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Rapido Newsletter Vol. 241
©2026 Rapido Trains Inc.
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Dear Rapido Customer,
November is upon us and we have many important order deadlines to review. From the popular Gallery Cars to the plethora of excellent freight cars, we have it all! Plus we'll also preview December's deadlines, too. Hope in, we're going for a ride through the fall foliage of trains. 🍂
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In the 241st issue...
- Rochester RPM Powered by Rapido
- November Order Deadlines
- HO Scale Budd Milwaukee Road and Rock Island Gallery Cars
- HO Scale Great Northern 40' Double-Sheathed Boxcar
- HO Scale 1937 40' AAR Boxcar
- HO Scale PRR H21 Hopper Car
- December Order Deadlines
- HO Scale SD70MAC Locomotive
- HO Scale CF7 Locomotive
- HO Scale Sweep Locomotive CONDITIONAL
- HO Scale Gunderson 53' Husky Stack Well Car With 53' Containers
- HO Scale 53' High Cube and Dry Box Containers
- Events and Shows
- Tooling, Factory and Shipping Updates
If you are using a web-based email service such as Gmail, be sure to click on the link at the top of this email that says something like "[Message clipped] View entire message". That will ensure you don't miss any of this newsletter.
Please note that all renders, pre-production samples and artwork are subject to change before the final product release.
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Rochester RPM (Sponsored by Rapido)
March 5th to the 6th, 2027
Registration for the Rochester RPM 2027 is now open! We are proudly sponsoring next year's event with RocRPM on March 5th and 6th, 2027. There will be model displays, clinics, learning tables, onsite and off-site ops sessions, T-Trak and much more!
As an extra special bonus we be bringing the bus down to give people tours to our Buffalo warehouse on that Sunday. This is, of course, if the weather and our bus permits it.
Register today by clicking here.
Where: 41 Backus Street, Rochester, NY
When: March 5th to the 6th
What to see: A ton of great models, people and clinics.
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Resourced Rails Exclusive: HO Scale Amtrak F40PH
Amtrak F40PH number 231 has a bit of celebrity status as one of the few preserved F40PHs in Phase III paint. It currently operates at the Illinois Railway Museum on loan. Resourced Rails is excited to offer this F40PH as an exclusive through them, complete with the unique Operation Lifesaver graphics on the nose! They'll be offering both DC/Silent and DCC/Sound. Head over there to order yours today!
As part of this exclusive project, ReSourced Rails will donate 10% of gross proceeds to the Illinois Railway Museum in support of the ongoing restoration and preservation of the real Amtrak 231.
You can also support the preservation efforts of the Illinois Railway Museum by clicking here.
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Order Deadline: November 16th, 2026
- HO Scale Budd Milwaukee Road and Rock Island Gallery Cars
- HO Scale Great Northern 40' Double-Sheathed Boxcar
- HO Scale 1937 40' AAR Boxcar
- HO Scale PRR H21 Hopper Car
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HO Scale Budd Rock Island and Milwaukee Road Gallery Cars
The HO Scale Budd Gallery Cars have an order deadline of November 16th. We're excited to debut a new video featuring these cars which have been super popular so far.
Click here or the photo above to watch.
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Chicago commuting has always been a fascinating mix of equipment. The Rock Island used their colorful E-Units and Gallery Cars on the south side where the were they service at the famous "Rocket House". Over on the north side, the Milwaukee Road operated their version of the E-Units and Gallery Cars. Together, both of these operations were fan favorites to railfan and model!
Oh, by the way, if you haven't seen our version of their E-Units, click here to see them!
| Check out the close coupling on the cars. | |
Metra continues to operate this large fleet of Gallery Cars almost 50 years since they rolled out of the Budd plant. Over time, many of the cab cars have been converted to trailer-only status. During these conversions, they had their cab controls removed and operator windows blanked out.
We also can't forget the group of Gallery Cars that wear BNSF markings. These cars sometimes make their way out of BNSF territory and can be seen on both the Northwest and Southwest Districts. The cars will look great being pulled by an SD70MACH or F40PH or F40PH-3!
| The details, etched-metal grilles and separately applied parts makes these cars top notch. | |
Here are the HO Scale Budd RI and MILW Gallery Car features:
- Designed from original blueprints, design drawings and field measurements
- Rock Island, Milwaukee and BNSF car types with Metra-modified blanked cab car end version!
- Free-rolling, highly detailed trucks with metal wheelsets
- Full underbody including HEP conduit and equipment
- Complete interior including actual “gallery” seating
- Accurate painting and lettering, both inside and out
- Correctly colored tinted windows
- Metal side grab irons and sprung diaphragms
- Constant flicker-free interior lighting in both DC and DCC
- MoPower capacitor for uninterrupted DCC passenger car lighting
- Controllable cab car lighting in both DC and DCC, including headlights, marker lights, as well as ditch lights and beacons (where appropriate)
- Suggested minimum radius: 22"
Now, for the schemes! Just like the previous run of CB&Q-style cars, there will be the same 3-pack variations: two coaches and a cab car as well as three coaches and single ex-cab car coaches.
| Don't let the train leave you at the station! The last time we produced Gallery Cars, they immediately sold out! Order those Gallery Cars by November 16th. You can do so from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
HO Scale Great Northern 40' Double-Sheathed Boxcar
The HO Scale Great Northern 40' Double-Sheathed Boxcar deadline is on November 16th. We now have a new video depicting these vital boxcars!
Click here or the photo above to watch.
| The 40’ double-sheathed boxcar was Great Northern’s most popular car on their roster during the 1930s. From 1937 through 1942, over 8,000 boxcars were produced by various manufacturers. In 1956, there were more of the 1937-1942 double-sheathed boxcars on the GN roster than ALL of the various 40’ steel boxcars put together! | While based on the 1937 AAR 40’ boxcar design, Great Northern’s cars had distinctive sides, ends, and underframes, all accurately captured in Rapido’s new model. Built in several batches by ACF and Pullman-Standard, they were equipped with handbrake gear from multiple suppliers. The GN’s 40’ double-sheathed boxcars lasted long enough to carry multiple paint schemes, including the later vermillion red scheme. Many remained with their original sheathing well into the 1970s. | |
The HO Scale Great Northern Double-Sheathed Boxcars feature:
- Original car drawings used for design
- Highly detailed underframe with brake piping and more
- Detailed cut overs and side ladders
- Separate roofwalk and grab irons
- Textured wood-paneled body
- Semi-scale metal knuckle couplers
- 50-ton AAR trucks with profiled metal wheels
- Minimum suggested radius: 18”
Now for the schemes.
| Order the GN Wood 40' Boxcars by November 16th. You can do so from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
EXCLUSIVE MODEL! GNRHS 40' Double-Sheathed Boxcars
The Great Northern Railroad Historical Society is offering two unique paint schemes with several road numbers on this neat 40' Double-Sheathed Boxcar. The art above shows the lettering, door tackboard and truck color differences. Each is set for 1956 and beyond.
Click here to order them direct from the GNRHS!
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HO Scale 1937 40' AAR Boxcar
The HO Scale 1937 40' AAR Boxcar deadline is on November 16th. Have you placed your orders, yet? If you haven't, we have a new video highlighting the features of these important boxcars. We're sure you'll race to the order desk to order once you watch it!
Click here or the photo above to watch.
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The fancy Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis scheme.
The Atlantic and East Carolina AAR boxcar with the large circular logo.
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The 1937 40' AAR standard boxcar was one of the most widely produced freight cars ever built. From the start of production in 1936 nearly 94,000 cars were built for 64 railroads with variations on this design. Through various secondhand owners, rebuilds and upgrades, they continued in service well into the 1980s.
Over the years, the design of the ends changed. Ends commonly used on early cars used a “Z”-shaped inside corner post, covered by an end with squared off corners. Later cars featured a “W”-shaped inside corner post which was externally covered by an end with rounded corners. Additional types of ends were also employed, most notably by Canadian railroads. In fact, CN and CP accounted for more than 28,000 of these cars!
| Note all of the underframe details — there's a ton! | |
Roofs also varied on the AAR Boxcars. The Murphy raised panel roof was the most common. However, many cars were also built with Viking or flat panels as well. Other hardware variations included doors, ladders, running boards, brake wheels and trucks.
Our cars include square and round post corners (with correct sides) as well as Canadian NSC-2 and 5/5 rib ends. We’ve designed the Murphy raised panel, flat panel and Viking roofs with either wood or photo-etched steel running boards in multiple patterns. Access to the roof is by seven or eight rung ladders. Canadian cars include ladders with integral sill steps. Youngstown and Superior 6’ doors are available, as are multiple styles of brake wheels and housings.
| The open grating on this roof walk looks amazing. | |
The HO Scale 1937 AAR Boxcars feature:
- Original car drawings used for design
- Highly detailed underframe with brake piping and more
- Correct brake wheels and housings
- Separate roofwalk and grab irons
- Multiple end, roof and door variations
- Semi-scale metal knuckle couplers
- Free rolling trucks with profiled metal wheels
- Minimum suggested radius: 18”
Now for the schemes.
| | Our initial run sold out fast. We anticipate these cars will do the same! Order the assorted AAR Boxcars by November 16th. You can do so from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
HO Scale PRR H21 Hopper Car
The HO Scale PRR H21 Hopper Cars order deadline is coming up soon on November 16th. We've got a new video featuring these cars which you won't want to miss!
Click here or the photo above to watch.
| The new-design, H21G-style hopper. | |
Thirty-nine thousand. That's a lot of H21 class hoppers!
The H21 is a four-bay design with many construction similarities from the smaller GLa hopper. Designed as a 50-ton coke car, the PRR realized that these cars made great coal hoppers. The first cars were then converted to H21A class with the addition of 70-ton trucks. Additional groups of H21As followed. H21A cars were equipped with Carmer uncoupling levers.
| The H21 end gates and brake wheel. | Additional H21s were rebuilt as class H21G in 1960. Most (but not all) of these featured new straight rectangular side posts. Like the H21E, the H21G also had the longer top stiffening chords and power hand brakes. Penn Central did some additional rebuilding on various H21s in the 1970s and reclassified them as H5. H21Gs had more modern underslung cut levers. | The H21 hoppers are packed with details inside the hopper. Note the removable coal load. | The various classes of H21 hoppers travelled throughout the country in what the Pennsy termed “mineral service” (coal, ore, gravel, limestone, etc.). They proved amazingly long lived—there were still more than 3,000 in service in 1970, and 143 in service at the advent of Conrail in 1976! Many were also used in work train service under PC and beyond. | Here's the underframe, also loaded with details such as brake piping and gate mechanisms. | |
The HO Scale PRR H21 Hoppers feature:
- Original car drawings used for design
- Highly detailed underframe with brake piping and more
- K or AB brake systems as appropriate
- Separate wire grab irons
- Correct detail variations for each sub-class: center sill, sides, ends and details
- Semi-scale metal knuckle couplers
- Free rolling trucks with profiled metal wheels
- Minimum suggested radius: 18”
Now for the schemes.
| Order your H21 Hoppers before November 16th. Reserve your favorite schemes as soon as possible as the first run sold out in a hurry. You can do so from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
Order Deadline: December 15th, 2026
- HO Scale SD70MAC Locomotive
- HO Scale CF7 Locomotive
- HO Scale Sweep Locomotive CONDITIONAL
- HO Scale Gunderson 53' Husky Stack Well Car With 53' Containers
- HO Scale 53' High Cube and Dry Box Containers
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HO Scale SD70MAC Locomotive
The time has come to put the HO Scale SD70MAC into the production queue! You still have time to order them as the order deadline on December 15th. We have working, fully decorated samples WITH OPERATING FANS and we're excited to get these into production ASAP!
Click here or the photo above to watch.
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The Metra 500 above and the CSX rebuilt variation, below.
The 500 is a hand painted sample while the CSX version is an early factory decorated sample. Both are subject to revisions.
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Last newsletter we introduced the new, operating fans tier. Let's take a quick look at how to upgrade your existing order:
The operating fans are an optional upgrade tier to your SD70MAC. These have their own item numbers separate from the normal DCC/Sound versions. Please note, they will not work in DC mode. The motor for the fans will NOT be installed in the standard DC and DCC/Sound versions. You will have to upgrade to the operating fan tier.
If you would like to upgrade your direct order to the new operating fan tier, please fill out the form by clicking here. For all orders made through your local hobby shop, please reach out to them.
Let's see more decorated HO Scale SD70MAC samples!
| The 504, with tons of details! | |
The Metra rebuilt flare and the CSX as-built variations.
Both of these are early factory decorated samples and are subject to revisions.
| Here are the SD70MAC schemes. | OK modern modelers, let's make this one of the most popular modern locomotives in HO scale. Order one, three or a fleet! You can do so from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
HO Scale Santa Fe CF7 Locomotive
The HO Scale CF7 Locomotive returned in September to great fanfare. Lots of exciting new schemes as well as some with ditch lights! December 15th is the order deadline and we can't wait to get these into production.
Now for the CF7 schemes!
| The order deadline for these CF7s is on December 15th. Many schemes from our initial run sold out before they hit the shelves, so you won't want to wait to order these awesome locomotives. You can do so from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
HO Scale SW1200RSm "Sweep" Locomotive
The HO Scale SW1200RSm "Sweep" Locomotive's conditional order deadline is on December 15th. We just launched it last month and we're very excited to see where orders will be at once we hit the conditional deadline (but they already look good). Let's make this a reality!
Check out the schemes, below.
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This is a conditional announcement based on the number of orders we receive by the December 15, 2026 order deadline. Reserve yours today through dealers or direct from our website to help sweep this project off its feet!
Order the Sweeps from your favorite hobby shop or directly through us.
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HO Scale Gunderson 53' Husky Stack Well Car With 53' Containers
The HO Scale Gunderson 53' Husky Stack Well Cars also has an order deadline on December 15th. We're excited to get these into the production queue as soon as possible since they are such a popular freight car.
Here are the schemes for the cars with containers.
| Now we have the cars without containers. These will be sold as 2-packs. | Order up! We know these cars won't last long once they arrive at hobby shops so place your orders before December 15th. Order them now through your favorite dealer or directly from us. | | |
HO Scale 53' Containers
Intermodal fans, the 53’ Corrugated and Smoothside Containers now have an order deadline on December 15th. We can't wait to see samples of the new 53' Outside Braced Containers, which should be here in the near future.
Until then, check out the schemes for both versions. We'll start with the Outside-Braced versions first.
| Next up we have the 53' smoothsides. | The order deadline is December 15th. We will be making some extra stock of containers, but please preorder otherwise, like usual, the stock will sell out before they arrive. Order them now through your favorite dealer or directly from us. | | |
HO Scale SD70MAC Locomotive in Home Shops Schemes
The SD70MAC Locomotive in Home Shops Schemes also share the December 15th order deadline. We have five schemes we are offering, all of which are very colorful.
Check them out, below.
| Reserve these SD70MACs now! You can do so from your local hobby shop or directly through us. | | |
HobbyTyme Exclusive: HO Scale SD70MAC — Red River Valley & Western
The Red River Valley & Western is a regional railroad operating in North Dakota and Minnesota. They began operations in 1987 after acquiring trackage from the Burlington Northern. In 2023, the RRV&W purchased a handful of ex-BNSF SD70MACs—the largest power to operate on this railroad to date. Painted in their attractive maroon and yellow, these big AC traction locomotives power their road trains all across North Dakota and Western Minnesota.
Order them from a participating HobbyTyme seller today!
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Trainfest — November 7th and 8th
Trainfest 2026 is this weekend! We'll be at the Baird Center in downtown Milwaukee with tons of NEW samples to display (including the new C-424 and C-425 as well as the CTA "L" cars) and maybe even a look at upcoming projects. You'll just have to be there to find out.
Where: Baird Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
When: November 7th and 8th
What to say to us: How about those Brewers?
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Cocoa Beach Prototype Meet — January 7th to the 9th, 2027
Hey snow birds! We'll be at the annual warm, Prototype Rails RPM at Cocoa Beach, Florida. Not only will there be hot models (trains) but we're sure the temperatures will be the same, too! Come on out, talk with Bill and check out our samples we have on display.
Where: Cocoa Beach Hilton Oceanfront, Cocoa Beach, Florida
When: January 7th to the 9th
What to wear: Your best pastel linen suit.
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Railroad Hobby Show (West Springfield) — January 30th and 31st, 2027
The annual Amherst Railway Society's Railroad Hobby Show is the last weekend in January and we plan on attending (as long as it doesn't snow five feet). Check us out at our booth location in the Better Living Center, Pole/Booth 23. We'll have live entertainment sample models on display and be able to break dance answer all of your questions, as long as they're not about daytime soap operas.
Where: The Eastern States Exposition Fairgrounds "The Big E", West Springfield, Massachusetts
When: January 30th to the 31st
What to do: Bring your 80s boombox and watch us dance.
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Tooling, Shipping and Arrival Updates
LOTS of new items are here and shipping!
Please note, all of our hobby shop shipments are up to date. If you haven't received your new product orders, please speak with your dealer. All dealers in good standing have received their shipments.
Don't see the model you're looking for, above?
Click here to visit our full delivery schedule to find out where it might be.
| | Here are the GP39 production samples. | |
The CSX GP39 with RCL strobe lights.
Below we see the SWMT slug.
| The N Scale Comets! The Massachusetts 250 car looks amazing. | NJ Transit and the CTrail versions. | |
The first look at the N Scale F40PHM-2 and -3 samples!
We'll have more photos once we receive these in the office.
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This concludes our latest order deadline edition. If you made it this far, congrats! Even I gave up three sections ago. Anyway, we'll be back soon enough with even more new announcements. Until then, go rake the leaves. 🍂
Bobby
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USA: 382 High St, Buffalo, NY 14204, USA
Canada: 500 Alden Road, Unit 21, Markham, ON L3R 5H5
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