Description
Description
This is MTH 20-3450-2 2-3-1 Orient Exp Scl #E22. 2-3-1 Pacific steam engine with Proto-Sound 3.0 (wcale wheels), Orient Express (green boiler). Cab number: 231E35. The history of locomotives is the story of an ever-increasing need for speed and power, as trains became heavier and schedules more demanding. On Frances Paris-Orleans (PO) Railway in the mid-1920s, management saw electrification as the answer, and development of new steam locomotives came to a halt. But Andr Chapelon, a young development engineer, had different ideas. He persuaded his superiors to let him drastically rebuild one of the POs aging Pacifics, and the result cemented his reputation as one of the greatest locomotive designers ever. Chapelon analyzed the design of the steam engine from end to end, from the cold water in the tender to the steam exiting the stack. He modified the boiler and firebox to produce more steam with the same amount of fuel, and opened up nearly every steam passage to improve the flow of steam in and out of the cylinders. Testing proved his rebuilt engine delivered 85% more horsepower and was more efficient to operate music to the ears of the very managers who had resisted his ideas for years.
The success of the original engine, No. 3566, led the PO to rebuild 31 additional Pacifics. When the Nord Railway tested a Chapelon Pacific against its own best power in 1931 and found the Chapelon superior, it too ordered 20 of the miracle rebuilds from the POs shops. And when the PO ran out of engines to rebuild and sell to other railroads, the Nord ordered an additional 28 Chapelon-design Pacifics from other locomotive builders. Chapelons headed many of the most famous French trains, from the Paris-Calais section of the Flche dOr (Golden Arrow) to the first leg of the Paris-Istanbul Orient Express. To this day, the Chapelon Pacific is considered a high point of French locomotive design, for its combination of speed, power, and economy.
The Chapelon Pacific is based on preserved engine 3.1192, built for the Nord in 1936 and preserved today at the Cit du Train in Mulhouse, France. With over 260 added-on engine and tender detail parts, this is one of the most superbly detailed locomotives we have ever made.
Its key features are:
Die-cast boiler and tender body
1:43.5 scale proportions
Die-cast metal chassis
Authentic paint scheme
Metal wheels and axles
Constant voltage headlight
Die-cast truck sides
Precision flywheel equipped motor
Engineer and fireman figures
Operating firebox glow
Metal handrails and decorative bell
Decorative metal whistle
Lighted cab interior
Locomotive speed control in scale MPH increments
Proto-Scale 3-2 3-rail/2-rail conversion capable
Synchronized puffing ProtoSmoke system
Wireless drawbar
NEM 310/311 standard fine scale wheels
European NEM fine scale coupler
CE rated
Sprung bumpers
Built-in DCC receiver
Proto-Sound 3.0 with The Digital Command System featuring: quillable whistle with passenger station Proto-Effects
Unit measures: 23 1/4 x 2 5/8 x 4
Operates on 42 radius curves
Proto-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) Revers
Condition: Factory New (C-9)
Operational Status: Functional
Original Box: Yes (P-9)
Manufacturer: MTH
Model Number: 20-3450-2
Road Name: Orient Express
Scale/Era: O Modern
Model Type: Steam Loco
The Trainz SKU for this item is P11980075.
Trainz Product Id: 11980075
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