Comments: This N scale 85-foot piggyback car from Trainworx represents one of the early long flatcars that were introduced in the 1960s to haul a pair of 40-foot trailers. Designed for circus-style loading, these cars included drop-down loading ramps at each end so trailers could be backed into position and locked onto the pedestals for train movement. It represents a prototype built by the Pullman-Standard Co. in the early 1960s. The cars were built with either straight or fish-belly side sills. Some of the long-serving cars were rebuilt in the 1980s.
Our review sample is a superbly built model with a well-detailed plastic deck that includes a pair of collapsible hitches (non-operating), end ramps, and container pedestal openings. The Trainworx model matches the prototype’s major dimensions that are listed in the January 1964 Official Railway Equipment Register.
The model’s underbody is a zinc alloy casting that provides most of the model’s 1 ounce weight, which is .45 ounce too light, according to National Model Railroad Association Recommended Practice 20.1.
The Magne-Matic knuckle couplers are body-mounted at the correct height per NMRA standards, and the trucks are fitted with Fox Valley metal wheel sets that are in gauge. The plastic sideframes feature molded detail, including non-operating roller bearings. The underbody is detailed with a separate air reservoir, brake gear, air lines, deck supports, retainer valve rod, and stirrup steps on all four corners.
Our review sample is accurately decorated for Rock Island no. 93223, one of 50 PS 85-foot flatcars delivered to the railroad in 1962. The printing is straight and matches the as-built paint scheme of the prototype. The small stencils such as “hi-way trailer loading only” are legible under magnification.
Trainworx also sells N scale 40-foot trailers in several road names and versions that would be appropriate for the PS flatcar. Check the Trainworx website for a full listing.
This N scale flatcar is an accurate model of its long-serving intermodal prototype.
