Pre-Order March 2011

We have 6 new runs this month featuring cars from the 1960s through today. Delivery is expected Fall, 2011. We are also announcing Undecorated hoppers: 14001 Undecorated 14-Panel 3 Bay Hoppers $19.95 and 73001 Undecorated Offset Side 3 Bay Hoppers $19.95.

Canadian Pacific 86’ Double Door Boxcars. In 1996, CP Rail changed their name back to Canadian Pacific Railway. This paint scheme was the result. This group of cars was originally delivered by Pullman Standard in 1967 in an austere brown with only reporting marks. Over the years many were repainted in CP Rail colors and finally this paint scheme. The CPAA reporting marks mean these cars are assigned to international service, moving parts between plants in the United States and Canada. The white conspicuity stripes are a feature of CP's new paint scheme standards and actually predate the FRA reflector stripe mandate by nine years. This run will be available in three road numbers. 86461 Canadian Pacific single car $29.85; 86462 2-pack $59.90.

Boston & Albany 14-Panel 3 Bay Hoppers. This fleet had been delivered to B&A parent New York Central with NYC
numbers as part of their massive 7,000 car 14-Panel hopper fleet (see Bluford ’s previous releases of 14021, 14023, 14026,
and 14020 with a total of 20 road numbers.) With just a few years in service, NYC renumbered 650 of these hoppers for
subsidiary Boston & Albany. They continued to wear NYC oval logos however. The reason for the renumbering is unclear
although “tax reasons” would be a possible culprit. Some of these cars wore these numbers into the 1980s under Conrail
ownership. These Boston & Albany hoppers will be available in 6 road numbers. 14201 B&A single car $21.79; 14202 2-pack $43.94; 14203 3-pack $65.37.

South-East Coal Company 14-Panel 3-Bay Hoppers. In order to combat a chronic shortage of empty hoppers in the
Appalachian region in the 1970s, South-East Coal purchased over 800 hoppers on the used market, about 80% of which
were these 14-Panel cars. They were painted institutional green with SECX reporting marks. Nearly all received the
company’s 4-color logo. These colorful cars will be available in 6 road numbers. 14221 South-East Coal Co. SECX single
car $21.79; 14222 2-pack $43.58; 14223 3-pack $65.37.

Durham & Southern 14-Panel 3-Bay Hoppers. The Durham & Southern was built to provide a southward outlet from
Durham, North Carolina to connections with Seaboard Air Line and Atlantic Coast Line. D&S picked up these 14-Panel
Hoppers from US Railway Equipment. The Durham & Southern was purchased by the Seaboard Coast Line in 1976 and
merged out of existence in 1981. This run will be available in 3 road numbers. 14211 Durham & Southern single car $21.79;
14212 2-pack $43.58.

Western Pacific - 2nd version 86 ’ Double Door Boxcars. Western Pacific’s Pullman Standard built auto parts boxcars were delivered in the “Distribution Dividend” scheme (see Bluford 86191 and 86192) in 1967. As these cars came due for repainting, they received this scheme. WP had a large Ford plant on line in Milpitas, California obliging them to contribute cars to a pool including many other railroads and several auto plants in the Midwest and South. This run will be available in 3 road numbers. 86481 Western Pacific - 2nd version single car $29.85; 86482 2-pack $59.70.

Illinois Central Gulf - CN 86 ’ Double Door Boxcars. ICG was born from the 1972 merger of Illinois Central and Gulf Mobile &Ohio. In 1985, they began selling off routes to new regional railroads with the goal of getting down to a core Chicago-to-the-Gulf business. With most of the former GM&O in the hands of others or abandoned, Illinois Central Gulf dropped the “Gulf” from their name in 1988. They left behind two decades of orange paint and adopted gray for boxcars. Eleven years later, the “new” Illinois Central was purchased by Canadian National. At this point, CN logos began to appear on IC rolling stock. One might ask why cars would be painted with the current CN logo and Illinois Central Gulf lettering when the "Gulf" had been dropped years before. This is probably due to wording in the original equipment trust and lease agreements since a large percentage of the repainted fleet carries this lettering. Some of these cars have been painted brown instead of gray so we are including one of the brown cars in the 2-pack. 86471 Illinois Central Gulf - CN single car (gray) $29.85; 86472 2-pack (1 gray car, 1 brown car) $59.70. Order a single and a 2-pack to get all 3 road numbers available.