Hey guys,

What boxcars were in general use from about 1940-1950 to move dry goods and nonperish. I'm trying to model this time period fairly accurately and would like to know what is too early and what is too late?

Also, are there any references available as to what sort of traffic was moving through Michigan and Illinois during that period?

Thanks.

I'm really excited about the new 2-8-4s coming out. They look great! I got a couple of questions I was not able to find answers to during a search.

1. I noticed in a photo of the PM1225 model shown at the NMRA show that the sand bunker is forward of the steam dome as it was on PM N-2 Berks and C&O Kanawhas. PM1225 is an N-1, and the sand bunker and steam dome should be in reverse order, similar to the NKP Berkshires. Is this a prototype-only error that will be fixed in production?

2. I'm fairly new at DCC, so forgive this one. I see that these models will be DCC equipped but no sound. Will the decoder be hard-wired or will it plug into an 8-pin connector so that I can replace it with a decoder that includes sound functions as well? Also, what dcc/sound decoder would be recommended for these locomotives. So far the Soundtraxx Tsunami system that Bachmann installs on its spectrum units seems pretty good, but are there any other suggestions?

Thanks for any info.