Gauge: Z    Era: II   
 
Prototype: Kruckenberg design propeller-powered rail car.
 
Model: The powered rail car has a 5-pole motor. It also has dual headlights. The rail car has dark nickel plated wheel treads. It comes in a real wooden case. A booklet with the history of the designer and the powered rail car is included. Length over the buffers 117 mm / 4-5/8".
 
The 88761 Rail Zeppelin is being produced in a one-time series only in 2010 on the occasion of the 175th anniversary of German railroading and is limited.
 
The Rail Zeppelin designed and built in 1929 by Franz Friedrich Kruckenberg reached a speed record over 230 km/h / 144 mph on June 21, 1931 between Hamburg and Berlin. This record stood for 24 years. The wooden propeller on the back of the car was powered by a 600 hp BMW 12-cylinder, lightweight airplane motor. The total weight of the Rail Zeppelin was only 18.6 metric tons, which surely contributed considerably to this record. The two-axle car was 25.85 meters / 84 feet 9-5/16 inches long and had a wheelbase of 19.6 meters / 64 feet 3-3/4 inches. Unfortunately, the Rail Zeppelin was stored after being equipped with a new motor in 1934 and being used for a time for test runs. It was later scrapped due to the poor condition it was in after being stored.
 

 

Released in: New items brochure 2010