Bowser - 37683 - Covered Hopper, 3-Bay, Cylindrical - Boraxo - 23468

Model Information: This model was developed by Delaware Valley Freight Car Corporation. The tooling was purchased by Bowser in 1998 and has been re-released several times since it was acquired. The body style has also been sold by Eastern Seaboard Models under the ESM branding. The model is available in both 3-Bay and 6-Bay variations.

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 These cylindrical hoppers were superseded on ACF’s production line by the Centerflow in 1964, a revolutionary design that influenced later covered hopper types.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: Boraxo began as a product of the former Pacific Coast Borax Company (later bought by U.S. Borax), and became known as one of the sponsoring products of the long-running radio and television Western, Death Valley Days. While future President Ronald Reagan was host of this program, he frequently did commercials for it, including one at his ranch involving his family.

Until about 2010, the product was sold in a cylindrical, foil lined, paper tube can having a rust-resistant bottom. The bottom had a white, paint-like coating. This worked well such that a container left on a counter that regularly got wet never rusted or left a ring. Prior to this packaging, during the 1960s, the product was packaged in a distinctively-shaped seamed steel can with upright vertical sides and an oval cross-section, with a small rotating non-removable steel cap centered on top which had a small offset oval hole facing upward, which allowed the product to be poured when the cap's hole was turned to align with a hole beneath it and the can was inverted and shaken. Besides the distinctive 20-mule team logo, the can bore a three-step instructional narrative which concluded with the words "Your hands are now smooth, soft, and beautifully clean."

Brand/Importer Information: On May 1, 1961, Bowser was purchased by Lewis and Shirlee English and moved from Redlands, CA to their basement in Muncy, PA. The original Bowser Manufacturing Co first advertised in the model railroad magazines in November 1948. At that time, the company had only one (HO Scale) engine, the Mountain, which had a cast brass boiler that is no longer available. It was sometime later that Bowser (Redlands) developed the NYC K-11 and the UP Challenger. The molds were made by K. Wenzlaff who introduced himself at the MRIA Show in Pasadena, CA in 1985 These two locomotives are still current production.

Bowser entered into N Scale in 1998 with their acquisition of the Delaware Valley Car Company, a manufacturer of N scale freight cars.