Product Features and Details
Locomotive Highlights:
Model: The Orient Express 310 Locomotive, in line with Roco's commitment to detailed craftsmanship, boasts an array of cosmetic intricacies. These include a superior paint finish, sharply rendered lettering, recessed windows, strategically placed brake shoes between wheels, and meticulously crafted interior details within the driver's cab.
Mechanical Features: Among the premier models available, Roco HO Gauge locomotives stand out. The class 310, specifically, showcases a fully operational, finely detailed Heusinger valve gear and a true-to-life "daylight" gap between the boiler and chassis, adding to its mechanical excellence.
Motor Performance: Roco locomotives are equipped with robust can motors featuring flywheels and high-quality gears, contributing to the model's exceptionally smooth operation and outstanding performance. With four powered axles in the tender, including two with traction tires, this locomotive ensures optimal traction and stability.
DCC and Lighting: The model incorporates a standard NEM 651 digital DCC interface, coupled with prototypical triple headlights on both the locomotive and tender. The lights are seamlessly coordinated with the direction of travel. Additionally, the model comes with profi close couplers, complemented by NEM 362 close coupler pockets, providing compatibility with a wide range of couplers. The close-coupling between the locomotive and tender further enhances its realism.
Construction: The model's foundation comprises a cast metal chassis, ensuring durability and stability, while the plastic shell encapsulates the intricate detailing. This combination of materials underscores Fleischmann's commitment to creating a model that excels both aesthetically and mechanically.
Passengers Cars:
Introducing an exclusive and highly limited Orient Express set by LS Models, featuring new additions such as luggage cars and sleeping cars that were previously unavailable. These latest LS Models Orient Express Cars exemplify true masterpieces, showcasing meticulously crafted interiors, raised letters, and crests, along with detailed undercarriages and various other sophisticated features. Every model within this set is furnished with interior illumination, and one of the baggage cars also boasts red tail lights. The lighting design is carefully calibrated to replicate the prototypical brightness of the 1930s, offering a simple and customizable feature for adjusting brightness in individual coaches.
The set comprises:
2 x F luggage trolleys (new design)
1x WL Y sleeping car (new design)
3x WL S1 sleeping cars
1x WR 43 dining car (new design)
Car composition:
- Fg Paris-Niegoreloje
- WR 42pl Paris-Berlin
- WL S Paris-Niegoreloje
- WL S Paris-Riga
- WL Y Paris-Kobenhavn
- WL S Calais-Niegoreloje
- WL S Oostende-Bucuresti
Orient Express Nord History:
In 1874, the visionary Belgian civil engineer and railway entrepreneur, Georges Nagelmackers, founded the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits (CIWL), also known as the "Orient Express" and the International Sleeping-Car Company. His ambitious goal was to create a network of opulent long-distance passenger trains across Europe, drawing inspiration from the renowned Pullman night trains in the United States. Among these envisioned connections was a direct cross-continental link between Saint Petersburg and Lisbon, aiming to seamlessly connect with ocean liners bound for America. However, the complexity of this concept proved insurmountable, leading to the emergence of two distinct connections: the Sud Express from Paris to Lisbon and the Nord Express from Paris to Saint Petersburg.
Before World War I
The Nord Express embarked on its inaugural journey from France to the Russian capital on May 9, 1896. This pioneering train service allowed travelers to traverse Europe in a remarkably fast and comfortable manner. To operate the Nord Express, CIWL negotiated contracts and timetable agreements with fourteen railway administrations, including nine Prussian administrations. Additionally, agreements were made for the ferry service across the English Channel between Dover and Ostend. The route extended from Paris and Ostend, with a connection from London, passing through Brussels, Cologne, Hanover, Berlin, Königsberg (now Kaliningrad), and Dvinsk (now Daugavpils) before reaching Saint Petersburg. Passengers traveling to and from Russia had to change trains in East Prussia at the German/Russian border due to the wider gauge of Russian railway tracks compared to those in Western Europe. In Paris, a connecting service to the Sud Express, bound for Lisbon, enhanced the overall connectivity of the Nord Express.
Interwar Period
Following World War I and the Russian Revolution, the train's route underwent modifications, shortening its journey to Warsaw and Riga instead of Saint Petersburg.
Post-War Period
In the aftermath of World War II, the "iron curtain" divided Europe, leading to a further redirection of the once-luxurious and, since 1951, ordinary night train's route. It now passed through Paris, Hamburg, Copenhagen, and ultimately reached Stockholm and Oslo. The advent of air travel and high-speed rail marked the eventual demise of this illustrious train. By 2007, its route had been further truncated, operating between Paris and Hamburg and completing the journey in 10.5 hours.
