Kato Announces NYC Jet-Powered RDC

At N Scale Limited, we don’t typically do new product announcements.  There is simply too many new products and too many product varieties from different manufactures to do this on a regular basis.

However, whenever we come across a new product that is somewhat different or unique in someway, we’ll try to share the information with you.

Kato USA, popular for their quality locomotives and named trains such as the Pennsylvania Railroad Broadway Limited and the recently announced Santa Fe El Capitan, has announced a new N scale product.

What makes this announcement unique is that it’s based on the New York Central’s modified rail diesel car (RDC-3) that featured twin jet engines mounted on the roof. It includes DCC, lighting effects and sound.

This jet-powered NYC RDC was built in 1966 and broke land speed rail records at speeds over 183 miles per hour. Like the prototype, the N scale version includes the famous black shroud on the face of the car and has realistic lighting for the jet engine booster ignition. The sound of the jet engines firing is particularly impressive.

The Kato USA site includes several photos as well as a video of the car in action.

The RDC is being built to order and is available for pre-order through Kato’s Recommended Unitrack Dealers or directly from the Kato USA Web site for $295. Initial shipments should delivery in September, 2009.

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About the Author

Frank Giacobbe — Co-founder of N Scale Limited, Frank has been building models since childhood and modeling in N scale since 2oo3. He is the former author of the blog, N Scale Modeling and a member of the Riverside Historic Society in Riverside, NJ. Frank has a passion for big city modeling, the 1940s and the Pennsylvania Railroad.