Tangent Scale Models HO 25525-05 Greenville 86′ Quad Plug Door Box Car Norfolk & Western 'Delivery 12-1969 Blue' N&W #861131

A quick synopsis of our era and railroad-specific detail variations include:

• Dimensional accuracy – designed from actual Greenville blueprints and verified with field measurements
• Highly correct “true to life” colors
• “Hyper-Accurate” lettering including exact fonts and lettering placement
• Body shells with overlapping side panels
• EOCC (end of car cushioning) or COCC (center of car cushioning) “near scale” draft gear variations
• Genuine Kadee scale couplers
• Separate flexible rubber air hoses
• Under car brake system variations
• “See through” etched metal end crossover platforms in three possible options: Gypsum, Apex, or Morton
• Side tack board types/sizes and locations
• Twelve (!) prototypically-accurate brake stands (Ajax, 2 Universal versions, 2 Equipco versions, 2 Miner versions, Champion-Peacock, 2 Elcon-National versions, Peacock 850, Klasing 1150)
• Two possible handbrake “brake wheel” options
• Optional 3rd door arm hinge parts to be configured one of three ways
• 70-Ton Barber S-2 “Birdsboro foundry” or 100-Ton Barber S-2-C roller bearing truck options
• 33” or 36” wheels, as applicable to these 70T/100T models
• Truck brake beam part, accurate for these 1969-1970 built Greenville production cars
• Three “rotating” roller bearing truck cap options
• Recommended age 14 years and older

Prototype Information:

During the 1960s, the most radical freight car designs employed the extreme height clearances offered by Plate F car designs. In 1964, no car type articulated this extreme more than the 86-foot, purpose-built “Auto Parts” boxcars. They became fixtures on the rails all over North American mainlines, riding hot trains to deliver components vital to the productivity of auto plants. While several car builders offered 86’ auto parts boxcars, the most prolific builder was Greenville Steel Car Company of Greenville PA. Greenville produced their Quad Door design in the 1969-1970 period to meet the expanding needs of GM and Oldsmobile production facilities. Like the Double Door cars, these Quad Door cars were acquired by many railroads, and they were assigned to pools where cars from multiple railroads served a specific shipper.

Our September 2024 release includes six new paint schemes.  We have been getting a lot of requests for additional GM Greenville 86’ Quad Door box cars, so we are very pleased to release these new paint schemes. Keep in mind that these were pooled boxcars which means you might consider buying cars in a variety of road names. These cars get around — For example: Prototype photos show B&O cars passing through Warm Springs, CA and Ontario Canada, a UP car on the TRRA St. Louis, MO Riverfront Wharf Street trackage, an N&W car in Kansas City, MO, a CN car in Texas, and DTS cars everywhere (Birmingham MI, Buffalo NY, Chicago IL, Erie PA, Toledo OH, Winchester IN… you get the idea)! We have photos to prove it all. And these are just a few snapshots. GM and Oldsmobile auto parts pools provide many interesting modeling opportunities for stampings and parts distribution.