Throttle
Stock NumberFT/B-9003-1
Original Retail Price$54.00
ManufacturerFull Throttle
Body StyleFull Throttle 34' Woodside Reefer
Prototype VehicleReefer, Ice, Wood (Details)
Road or Company NamePacific Fruit Express (Details)
Reporting MarksPFE
Road or Reporting Number2-Pack
Paint Color(s)Yellow with Red Roof
Print Color(s)Black, Red & White
Paint SchemeSouthern Pacific Lines
Coupler TypeFull Throttle
Wheel TypeChemically Blackened Metal
MultipackYes
Multipack Count2
Multipack ID NumberFT/B-9003-1
Release Date2017-08-01
Item CategoryRolling Stock (Freight)
Model TypeReefer
Model Subtype34-Foot
Model VarietyWood
RegionNorth America
Prototype EraNA Era II: Late Steam (1901 - 1938)



Specific Item Information: Road Numbers: PFE 34426 & 34473
Model Information: By the end of the 19th Century, the industrial revolution in the United States was in full swing: textile mills, food processing, medicine, transportation, and of course, steel. But, as the country progressed into the 20th Century, what were railroads to do with the abundant railcars left over from earlier times? The invention of the one-piece cast sideframe Bettendorf-type truck with its integral journal boxes was a huge step forward. Truss rods were eliminated as solid steel centerbeams came into widespread use. And, by the 1930s, hand brakes would give way to modern air-brake systems.
Prototype History:
During the mid-19th century, attempts were made to ship agricultural products by rail. As early as 1842, the Western Railroad of Massachusetts was reported in the June 15 edition of the Boston Traveler to be experimenting with innovative freight car designs capable of carrying all types of perishable goods without spoilage. The first refrigerated boxcar entered service in June 1851, on the Northern Railroad (New York) (or NRNY, which later became part of the Rutland Railroad). This "icebox on wheels" was a limited success since it was only functional in cold weather. That same year, the Ogdensburg and Lake Champlain Railroad (O&LC) began shipping butter to Boston in purpose-built freight cars, utilizing ice for cooling.

The first consignment of dressed beef left the Chicago stock yards in 1857 in ordinary boxcars retrofitted with bins filled with ice. Placing meat directly against ice resulted in discoloration and affected the taste, proving to be impractical. During the same period Swift experimented by moving cut meat using a string of ten boxcars with their doors removed, and made a few test shipments to New York during the winter months over the Grand Trunk Railway (GTR). The method proved too limited to be practical.

The use of ice to refrigerate and preserve food dates back to prehistoric times. Through the ages, the seasonal harvesting of snow and ice was a regular practice of many cultures. China, Greece, and Rome stored ice and snow in caves, dugouts or ice houses lined with straw or other insulating materials. Rationing of the ice allowed the preservation of foods during hot periods, a practice that was successfully employed for centuries. For most of the 19th century, natural ice (harvested from ponds and lakes) was used to supply refrigerator cars. At high altitudes or northern latitudes, one foot tanks were often filled with water and allowed to freeze. Ice was typically cut into blocks during the winter and stored in insulated warehouses for later use, with sawdust and hay packed around the ice blocks to provide additional insulation. A late-19th century wood-bodied reefer required re-icing every 250 miles (400 km) to 400 miles (640 km).

From Wikipedia
Road Name History:
Pacific Fruit Express (reporting mark PFE) was an American railroad refrigerator car leasing company that at one point was the largest refrigerator car operator in the world. The company was founded on December 7, 1906 as a joint venture between the Union Pacific and Southern Pacific railroads. It began operation on October 1, 1907, with a fleet of 6,600 refrigerator cars built by the American Car and Foundry Company (ACF).

In 1923, the Western Pacific Railroad joined the venture by leasing its own, brand new fleet of 2775 reefers to PFE. They were painted in standard PFE colors with only WP heralds on the cars instead of the paired UP-SP markings. The WP cars were all retired by the late 1950s, among the last wooden reefers in PFE's fleet. WP ended its partnership with PFE in late 1967 and joined Fruit Growers Express instead.

PFE's assets were divided between the UP and SP when the company was split on April 1, 1978. It is now a UP subsidiary.
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!
Item created by: CNW400 on 2021-08-17 11:39:01. Last edited by gdm on 2021-08-17 13:43:59

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