New Haven Railroad Alco PA A-A #0767/#0770 (MTH 20-21889-1 and 20-21890-1, PS3) is a custom run by forum sponsor MrMuffin’s Trains – shown with New Haven Alco DL-109 #0719 on my 12’-by-8’ layout.
As a New Haven fan, I thank MrMuffin for making these models. The colors and MTH Alco diesel engine sounds are terrific. At first, I bought just one model, #0767. After it arrived, I ordered #0770 to make an A-A set.
The warm orange/green roof/silver-gray pinstripe color scheme was used only on the New Haven’s first ten Alco PAs (Class DER-3a - #0760 to #0769 diesel-electric-road) delivered in 1948. In 1949, seventeen more PAs arrived and were painted in a Pullman green with gold stripes scheme similar to the Alco DL-109 (Class DER-1). The first ten engines were repainted into the green/gold scheme by the early 1950s. New Haven PA #0770 was delivered in 1949 so it was never painted in the original scheme and I think the colors on the model of #0770 are not authentic. Nonetheless, orange PAs and green DL-109s were both seen on the New Haven Railroad in 1948 and probably pulled heavyweight and “American Flyer” passenger cars.
The PAs were initially assigned to passenger service on the Shore Line between New Haven and Boston. Unlike the DL-109s, which had two 1,000 horsepower 539-T engines, the PAs each had a single four-cycle V-16 Alco 244 engine that developed 2,000 horsepower at 1,000 RPM and were geared for 80 miles-per-hour. In 1953, the New Haven’s fleet of 27 PAs were re-geared for 90 miles-per-hour and the last one was retired in 1965.
MELGAR