{"product_id":"mth-80-32355-ho-virginian-2-8-8-8-2-triplex-steam-locomotive-w-ps3e-700","title":"MTH 80-3235-5 HO Virginian 2-8-8-8-2 Triplex Steam Locomotive w\/PS3E #700","description":"P. T. Barnum would have loved the Triplex. It was an engine of superlatives: more drivers than anything before or since, too big for the shops of its owner, the Erie Railroad, powerful enough to pull a train nearly five miles long. Ninety years ago, in the days before multiple-unit control allowed one throttle to control several locomotives, the Triplex was the ultimate attempt to put as much power as possible in the hands of a single engineer. In the end, it proved a noble, flamboyant, but less-than-successful experiment. Baldwin Locomotive Works built three triplexes between 1914 and 1916 for pusher service on the Erie Railroad's daunting Susquehanna Hill (also known as Gulf Summit) near Deposit, N.Y. The cylinders of the Triplex's middle engine were powered by high pressure steam direct from the boiler, while the front and rear engines used low pressure steam exhausted from the middle cylinders. Each triplex replaced three ordinary helper engines, and the new locomotives worked well enough to stay on the Erie roster for more than a decade. But the design proved a bit over the top and only one more Triplex was ever built, for the Virginian Railway. Even with their huge boilers, the locomotives could only make enough steam to go 10 mph. One reason was poor draft in the firebox, because only the front cylinders exhausted through the smokebox and created draft; the rear cylinders exhausted through a separate smokestack on the tender. Another inherent problem with the design was that traction from the rear engine decreased as the boiler used coal and water and the tender got lighter. The M.T.H. Triplex recreates the flamboyance of the original design but runs much better than the prototype ever did. Only MTH engineering could make such a complex model run smoothly and steadily at speeds from a barely perceptible crawl to wide-open throttle - just ask any modeler who owns an M.T.H. O scale or One Gauge Triplex. For 2007 the Triplex debuts in our HO lineup, complete with a full range of engine sounds, puffing smoke, speed control, full Rule 17 lighting, and ready to run under conventional, DCC, or M.T.H. Digital Command System (DCS) control. Did You Know? The Triplex was engineered to haul 640 fifty-ton cars in a train almost five miles long. But the couplers and draft gear of the early twentieth century could not have handled such a load, so the 2-8-8-8-2 was used as a pusher and never put to a full test. Outfitted with NEM 311 wheels and NEM 365 couplers, each of these engines feature an all-new version of Proto-Sound 3.0, contain a third rail sliding shoe for use with Marklin HO stud rail and can operate on AC or DC power. Like their 3.0 counterparts, Proto-Sound 3E+ locomotives feature full digital sound, speed control, 28 DCC functions, hundreds of DCS sounds and features and a command control receiver for use with Marklin DCC control systems. Unlike their 3.0 counterparts, Proto-Sound 3E+ locomotives cannot operate on standard 2-rail track. They only operate on HO (3-Rail) Stud Rail track (ie: Marklin C or K track)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCondition:\u003c\/strong\u003e Factory New (\u003ca href=\"#\" title=\"C-9: All original; unused; factory rubs and evidence of handling, shipping and factory test run. Standards for all toy train related accessory items apply to the visual appearance of the item and do not consider the operating functionality of the equipment. Condition and Grading Standards are subjective, at best, and are intended to act as a guide.\"\u003eC-9\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOperational Status:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"#\" title=\"This item is brand new from the factory.\"\u003eFunctional\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOriginal Box:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes (\u003ca href=\"#\" title=\"May have store stamps and price tags. Has inner liners.\"\u003eP-9\u003c\/a\u003e)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eManufacturer:\u003c\/strong\u003e MTH\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eModel Number:\u003c\/strong\u003e 80-3235-5\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRoad Name:\u003c\/strong\u003e Virginian (VGN)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMSRP:\u003c\/strong\u003e $679.95\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eScale\/Era:\u003c\/strong\u003e HO Scale\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eModel Type:\u003c\/strong\u003e Steam Loco\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Trainz SKU for this item is P12007059. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 6px !important; color: #d3d3d3 !important; line-height: 8px !important;\"\u003eTrainz Product Id: 12007059\u003c\/span\u003e","brand":"MTH","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39258124943482,"sku":"P12007059","price":577.96,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1260\/4747\/files\/3677192.jpg?v=1755553476","url":"https:\/\/www.trainz.com\/products\/mth-80-32355-ho-virginian-2-8-8-8-2-triplex-steam-locomotive-w-ps3e-700","provider":"Trainz","version":"1.0","type":"link"}