Micro-Trains - 31120 - Boxcar, 50 Foot, PS-1 - Atlanta & West Point - 51128

Model Information: This model is based on the mid-1960s Pullman Standard 50 foot boxcar prototype. It has a roofwalk and a single sliding door. In 2019, Micro-trains tweaked this model. Newer releases have a lowered underframe and feature body-mount couplers.

Prototype History: The Pullman Standard or PS-1 design was one of the most popular and was widely used by North American railroads. These boxcars were built beginning in 1947 and share the same basic design, with certain elements such as door size, door style or roof type varying among the different railroads and production years. When production of these cars ceased in 1963, over 100,000 had been produced.

The original PS-1 measured 40 foot in length, but Pullman Standard also offered 50′ and later 60′ boxcars – also with the PS-1 designation.

Road Name History: The A&WP was half of “The West Point Route” linking Atlanta, Georgia with Montgomery and Selma, Alabama. The A&WP covered the route from Atlanta 91 miles west to West Point on the Georgia-Alabama border. The other half of the West Point Route was the Western Railway of Alabama (or WofA for short.) Both West Point Route roads were controlled by the Georgia Railroad since the 19th century. It was common for locomotives of all three roads to be seen on each other’s lines. A&WP was the smallest of the three and had a fleet of just a dozen locomotives. Despite that, operations had a very “mainline” appearance.

The pride of the A&WP steam fleet included a half dozen heavy Mikados for freight and four Pacifics for passenger service. The replaced a fleet of nine 4-6-0’s and a single Mogul out on the road. 0-6-0’s and 0-8-0’s did the switching. The A&WP was fully dieselized in 1952. A&WP’s passenger service claim to fame was the Southern Railway’s Crescent, a New York to New Orleans train that traveled the entire length of the A&WP. This routing (which also included WofA and L&N) was preferred because it was shorter than an all-Southern Railway route and it served the Montgomery and Selma areas. This train ran until 1970. Since A&WP’s parent Georgia Railroad was controlled jointly by L&N and Seaboard Coast Line (previously ACL,) they all gradually adopted the Family Lines image in the 1970s. In 1983, all of the Family Lines roads were combined into Seaboard System.

Brand/Importer Information: Micro-Trains is the brand name used by both Kadee Quality Products and Micro-Trains Line. For a history of the relationship between the brand and the two companies, please consult our Micro-Trains Collector's Guide.

Manufacturer Information: Kadee Quality Products originally got involved in N-Scale by producing a scaled-down version of their successful HO Magne-Matic knuckle coupler system. This coupler was superior to the ubiquitous 'Rapido' style coupler due to two primary factors: superior realistic appearance and the ability to automatically uncouple when stopped over a magnet embedded in a section of track. The success of these couplers in N-Scale quickly translated to the production of trucks, wheels and in 1972 a release of ready-to-run box cars.
In October 1990 Kadee separated in two companies, with the newly created Micro-Trains® Line Co. continuing the Z, Nn3, and N Scale product ranges, with Kadee retaining the HO range.