Prototype: Prototype: German State Railroad (DR) powered rail car train road number 183 252-6, 2-B-2 wheel arrangement, built starting in 1935 as the SVT 137 for the German State Railroad Company (DRG), beige / ruby red version. Use: GDR government powered salon car until 1975. From 1975 on as a museum train for special runs. Model: Model: The powered rail car has a built-in digital decoder for operation with DCC, Selectrix, and Selectrix 2. The motor is built into the Jakobs truck and powers 2 axles. Both train halves and the Jakobs truck are connected by a close coupling mechanism, thus producing a prototypically close appearance without gaps when standing on straight track. The white headlights and red marker lights change over with the direction of travel. LEDs are used for the headlights, marker lights, and interior lighting. Total length over the buffers 278 mm / 10-15/16". Highlights: Factory-installed interior lighting. DR "Hamburg Design" SVT 137 225 The VT 877a/b introduced a revolution in express train service on the German State Railroad (DRG). As the "Fliegender Hamburger" / "Flying Hamburger" this diesel-powered rail car with its top speed of 160 km/h / 100 mph ran for the first time in regularly scheduled service on the 287 kilometer / 179 mile long route Berlin – Hamburg on May 15, 1933 and required only two hours and 18 minutes to do it. This corresponded to a speed of 124.8 km/h / 78 mph. Building on the results with this powered rail car, the DRG order 13 similar powered double rail cars as the "Hamburg" design (SVT 137 149-152 and 224-232). A slightly altered end shape as well as the installation of a Scharfenberg coupler were the most noticeable differences from the original "Hamburger". The car bodies of all of these units were an aerodynamic lightweight steel design with frame construction. The 302 kilowatt / 405 horsepower Maybach diesel motors sat in both trucks along with the main generators. The gear drive was done with DC axle-hung motors in the center Jakobs truck. Starting in 1935 these diesel-powered rail cars learned to fly and the DRG revolutionized its schedule with a unique network of fast powered rail car routings. The era of the famous "Flying Trains" had begun but was unfortunately rather short. From Berlin you could reach in addition to Hamburg also Cologne, Frankfurt/Main, Basle, Stuttgart, Munich, Breslau, and even Beuthen. The express powered rail car service ended with the start of the war. After the end of the war, these beautifully shaped express powered rail cars scattered to the four winds. Two "Hamburger" ended up after 1945 in the area of the subsequent GDR. Road number SVT 137 226 was not put back into service and the DR rebuilt road number SVT 137 225 as a salon train by February 1951/52. It was available in this state until October of 1981 to important members of the GDR Transportation Ministry. Designated as a museum train, it then began its second career during which it was allowed to participate in the anniversary exhibition "150 Years of Railroading in Germany" in Nürnberg. This was done with an official GDR "Authorization to Travel Abroad" in the summer of 1985. After the collapse of East Germany road number SVT 137 225 underwent one last main overhaul and was returned externally to its original condition with the original elegant beige/violet paint scheme. It can be admired today in non-operational condition on the museum track at the Leipzig main station. Features: Era IV DCC/ Selectrix decoder Triple headlights in the front, dual red marker lights rear that change over with the direction of travel Built-in interior lighting Released in:- New Items 2014
