As Intermodal operations have become more and more of railroad operations, newer and better equipment has been developed to facilitate operations. In the early days, trailers were simply hauled up onto existing flat cars and transported that way. Later, 89 ft. flat cars were built or modified for this use.

As time went on, it became apparent that the standard flat car was not the best way to transport trailers. Different ideas were developed and tested with varying degrees of success. One of these was the Front Runner. A predecessor to the modern spine car, this fifty foot car entered service in 1984 with the goal of maximum efficiency with minimum weight. Just as with modern spine cars, it did not have a full deck. However, unlike modern spine cars, it only had a single axle at either end. While this did provide significant weight savings, experienced showed these cars to be less than rock stable, with many car derailments occurring over their service life.

As time passed, operating restrictions were placed on them to improve their reliability, but these reduced the benefits of the design. The length of trailers was also growing, reaching the 53 foot length common today, and unworkable on a 50 ft car. By 2000, nearly all had been removed from service. Though ultimately unsuccessful and short lived, they did pave the way for the modern and very successful spine cars of today.

Features:

• Perfect for 1980's to early 2000's intermodal service
  
• Heavy die cast metal frame for maximum performance
  
• SceneMaster trailers feature underbody and wheel decoration for improved realism
  
• Correct 28" turned metal wheelsets
• Body mounted ProtoMAX metal knuckle couplers