Walthers HO Empire Builder ACF coach passenger carPrototype history. Great Northern 60-seat coaches nos. 1209 through 1214 were built by ACF between October 1950 and March 1951. Five of the six cars were assigned to the Empire Builder and had the train name on their letterboards. The sixth, car no. 1214, was used on the Western Star, so it was also painted Omaha Orange and Pullman Green but had “Great Northern” on its letterboards instead of the Empire Builder name.
One 60-seat coach was assigned to each of the five Empire Builder trains that provided daily service between Chicago and the West Coast (four trainsets were owned by GN, while the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy owned the fifth, including one of these cars). These coaches were intended for passengers traveling only short distances on the Empire Builder’s 2,200-plus-mile route, so the seats were spaced closer together.
The 60-seat coach features appliqué sides that press fit on a core body, similar to other recent Walthers HO scale passenger cars. Its movable diaphragms touch only when the slack is pushed in.
The car has a tan injection-molded-plastic interior and vesti-bule bulkhead. Modelers may want to paint the bulkhead’s vestibule side to match the exterior. According to a GN press release on the Empire Builder in our files, the prototype interiors had pastel green walls and seats and a cream ceiling.
The car’s dimensions and floor-plan match drawings in Charles A. Rudisel’s book Burlington Northern Passenger Cars (C.A.R. Publications, 1974, out of print).
I was pleased to find that the Omaha Orange and Pullman Green coach had the original skirting, while the Big Sky Blue car didn’t. I was unable to find the exact date the skirting was removed, but a photo in David Hickcox’s book GN Color Guide to Freight and Passenger Equipment (Morning Sun Books, 1995) shows a skirtless coach no. 1213 in July 1964.
A number of factory-applied underbody details are included on the model (see photo above), such as a Trane air conditioner condenser, Waukesha fuel tank, battery boxes, and junction boxes, to name just a few. The model has no brake piping or rigging.
The 60-seat coach has die-cast metal General Steel Casting 41-N-11 trucks with 36″-diameter RP-25 metal wheelsets mounted on plastic axles. Two of the four wheelsets were slightly out of gauge, but this was easily adjusted by twisting them with finger pressure. A dab of cyanoacrylate adhesive at the wheel-axle joint held the wheelsets in gauge.
Though not glaringly obvious, the truck wheelbase is too long. The model’s axles are on 9′-0″ centers, while the prototype trucks had 8′-6″ centers.
Great Northern modelers have been waiting a long time for accurate mass-produced Empire Builder equipment, and these new passenger cars will begin to fill the need. With the orange and green and Big Sky Blue schemes offered, you can model the Builder as it appeared in the 1950s or late 1960s.
Price: $44.98
Manufacturer
Wm. K. Walthers, Inc.
P.O. Box 3039
Milwaukee, WI 53201
www.walthers.com
Description: Plastic ready-to-run passenger car
Road names: GN Omaha Orange and Pullman Green,GN Big Sky Blue and white, and Burlington Northern Cascade Green and black
Features
McHenry magnetic knuckle couplers
Minimum radius, 24″
Modeler-applied wire grab irons and stirrup steps
Movable diaphragms
Removable roof
Weight: 7 ounces (½ ounce too heavy)
My wife was born and raised in Cut Bank, MT and hence an avid fan of the GN. The "Builder" is her favorite train. I am in the process of putting together an HO "Builder" for her. These new Walthers cars are absolutely beautiful, with such elegant paint schemes and fine detail that we "Builder" builders are fortunate that they are not sold in jewelry stores. Way to go Walthers!
I've ordered enough cars to do the Builder east of Spokane (15 cars and 4 locomotives) and have so far received the RPO and coach. This makes my third Empire Builder, the first assembled from mostly Soho cars in the 70s and a second train from Challenger. The first was unpainted with no interiors, but I got it to run fairly well. The second has solid brass diaphragms with extremely stiffly mounted trucks and so won't run well nor can it be close coupled without a lot of work. I wanted a train that will run on our club layout and the first two Walthers cars do this even though the trucks are incorrect. They aren't obvious being black against a black underframe. The yellow striping should be similar to the interior color since the prototype was imitation gold. I removed and reoriented the two vents to trail in the wind and am working on how to paint the seats. Those are the negatives, on the positive side, the cars are very well done and certainly much more affordable than my two brass versions. The "car of the month club" approach could add up to a lot of shipping if not for the fact that several dealers have opted to provide the cars for a package price that includes free shipping if one is willing to wait until two or more cars are available before being shipped. Overall, I'm pleased with what I've seen so far and feel the price makes this train affordable to a lot more modelers.
I MODEL N-SCALE, BUT HAVE A COUPLE OF FRIENDS IN HO, THAT HAVE ORDERED THE NEW EMPIRE BUILDER. THE WORKMANSHIP IS VERY GOOD, AND DETAILS ARE GREAT. I HAVE THE N-SCALE (KATO)VERSION OF THE BUILDER. BUT THE H0 GUYS ARE LUCKY, THEY CAN GET IT IN THE BIG SKY OR BN GREEN. VERY NICE MODEL.
I have three brass Empire Builders. The first is a collection of Soho and Oriental Limited Cars. Though the OL cars are fairly good, the Soho cars are rather crude. Plus with these cars there are no interiors and they are unpainted. Not a biggie for myself for I enjoy painting and detailing. My other two EB's are from Shoreham Shops Limited. I compared the Walthers EB cars to the SSL models for general correctness and stance. I must say other than some small details that the brass car had, the Walthers cars are extremely well done. Details that stand out as incorrect on the Walthers cars are the exhaust vent is pointed the wrong direction and the trucks. Small things like an unpainted interior are minor. The biggest problem I found with the cars is the colors on the Omaha Orange and Pullman Green Cars. Comparing the cars to paint chips in Great Northern Railway Historical Society reference sheet number 27, I came up with the following discrepencies. The orange is much too dark, the green is too light, and the Dulux Gold stripes are too bright yellow. When put side to side with a brass SSL model which features prototypically correct colors the poor color selection of the Walthers car is glaring. I will give Walthers a good grade on the colors of the GN Big Sky Blue cars. The blue and grey though not totally correct to the GNRHS chips is close enough. Too date I would give the Walthers BSB cars the best grade as to coming closest to GN BSB of any past effort from model manufacturers. The Burlington Northern Cars are good, except the hockey stick white window band is a little bit too narrow. But this I would consider a picky detail compared to the quality of the model. These are fantasic cars and make assembling an AFFORDABLE Great Northern Empire Builder a reality. I give Walthers a grade of four out of five stars. If the color selection on the Orange and Green had been closer to prototype these cars would have been a prefect five for five. Still I must say good work Walthers!
Great looking cars with great features- but unless the retail price is well under the MSRP, this car is well below the standard set by the Rapido models and is only slightly above the old Rivarossi/AHM models with interiors….and both of these lines can be had for well under $45. I love the looks of these models and I applaud Walthers continued efforts in their passenger car models…but look at the competition.