Con-Cor - 0001-040125 - Passenger Car, Lightweight, Pullman RPO - Union Pacific - 5417

Model Information: This model was designed by Con-Cor in the 1980s. It is modeled after the Pullman Standard RPO-Baggage built for GN in 1947. It has has 3 double-windows, located at one end of the car, and 2 doors. This model is still produced by Con-Cor.
It is not to be confused with an older RPO designed by Con-Cor and that is no longer produced. The older model has 5 windows in the middle of the car, and 3 doors.

Prototype History: When lightweight cars came to the Pullman fleet in the early 1940s, their smooth sides lent themselves to classy, colorful paint schemes. Baggage cars operated on everything from premier trains to mail runs from coast to coast, normally mixing with the head-end cars of connecting lines.

RPO cars were built to government specifications by the railroads, which owned these cars and were paid by U.S. Post Office contracts per mile of running time. They were staffed by specially-trained, armed U.S. Postal Clerks, who referred to their runs by the cities between which they operated: north to south or east to west, with north-south taking precedence.

Road Name History: The Union Pacific Railroad (reporting mark UP) is a freight hauling railroad that operates 8,500 locomotives over 32,100 route-miles in 23 states west of Chicago, Illinois and New Orleans, Louisiana. The Union Pacific Railroad network is the largest in the United States and employs 42,600 people. It is also one of the world's largest transportation companies.

Union Pacific Railroad is the principal operating company of Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE: UNP); both are headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Over the years Union Pacific Corporation has grown by acquiring other railroads, notably the Missouri Pacific, Chicago & North Western, Western Pacific, Missouri-Kansas-Texas, and the Southern Pacific (including the Denver & Rio Grande Western).

Union Pacific Corporation's main competitor is the BNSF Railway, the nation's second largest freight railroad, which also primarily services the Continental U.S. west of the Mississippi River. Together, the two railroads have a duopoly on all transcontinental freight rail lines in the U.S.

Read more on Wikipedia and on Union Pacific official website.

Brand/Importer Information: Con-Cor has been in business since 1962. Many things have changed over time as originally they were a complete manufacturing operation in the USA and at one time had upwards of 45 employees. They not only designed the models,but they also built their own molds, did injection molding, painting, printing and packaging on their models.

Currently, most of their manufacturing has been moved overseas and now they import 90% of their products as totally finished goods, or in finished components. They only do some incidental manufacturing today within the USA.

Important Note: The Con-Cor product numbering can be very confusing. Please see here in the article how to properly enter Con-Cor stock numbers in the TroveStar database.