MTH: 30-1897-1 - Denver and Rio Grande Western O Gauge RailKing 2-8-8-2 Imperial USRA Mallet Steam Engine - w/ ProtoSound 3.0 - O Gauge - In 1874, Swiss technical writer Anatole Mallet invented the articulated locomotive, coupling two sets of driving wheels under one boiler. Mallets used their steam twice: the rear cylinders were fed high-pressure boiler steam, and the larger front cylinders used low-pressure steam exhausted from the rear cylinders. In 1909, Baldwin delivered the first 2-8-8-2 Mallets to the Southern Pacific, where they became the precursors of the SP's famous Cab Forwards. By World War I, Mallet 2-8-8-2s were in use across the United States, particularly on mountain routes where they replaced two or three smaller engines. - When the USRA took over the railroads during the War, it used the Norfolk and Western class Y-2 2-8-8-2 as the starting point for the largest of its 12 standardized steam locomotive designs. (For more on the USRA, see page xx.) USRA designers turned the Y-2, which had been a disappointing design for the N&W, into a highly successful freight engine. Although Mallets later fell out of favor with most railroads, in favor of faster "simple" articulateds that delivered high-pressure boiler steam to all four cylinders, the USRA's largest design proved to be one of its most enduring. In 1952, a Norfolk and Western Y6b, a direct descendant of the original USRA design, was the last mainline steam engine built in the United States. - The USRA 2-8-8-2 returns to the RailKing lineup now equipped with Proto-Sound 3.0 wireless drawbar and featuring a full complement of Imperial-level details: legible builder's plates, painted backhead gauges, cab interior light, glowing firebox, engine crew, tender truck safety chains, and a real coal load in the tender. - Features: - Die-Cast Boiler and Chassis - Die-Cast Tender Body - Authentic Paint Scheme - Real Tender Coal Load - Die-Cast Locomotive Trucks - Engineer and Fireman Figures - Metal Handrails and Decorative Bell - Decorative Metal Whistle - Metal Wheels and Axles - Remote Controlled Proto-Coupler - Prototypical Rule 17 Lighting - Constant Voltage Headlight - Operating Firebox Glow - Lighted Cab Interior - Operating Tender Back-up Light - (2) Precision Flywheel Equipped Motors - Synchronized Puffing ProtoSmoke System - Locomotive Speed Control In Scale MPH Increments - Wireless Drawbar - Onboard DCC Receiver - Proto-Sound 3.0 With The Digital Command System Featuring Freight Yard Proto-Effects - PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS - Road Name: Denver and Rio Grande Western - Road Number: 3609 - Gauge: O Gauge - Power: Electric - Engine Type: Steam - Min Curve: O31 - Dimensions: 25" x 2.5" x 3.75" -