Builder: Matt Csenge
Region: Americas
Category entered:
Year entered: 2022
Brand of building bricks used:
LEGO
Since 2026, the Brick Train Awards have accepted models created with other LEGO®-compatible construction brick systems.
About Pennsylvania Railroad F34 Flat Car 470202 by Matt Csenge
The Pennsylvania Railroad F34 class comprised three 8-axle, heavy-duty flat cars built in 1938 (470200 and 470201) and 1943 (470202). These cars were rated at 187.5 tons, which was distributed by span bolsters to the four trucks.
My model of the car features four trucks with span bolsters, and is capable of running through the standard R40 Lego curves and switches (and only looks slightly silly doing so). For the load I decided to do a large electrical transformer strapped to the deck. If the PRR was anything like the New Haven, these heavy duty cars would have often been used in company service moving electrical transformers like this for installation along their electrified line (now part of the Northeast Corridor).
A few other railroads had similar cars, such as the Southern Pacific F-200 class, and they also went on to serve other owners such as the Department of Defense in later years.