Pre-orders a special 10% off on all units. And we will match or beat all advertised prices offered by reputable authorized Canadian dealers, between now and May 23th 2016.

You must place an order for any of these products NOW if you want

GUARANTEED DELIVERY

   Rapido is pleased to announce the definitive HO scale model of the Alco/MLW FA-2 and FPA-2. The FA-2 (Alco model DL-212) was Schenectady’s response to the ubiquitous EMD F7 that was swiftly becoming the locomotive of choice for many freight and passenger railroads. The FA-2 was intended for freight service while the FPA-2 (Alco model DL-213A) included a steam generator and obligatory large water tank for heating passenger cars. Our models will have the correct details for each version. Delivered between October 1950 (Erie 736A) and June 1956 (L&N 211), a total of 283 FA-2 and FPA-2 locomotives were built by Alco in Schenectady, New York for 12 different American railroads.

   A further 51 FA-2 and FPA-2 locos were built under licence by Montreal Locomotive Works for CP, CN and NdeM. Each 1600-HP unit had a 12-cylinder Alco 244 prime mover.
Although not as reliable as EMD’s competition, largely due to the underperforming 244 engine, the FA-2 firmly established itself in second place with a large number of locomotives surviving into the 1970s in service, especially in Canada. This is the first time that the FPA-2 has been offered in plastic, and the first time the FA-2 has been offered in all phases.

   When it comes to the FA-2 and FPA-2 locomotives, one size definitely does not fit all. There were substantial variations from railroad to railroad, and we’re covering all of the major ones. Rapido is the first company ever to offer in ready-to-run form:
Correct water/fuel tank combination for the FPA-2
Vertical battery box louvers
Underbody piping and conduit
Nose louvers for Baltimore & Ohio
Trainphone antenna for Pennsylvania RR
Prototype-specific details

   Ours is also the ONLY FA model ever produced that was scaled from a 3D scan of the prototype, FPA-4 #6765 at Exporail. The nose on our model is the only one guaranteed to be the correct shape, as it’s the only one designed from a 3D scan! It is quite different from the nose used on older FA models. They were far off the mark. Finally, we are tooling four different fuel and fuel/water tanks: two FA-2 fuel tanks (one for CP and one for everyone else) and two FPA-2 fuel/water tanks (one for CP/CN and one for everyone else.

 Reservations Due: May 23, 2016

Expected Release: March 2017

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