48556 - Rapido Trains HO GE 44 Tonner Middletown & New Jersey: #2 DCC/Sound

48556 - Rapido Trains HO GE 44 Tonner Middletown & New Jersey: #2 DCC/Sound

Pre-order price of $369.95 will be invoiced when product arrives at The Train Exchange.

44 Tons of Railroad Motive Power — The Lightweight Champion

Rapido Trains is pleased to announce another all-new group of HO scale General Electric 44-Ton diesel locomotives! Our first run sold out immediately and these new roads are sure to do the same.

Also commonly called “44-tonners,” these locomotives’ compact design was driven by a 1937 labor agreement with the railroad unions that specified that all locomotives over 90,000 pounds required the use of a fireman. At a target weight of 44-tons (88,000 pounds), these diesels allowed the railroads to use only an engineer, thus saving crew costs. They were perfect for light switching, industrial and shop use.

In our new run, Rapido is offering two additional versions that have never been available before in plastic: Phase Ia/b (with side-sill mounted steps) and Phase II. This is in addition to the Phase Ic, Phase III and IV models produced in our first run, allowing us to produce a wide variety of unique and accurate models. 

The Rapido Trains HO Scale 44 Tonner Locomotive features:

• Multiple phases and detail variations
• Phase Ia/b and II (never offered before in plastic!)
• Phase Ic (with and without lighted hood side number boards)
• Phase III with positionable top hood hatches
• Phase IV
• Pacific Electric includes the trolley poles!
• Heavy, die-cast chassis and fuel tank
• Correct fuel tank skirting in two styles
• Separately applied door latches
• Full cab interior
• Photo-etched cab steps
• Semi-scale metal knuckle couplers
• Smooth running, strong coreless motor with dual flywheels
• DC models are DCC ready with NEXT-18 decoder socket and speakers
• DCC models are sound equipped with ESU decoders and sounds
• MoPower capacitor system for uninterrupted DCC power

Rapido Can't Be Phased...

Any locomotive that was in production for as long as the 44 tonner will undergo a number of construction changes and upgrades that can impact their appearance. Enthusiasts often will term these changes as “Phases.” The manufacturers rarely differentiated between them, treating them simply as running changes.

Rapido is now offering FIVE different phases of the GE 44 tonner. Some of the differences are obvious, some more subtle. Here is a quick overview of the major differences between them.