Rapido Trains Inc HO 84505 GE EP-5 with DCC/ESU LokSound New Haven Railroad 'Delivery with Vents' NH #375

Description

Please note picture is representative of the item but may not be same road number. Always refer to product description for actual product details.

Rapido Trains Inc HO 84505 GE EP-5 with DCC/ESU LokSound New Haven Railroad 'Delivery with Vents' NH #375

Rapido Trains Inc. is pleased to introduce the first mass-produced HO model of the New Haven Railroad’s classic EP-5 electric locomotive. The New Haven’s EP-5s are one of the most famous electric locomotives in North America. Built by General Electric, the ten-strong class was delivered in 1955 dressed in the colorful McGinnis red, white and black paint scheme with large ‘NH’ logos on the sides and noses.

The EP-5s were state-of-the-art for their time, being equipped with Ignitron rectifiers to convert the AC power from the overhead wires to DC for use in the locomotive’s traction motors. They also carried third rail shoes and DC auxiliaries to allow operation on the third-rail system into New York City’s Grand Central Terminal. Crammed full of electronic equipment, the locos weighed 174 tons. The EP-5s were put into service in the New Haven’s electrified Shore Line route between New York and New Haven, Connecticut. They very quickly earned the nickname ‘Jets’ because of the sound of the blower motors need to cool the Ignitron rectifiers.

Like any locomotive in regular service, the ‘Jets’ were modified over their service lives. The first modifications came shortly after delivery when large vents were added to the sides of the otherwise smooth bodies. These provided extra cooling for the mass of electrical components within the cramped carbody. The pantograph shoes were modified from a double shoe design to a single shoe design at about the same time.

In the early 1960s the units had FRA-mandated nose grabs and walkways applied. At about this time the paint scheme was modified slightly with the nose ‘NH’ being reduced in size and the nose road number increased in size and moved onto the nose from its previous location at the top of the anticlimber. Side skirts around the fuel and water tanks were also removed at about this time. Several EP-5s continued in service after the Penn Central merger in 1969 while others were stored, with the new class designation E40. The PC transferred some units to the former PRR territory where they were used in freight service. The last ‘Jet’ was retired in 1977, shortly after the formation of Conrail. All ten units built were scrapped.

Developed with help from the New Haven Railroad Technical and Historical Association and noted EP-5 expert, Rick Abramson, Rapido’s HO model features a full range of detail options that will allow accurate depictions of the EP-5 throughout its service life. Both as-built units with smooth side panels and modified units with the large vent openings will be offered. Double and single pantograph shoes will be available and the later nose grabs and platforms will be provided as a user-installed option where appropriate

Rapido HO EP-5 Features:

• Accurately scaled from prototype blueprints
• Period-correct detail options, including carbody, pantograph and hardware variations
• Accurate paint and lettering
• Several road numbers per paint scheme, where applicable
• Full cab interior
• New Haven delivery and repaint schemes, repainted units have smaller NH logo on nose and re-positioned/larger nose road number
• Directional operating pantographs, sound models only
• DC/Silent or DC/DCC/Sound versions available
• DC/DCC/Sound version features an ESU Loksound decoder with accurate ‘Jet’ recordings**
• Factory-installed MacDonald-Cartier metal couplers

**Lombard Hobbies Recommendation - As modelers ourselves we highly recommend ONLY running DCC on DCC systems and DC on DC systems, regardless of 'Dual-Mode' capability. This gives optimum performance and safeguards the unit from possible damage from running on a different system than originally intended and from any inexperienced operator errors. 

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