NEW YORK 4-6-4 HUDSON " EMPIRE STATE EXPRESS " LOCO PROTO 3 SOUND MTH- HO Scale

Description: MTH HO ScaleREADY-TO_RUN 4-6-4 " HUDSON " Steam Engine" EMPIRE STATE EXPRESS "DRYFUSS STREMLINEDw/ Proto - Sound 3.0 -- PASSENGER Sation Sounds and Smoke This is a DCC/DCS POWEREDOUT - OF - PRODUCTION Locomotive Lettered for the:NEW YORK CENTRAL Featuring the " EMPIRE STATE EXPRESS " LOGO Paint Scheme The unit is highly detailedFEATURES:Die-Cast Boiler and Tender BodyDie-Cast Metal ChassisDie-Cast Truck SidesAuthentic Paint Scheme & Cab NumbersRP-25 Metal Wheels Mounted On Metal AxlesConstant Voltage HeadlightPrototypical Rule 17 LightingDetailed Truck SidesDetailed Cab InteriorPowerful Balanced 12-Volt 5-Pole Precision Skew-Wound Flywheel Equipped MotorWireless Drawbar w/Close Coupling Option(2) Kadee Compatible Scale CouplersMetal HandrailsDecorative Metal WhistleSprung Drive WheelsSynchronized Puffing ProtoSmoker SystemLocomotive Speed ControlLocomotive Cab To Tender Deck PlateDetailed Tender UndercarriageReal Coal LoadOperating Tender Back-up LightInterchangeable Traction Tire-Equipped Drive WheelsOn-Board DCC ReceiverOperates On Code 70, 83, & 100 Rail CurvesProto-Sound 3.0 equipped locomotives can be controlled in command mode with any DCC compliant command control system. While the user won't have access to all of the incredible features of Proto-Sound 3.0, independent control over the locomotive is possible. This means you can continue to use your existing DCC controller to independently control your other DCC equipped locomotives in addition to your Proto-Sound 3.0 locomotive on the same track at the same time. When using a DCC controller, the following Proto-Sound 3.0 locomotive features are accessible: (F0) Headlight on/off(F1) Bell on/off(F2) Whistle/Horn on/off(F3) Start-up/Shut-down(F4) PFA initiate and advance(F5) Cab Light on/off(F6) Engine Sounds on/off(F7) Volume low, med, high, off(F8) Smoke on/off(F9) Forward Signal Sound(F10) Reverse Signal Sound(F11) Coupler Slack Sound(F12) Grade Crossing(F13) One-Shot Doppler on/off(F14) Extended Start Up(F15) Extended Shut Down(F16) Labor Chuff(F17) Drift Chuff(F18) Smoke Volume low, med, high(F19) Single short whistle toot(F20) Coupler Close(F21) Feature Reset(F22) Idle Sequence 1(F23) Idle Sequence 2(F24) Idle Sequence 3(F25) Idle Sequence 4(F26) Brakes auto/off(F27) Cab Chatter auto/off(F28) Clickety-Clack auto/offProto-Sound 3.0 With The Digital Command System Featuring: Passenger Station Proto-EffectsUnit Measures:13 1/2" x 1 1/2" x 2 1/8"Operates On 18" Radius Curves OVERVIEW:Before it was eclipsed by the Twentieth Century Limited, the Empire State Express was the New York Central's flagship passenger run. In 1893, it was the Empire State Express, led by a hot-rod 4-4-0 with outlandishly large drivers, that became the first man-made vehicle to exceed 100 mph and made the New York Central famous around the world. Beyond the record-setting run, the Empire State Express gained recognition as a pioneer in high-speed rail service on its New York-Buffalo-Cleveland route. Scientific American noted in 1898 that the Empire State Express "opened the present remarkable era of fast, long distance express trains. [It] will always figure conspicuously in the annals of the world's railroads as being the first to maintain a regular schedule speed of over 52 miles an hour for an unprecedented distance and for runs of unprecedented length between stops."But by the Roaring Twenties, most high-class rail travel was by Pullman, and coach trains on daytime runs, like the Empire State Express, were often seen as a less desirable way to travel. High-quality coach travel made a comeback during the Depression, however, as railroads sought to attract customers by offering less-expensive fares combined with upgraded amenities. So it was that on December 7, 1941, with much fanfare, the New York Central launched a newly equipped Empire State Express with two Henry-Dreyfus-styled Hudsons and gleaming, streamlined Budd-built train sets. Passengers on the inaugural run were surprised at the scarcity of trackside observers - until they heard about the event halfway around the world that had overshadowed all other news that December Sunday.The 1941 ESE was a train with one foot in the past and the other in the future. Its reserved-seat, stainless steel Budd coaches and parlor cars presaged the postwar streamliners, America's last hurrah of luxury passenger travel. But its two specially styled Hudsons, Nos. 5426 and 5429, were clearly a bridge - albeit a beautiful one - between a dying technology and cars that belonged behind a diesel. Designer Henry Dreyfus blended the stainless fluting of Budd's streamliners with his design for the 1938 Twentieth Century Hudson's, arguably among the best-looking streamlined steamers ever built. After the war, however, more powerful Niagara's bumped the ESE Hudson's to lesser trains, and by 1949 their streamlining had been removed.Relive the brief but glorious era of streamlined steam on the Water Level Route with these superbly detailed locomotives. With their fully featured sound systems, Empire State Express passenger station announcements, and ability to start your train so smoothly you won't spill a drop of water in the diner, we believe these are surely the best HO models of these Hudson's ever built.Hudson background:While its competitors needed monstrous engines to conquer mountain ranges, the New York Central did not. Its Water Level Route from New York City to Chicago was a nearly level raceway built along rivers and the Lake Erie shoreline, and the Central's main line steam engines were racehorses bred for speed on that route. By the early 1930s, the NYC relied on two locomotives for premier services: the 4-6-4 Hudson for its Great Steel Fleet of passenger trains and the nation's largest stable of 4-8-2s for fast freight. Although the 4-8-2 was labeled a Mountain on any other railroad, that would hardly do on the Water Level Route, so the Central named its engines Mohawks after one of the rivers its rails followed.4-6-4 HUDSONsUnder the Whyte notation for the classification of locomotives, 4-6-4 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels and four trailing wheels. In France where the type was first used, it is known as the Baltic while it became known as the Hudson in most of North America.[1] OverviewTender locomotivesThe 4-6-4 tender locomotive was first introduced in 1911 and throughout the 1920s to 1940s, the wheel arrangement was widely used in North America and to a lesser extent in the rest of the world. The type combined the basic design principles of the 4-6-2 type with an improved boiler and larger firebox that necessitated additional support at the rear of the locomotive. In general, the available tractive effort differed little from that of the 4-6-2, but the steam-raising ability was increased, giving more power at speed. The 4-6-4 was best suited to high-speed running across flat terrain. Since the type had fewer driving wheels than carrying wheels, a smaller percentage of the locomotive's weight contributed to traction, compared to other types. Like the 4-6-2, it was well suited for high speed passenger trains, but not for starting heavy freight trains and slogging on long sustained grades, where more pairs of driving wheels are better. The first 4-6-4 in the United States of America, J-1a #5200 of the New York Central Railroad, was built in 1927 to the railroad's design by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO). There, the type was named the Hudson after the Hudson River. They are also designed to pull 16-18 passenger cars in passenger service.The world speed record for steam locomotives was held by a 4-6-4 at least twice. In 1934, the Milwaukee Road's class F6 no. 6402 reached 103.5 miles per hour, still the world speed record for steam traction.Altogether 21 railroads in North America owned 4-6-4s. Many were similar in concept to the NYC Hudson's, with 79 to 80 inches driving wheels, but most were a little larger than the NYC locomotives, such as the F6 and F6a classes of the Milwaukee Road, the K-5-a class of the Canadian National, the Canadian Pacific locomotives, the S-4 class of the Burlington Route, the I-5 class of the New Haven and the 1151 class of the Lackawanna. Because the 4-6-4 design was really only optimally suited to express passenger trains, which were dieselized early, the Hudson's were early candidates for withdrawal and scrapping. None of the NYC locomotives survived and neither did any of the Milwaukee locomotives.Empire State Express History:On December 7, 1941, the New York Central inaugurated a new stainless-steel streamlined (Budd) train, powered by a streamlined J-3a Hudson (4-6-4) steam locomotive. The streamlined shrouding of the J-3a Hudson was designed by Henry Dreyfuss. The inauguration was mostly overshadowed by the bombing of Pearl Harbor the same day.Fast Mail ServiceLike many long haul passenger trains through the mid-1960s, the "Empire State Express" carried a 60-foot stainless steel East Division (E.D.) Railway Post Office (R.P.O.) car operated by the Railway Mail Service (RMS) of the United States Post Office Department which was staffed by USPOD clerks as a "fast mail" on each of its daily runs. Mail handled by the "Empire State's" RPOs was canceled or backstamped by hand applied circular date stamps (CDS) reading "N.Y. & CHICAGO R.P.O." and the train's number: "TR 50" (eastbound) or "TR 51" (westbound). The train was distinctively the most limited in stops (aside from the elite 20th Century Limited) in the New York City to Albany section. Beyond 125th Street, it only made a stop at Croton-Harmon, the location for switching from electric to diesel power, and made no other stops until Albany.From the post-war 1940s to the 1960s the train split at Buffalo. One section went along the south shore of Lake Erie to Cleveland. Another section went through Southwestern Ontario, Canada to Detroit, Michigan. From the early 1960s the Buffalo to Detroit section was a separate connecting train. Also at this time, coaches on the train from New York broke off at Buffalo and joined with the Buffalo-Toronto Express in partnership with Canadian Pacific bound for Toronto. This Toronto segment ended by April 1964. In 1967 the train was extended from being a day train to continuing to Chicago, Illinois as an overnight train. With the December 1967 schedule the Empire State Express name was gone, and #51 was shortened to Buffalo to Chicago, via Cleveland. The eastbound #50 was from Detroit to Buffalo. MTH Special FeaturesWhile the M.T.H. HUDSON is not the first HO model of this NYC racehorse, we believe it is the best - offering accurate detail ; smooth performance from a three-scale-mile-per-hour crawl to full throttle; "cruise control" for steady speeds regardless of curves, switches and grades; a wide range of steam locomotive, crew, and station sounds; prototypical Rule 17 lighting; and puffing smoke synchronized with driver revolutions at a correct four chuffs per revolution. And like the prototype, our model is dual purpose: using our optional Digital Command System (DCS), you can change your Hudson's sound set from passenger to freight or vice versa with a free Internet download. BackgroundThe Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad (Milwaukee Road) was the first to design a 4-6-4 locomotive (naming them Baltics); however, they were not built until after the New York Central's Hudsons. NYC President Patrick E. Crowley named the units Hudsons after the Hudson River, which divides New York State's Hudson Valley and streams broadly past New York City.The Hudson came into being because the existing 4-6-2 Pacific power was not able to keep up with the demands of longer, heavier trains and higher speeds. Given NYC's axle load limits, Pacific's could not be made any larger; a new locomotive type would be required to carry the larger boilers. Lima Locomotive Works' conception of superpower steam as realized in the 2-8-4 Berkshire type was the predecessor to the Hudson. The 2-8-4's 4-wheel trailing truck permitted a huge firebox to be located after the boiler. The resulting greater steaming rate ensured that such a locomotive would never run out of power at speed, a common failing of older locomotives. Applying the ideas of the freight-minded Berkshire type to the Pacific resulted in a 4-6-4 locomotive.StreamliningThe Hudsons were of excellent quality. In response to the styling sensation of the new diesel-powered Zephyr streamliner, Locomotive No. 5344 (the last J-1e) was fitted with an Art Deco streamlined shroud designed by Carl F. Kantola and was named Commodore Vanderbilt on December 27, 1934. The streamlining was later replaced to match the last ten J-3a Super Hudson locomotives (5445-5454) that had been built with streamlining designed by Henry Dreyfuss. J-1e Hudson #5344 stuck out from the rest of the roster, as it was the only J-1 to be streamlined, and was one of two locomotives ever to be streamlined twice (the other being a Baltimore and Ohio P-7, number 5304). Two more J-3a locomotives (5426 & 5429) had a 3rd streamlining style fitted in 1941 for Empire State Express service. The streamlined locomotives featured prominently in NYC advertising.The forte of all Hudsons was power at top speed. They were poor performers at low speed and the presence of a booster engine on the trailing truck was an absolute necessity for starting. For this reason, they were generally favored by railroads with flat terrain and straight routes. After the NYC, the Milwaukee Road was also fond of the Hudson's, acquiring 22 class F6 and six streamlined class F7s. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway also had 16, while the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad had 10 (#1400-1409) streamlined I-5 4-6-4s built by Baldwin in 1937 (nicknamed "Shorelines"). Few railroads with hilly terrain acquired any.Trials of later, dual-purpose 4-8-2 Mohawks sealed the Hudson's fate. The L-3 and L-4 Mohawks were excellent, but they were still more suited to lower-speed hauling than high-speed power. In 1944, NYC received permission from the War Production Board to build a new, high-speed locomotive of the 4-8-4 type, combining all the advantages of the Hudson with those of the Mohawk. Many other railroads had taken to the 4-8-4 in the 1930s, generally calling them Northerns after the Northern Pacific Railway, which had first adopted them. By being a late adopter, the NYC had the chance to build on everyone else's experience. That locomotive proved to be exceptional, and the type on the NYC was named the Niagara. Since only 27 were built, however, they only took over the heaviest and most-prestigious trains, and the last Niagara (No. 6015) was retired in July, 1956. Many Hudson's soldiered-on until the end of steam on NYC in 1957. FateWhen the railroad dieselized, all of the Hudson's were scrapped; none were preserved. This was caused by the direct order of then-NYC president Alfred E. Perlman, who was completely opposed to historic preservation. Two J-1d class Hudson's, numbers 5311 and 5313, were sold to the Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway in 1948 and were renumbered 501 and 502 respectively. Both locomotives were retired and scrapped in 1954 when the TH&B dieselized. The tender from the 502 (formerly the 5313) was retained by the TH&B and converted to a steam generator car for use on passenger trains. The generator car still survives today and is part of the Steamtown National Historic Site collection. " These have been highly sought after Units " THIS IS AN ASSEMBLED READY-TO-RUN MTH STEAM LOCOMOTIVE SHIPPING: We do combine shipping on multiple purchases. If you do a Buy It Now the transaction requires immediate payment for each item separately. What you need to do is put it in the shopping cart and then when you go to checkout it will recalculate the shipping and combine the items for you. If you pay first I am unable to make any adjustment because ebay has then taken its fees on the shipping as well. If you have a concern message me and I can work something out for you. THIS IS AN ASSEMBLED Item The item is NEW in the original box from old stock PERSONAL INVENTORY: Many of these unique items are from my personal inventory which was accumulated over the years. They are hard to part with but due to downsizing in retirement they too are looking for a good home which can appreciate and enjoy them. STORE INVENTORY: Having discontinued my Hobby Store and left frigid “Minne-Snow-Da” I have relocated and retired to the warmer part of the country, Down to Sunny TEXAS. I will be Liquidating the remaining stock. I will be listing items over the next year or so clearing them out. Please see the photos we take actual photos of each item Most of these items are New in the box removed only to take photos of them.

Price: 1299.89 USD

Location: Van, Texas

End Time: 2024-12-27T17:54:40.000Z

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