48562 - Rapido Trains HO GE 44 Tonner Pacific Electric Railway: #1653 DCC/Sound
Rapido
48561 - Rapido Trains HO GE 44 Tonner Pacific Electric Railway: #1652 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:
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.