Now arriving: the HO scale California Zephyr See the first four cars released from Broadway Limited Imports Broadway Limited Imports HO scale CZ cars Silver Chalet Broadway Limited Imports HO scale CZ car Silver Antelope Broadway Limited Imports HO scale CZ car Silver Crane and Silver Shore Broadway Limited Imports HO scale CZ cars Interior of Silver Chalet The first samples of the eagerly anticipated HO California Zephyr passenger cars have arrived from Broadway Limited Imports, and so far they look great! We’ve seen four sample cars, and they’re better looking than most imported brass cars. Each Zephyr car comes fully assembled (the grab irons are installed) and ready-to-run with working diaphragms, Kadee magnetic knuckle couplers, metal wheels, and interior lighting. Just take the cars out of their boxes and they’re ready to go. Each model is built around a highly detailed ABS plastic body shell that includes the roof, sides, and ends. They’re finished with an excellent nickel plating that’s the best representation of the Budd prototype’s stainless steel construction ever. Plastic window strips are flush mounted from the inside and they include printed black gaskets and blinds. All of the windows have the Zephyr’s characteristic blue-green tint. The floor is detailed with numerous underbody fittings that are applied individually. The couplers are mounted in swinging coupler boxes that allow these cars to traverse curves down to 22” radius. A one-piece molded interior rides on top of the floor with a pair of electrical contact strips sandwiched between them. The light-emitting-diode (LED) lighting system sits on top of the interior partitions. The free-rolling four-wheel trucks have concealed electrical pickups so all 8 wheels collect current for the interior lights. The wheels have NMRA RP-25 contours, so the cars can operate code 70, 83 and 100 rail. I can hardly wait to see the entire consist. We’ll have a full review in the March 2006 issue of Model Railroader magazine. – Jim Hediger, senior editor
