Here is a quick special edition of Rapido News to let you know of our latest activities in the world of real railroad heritage preservation.

On 8 January 2016, I found out through the grapevine that a large proportion of Canada's surviving RDC (Rail Diesel Car) fleet was going to be scrapped in a matter of days. We set out to try and save one before it was too late.

On Thursday 14 January, Chris Fox and I flew to Moncton for the day. Chris is a locomotive mechanic and restorer. He resurrected the TRHA's LRC locomotive in 2014. The RDCs had previously been owned by Industrial Rail Services (IRSI), a railcar rebuilding firm that shut down a few years ago.

Below is a photo of Chris on the roof of an RDC in the scrap line. He was checking to see if it had rads or fans. (It didn't.) It was cold, windy and slippery. But you gotta do what you gotta do...

I have been negotiating since the 14th to save one of the RDCs from being scrapped, and I am delighted to let you know that we have successfully purchased and saved former VIA Rail Canada RDC #6133. This RDC was originally Canadian Pacific/Dominion Atlantic RDC #9058, and spent most of its working life in the Maritimes, in Quebec and on Vancouver Island.

Thanks to current and former CN employees Luc Doiron and Wendell Lemon for helping us inspect and choose 6133. An extract from the Bill of Sale is below.

Chris and I are going back to Moncton next week to do our best to arrange the loading of 6133 onto a flatcar and shipping her by rail to the Toronto area. If you have a good contact at CN or with a crane operator in Moncton, please let me know ASAP.

Here is a photo of 6133 when she was first in service in the Maritimes. Note the DOMINION ATLANTIC lettering above the windows.

We did not budget for this RDC purchase, and we are gratefully accepting contributions to the cost of moving 6133 to the Toronto area and restoring her to operation. We estimate the move cost at $25,000 and the initial restoration at $20,000.

We are not a charitable organization, and we can't offer a tax receipt for contributions. Whatever we do not raise through contributions, we will pay out of pocket. There is no business case for saving 6133. It just had to be done.

Please click on the DONATE button below to contribute. Every little bit helps.

I am actually in the middle of writing a massive product newsletter as we have seven (SEVEN!) different HO scale locomotive variations that we are announcing next weekend at the Springfield Show. But it was a pleasure to be able to take a break and put together this quickie newsletter to share with you the good news about 6133.

Just from our Facebook post last night, we've already raised over $1400 in donations, much of it in small amounts of $25 or less. That shows you how many people care. So thank you very much to everyone who has contributed. It's nice to know that the RDC (and 6133 in particular) holds a place in many railfans' hearts.

I will be in touch next weekend!

Best regards,

Jason