Never before produced in any scale until now is the B-100-40 “Half-Waffle” Boxcar – now available in HO scale from Rapido Trains, with N scale versions to follow.

In later years these cars were rebuilt and then leased back to the Southern Pacific, painted for Golden West Service. 

Pacific Car and Foundry built 250 of these distinctive cars for the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1976.  With 5,195 cubic feet of carrying capacity, these cars were generously equipped with options, including a full Hydra-Cushion underframe, 12-foot wide plug doors, Car Pac loaders and the iconic half-height waffle sides. These utilitarian boxcars traveled regularly throughout the USA and even into Canada and Mexico as well. Most of the cars are still in service today, many for SP successor Union Pacific and others serving short lines. In addition, several cars from this series were purchased by Amtrak in 1997 for use in express service on trains across the system. The cars selected by Amtrak were refitted for express cargo service with a large wheel door handle, brackets for the end of train device and struts added to the trucks for extra stability at higher speeds.

Rapido is also offering a faded and patched version of the Golden West Service cars. 

Road names for this first production of HO scale B-100-40s include Southern Pacific (as-delivered), Golden West – Ventura County (VCY – dark blue), Golden West (SP patch, faded blue), Southern Pacific (brown Union Pacific shield repaint, SP reporting marks), Columbus and Greenville (faded boxcar red). Amtrak in both Phase IV (silver/blue stripe) and Amtrak (REA-inspired dark green).  Each car comes equipped with a long list of finely-rendered details, including etched metal crossover platforms, 12-foot plug door with separately-applied door rods and door tracks, detailed Hydra-Cushion underframe with full underbody brake rigging, coupler cut levers with scale width draft gear, metal knuckle couplers, all-new durable rubber train line air hoses, one of two styles of 100-ton roller bearing trucks with 36-inch machined metal wheelsets, and much more.   MSRP $49.95 each. Available now in HO scale from your favorite authorized dealers while supplies last. 

Rapido Trains, 500 Alden Road, Unit 21 Markham, Ontario L3R 5H5, Canada;1-855-572-6917; www.rapidotrains.com

In the years after Union Pacific took over SP in 1996, several of the cars received a full repaint. 

Amtrak even got a few of the cars to use in express freight service in the late 1990s.