The voltmeter car is exactly that: a boxcar that reads track voltage. While the model rolls along, an analog meter on one side of the car shows the voltage reading and a red light atop the car blinks. A high concept, cool!
Ah, but unless you leave the car parked on a powered siding, you’ll need to follow the car as it rolls around to read the voltage.
We ran our sample car around several layouts and used our own voltmeter as well as the indicators on an MTH Z-4000 transformer to compare readings. We noted no significant variation between the voltage readings from the transformer, the voltmeter, and the boxcar.
The voltmeter car’s mobility has a practical side: If you’re trying to find a power drain along the rails, it is handier to push the car along the track than it is to keep reattaching voltmeter alligator clips every few feet.
I loved the car’s “Reddy Kilowatt” decoration. Like Smokey the Bear and Speedy Alka Seltzer, the image of Reddy Kilowatt is one of those reassuring visions from my childhood.
Reddy, for the record, is a trademarked image of Xcel Energy (formerly Northern States Power). He was created in 1926 by Ashton B. Collins Sr. for the Alabama Power Co., and he came to symbolize the electrification of the United States. Reddy has promoted everything from power conservation to nuclear power plant construction.
The operating voltmeter car is a neat gimmick that should sell pretty well. After all, toy trains are supposed to be fun!
