Athearn has announced new 50 Ft Berwick Box Cars

PROTOTYPE AND BACKGROUND INFO:

The late 1970’s were marked by a supposed shortage of modern useable box cars in the railroad industry. Several rail industry groups argued for and got the Interstate Commerce Commission to approve the concept of incentive per diem box cars. The concept was to establish new, higher per diem rates for modern box cars as an incentive for railroads to invest in new box cars.

The box car boom eventually went bust, as the incentive per diem concept was found to be illegal and abolished. Today box cars still matter to the railroads. Even with modern containerization, box cars have a higher capacity then allowable on US roads. We are finding today, that 1970’s box cars are being rebuilt and put into service for various leasing outfits.

MODEL FEATURES:

• Fully-assembled and ready-to-run out of the box

• Packed in a jewel box for great display and storage opportunities

• Razor sharp painting and printing

• Screw mounted trucks for accurate tracking

• McHenry knuckle spring couplers installed

• Operates on Code 55 and 80 rail

• Minimum radius: 9 3/4”

Order Due Date: June 28, 2019

Anticipated Delivery Date: June 2020