Micro-Trains - 077 00 100 - Boxcar, 50 Foot, PS-1 - Chattahoochee Industrial - 2030

Model Information: This particular body style represents the Pullman Standard PS-1 50 foot boxcar without a roofwalk.

Prototype History: The Pullman Standard or PS-1 design was one of the most popular and was widely used by North American railroads. These boxcars were built beginning in 1947 and share the same basic design, with certain elements such as door size, door style or roof type varying among the different railroads and production years. When production of these cars ceased in 1963, over 100,000 had been produced.

The original PS-1 measured 40 foot in length, but Pullman Standard also offered 50′ and later 60′ boxcars – also with the PS-1 designation.

Road Name History: The CIRR was chartered in 1961 to build a line between Hilton and Saffold in southern Georgia. Operations began in 1963. For most of its history, the line was owned by paper giant Georgia-Pacific whose huge mill in the area is the source of most of CIRR's traffic. Interchanges are with CSX, NS and Georgia Southwestern. The motto for the Chattahoochee Industrial is "Better by a Dam Site" which appeared on many of their freight cars.

Although the line is just a touch over 15 miles long, around 10 locomotives are required to handle the heavy traffic. From startup into the 90s, most of the work was done with secondhand Alco RS-1’s.

In 2004, Georgia-Pacific sold many of their railroads, the CIRR included, to the Genesee & Wyoming group. Today, the RS-1’s are gone although several have been made into slugs, and secondhand EMD's now do the work.

Brand/Importer Information: Micro-Trains is the brand name used by both Kadee Quality Products and Micro-Trains Line. For a history of the relationship between the brand and the two companies, please consult our Micro-Trains Collector's Guide.

Manufacturer Information: Micro-Trains Line split off from Kadee Quality Products in 1990. Kadee Quality Products originally got involved in N-Scale by producing a scaled-down version of their successful HO Magne-Matic knuckle coupler system. This coupler was superior to the ubiquitous 'Rapido' style coupler due to two primary factors: superior realistic appearance and the ability to automatically uncouple when stopped over a magnet embedded in a section of track. The success of these couplers in N-Scale quickly translated to the production of trucks, wheels and in 1972 a release of ready-to-run box cars.

Micro-Trains Line Co. split off from Kadee in 1990 to form a completely independent company. For this reason, products from this company can appear with labels from both enterprises. Due to the nature of production idiosyncrasies and various random factors, the rolling stock from Micro-Trains can have all sorts of interesting variations in both their packaging as well as the products themselves. When acquiring an MTL product it is very important to understand these important production variations that can greatly enhance (or decrease) the value of your purchase.

Please consult our Micro-Trains Collector's Guide