Marklin SpurZ 8876

On June 21, 1931, Franz Kruckenberg's Schienenzeppelin (Rail Zeppelin) set a railway speed record that would stand for 20 years! Traveling on a track between Hamburg and Berlin, the prototype high-speed railcar sped along at 230 km per hour for approximately 20 km.

The Rail Zeppelin was never put into production, but it attracted attention wherever it went. A BMW airplane engine was used to power a four-blade wooden propeller that pushed the light-weight railcar through the air. The construction of the body was similar to the then-popular Zeppelin airships and the interior was spartan; this train was not luxurious.

The failure of the Rail Zeppelin has been attributed to everything from the dangers of using an open propeller in crowded railway stations to competition between Kruckenberg's Flugbahngesellschaft company and the Deutsche Reichsbahn's separate efforts to build a "Fliegende Zuege". The Schienenzeppelin was, however, an important part of the evolution of high speed passenger rail transport and continues to attract the attention of railroad fans and hobbyists.

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