A workhorse New York Central heavyweight coach is now available in N scale from Micro-Trains Line Co. Our review sample is accurately detailed and decorated for NYC coach no. 2347.
The prototype no. 2347 was one of 40 78-foot steel heavyweight coaches built by American Car & Foundry for the NYC in 1926. The cars were equipped with air-conditioning equipment during the 1930s. By the 1950s some cars were used in commuter trains. Those that lasted into the 1960s ended their careers in MOW service or had their center windows blanked out for use as rider cars.
The model’s dimensions are within scale inches of prototype builder’s diagrams. Because model couplers are oversize, the overall length between coupler pulling faces is 2 scale feet longer than the prototype. The plastic body shell features sharply molded rivet seams and other details.
Our review sample is detailed and decorated as no. 2347 appeared in the late 1930s to 1940s. The car body is smoothly painted in Pullman Green with black roof, underbody, and trucks. The gold lettering is the appropriate sans serif “Gothic” style font adopted by the Central at that time. Around 1940 lettering on NYC passenger cars would be changed to a yellow, imitation gold color. The “C” under the road number designates that the car has air conditioning equipment.
The press-fit roof is easy to remove by running a fingernail between the seam that separates the roof from the body. Lifting off the roof reveals a one-piece interior molded in blue-green plastic, with seats and partitions. Passenger figures could be easily added to the simplified interior.
The underbody features the correct fish-belly center sill with molded equipment boxes and brake gear detail. Like the prototype, our NYC sample runs on four-wheel trucks with the correct 8 scale foot wheelbase. The plastic truck sideframes also matched prototype photos, including well-defined brake shoes, leaf springs, and journal details.
The low-profile plastic wheels are in gauge and had no problem operating on code 55 rail. The wheels are also the correct 36 scale inches in diameter. The passenger car easily rounded an 11″ or larger curve radius.
The car weighs 1.2 ounces, which is about .1 ounce lighter than National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) Recommended Practice 20.1. The Magne-Matic couplers are body-mounted at the correct height per NMRA standards and all the wheelsets are in gauge.
Micro-Trains has also released versions of the 78-foot heavyweight coach with six-wheel trucks in road names that include Canadian Pacific Ry., Great Northern Ry., and Pennsylvania RR.
With its continuing release of various heavyweight car types, Micro Trains Line makes it easy for N scalers to model passenger traffic in the steam and steam-to-diesel transition era.
Price: $29.95
Manufacturer
Micro-Trains Line Co.
351 Rogue River Parkway
Talent, OR 97540
www.micro-trains.com
Era: 1920s to 1960s (late 1930s to 1940s as decorated)
Road name: New York Central
