Hello all ..thank you for pointing me in the right direction (s) .... I'll talk with Dr Poland at the next DuPage meet ... the western TCA divison site has quite a history about the Moskobel trains ...
http://www.tcawestern.org/moskobel.htm
...mine seems to be at the tail of the Stalin era and the beginning of the Khrushchev-era... based on the paper label inside ...so early 60's . ...I try and cut off my collecting at 1955 ..so perhaps one day I can trade this one in one of the very early ones..1951-55.
Ok engine #41 ..... Warning: these next words contain the mention of two rail and scale. #41 is a B Electric first introduced to the O scale world in 1938 by Thomas Bedell of VT ..... later carried by Baldwin of CT , additionally marketed by Walthers post war 1946-50 +- ..then continued in the Baldwin catalog till 1960 -+ ... The B Electric is a brick ...big and heavy, you put two motors in this monster and you are pulling everything you own .... scale yes but it dwarfs anything 1/4" ...and it's bigger than 17/64ths ( true scale for O gauge). The box cabs ( diesel electrics) were a cheap way for folks to get into O scale in the mid 1930's, also they could turn tightly for those with less than a 4000 sq ft basement ..... most commonly running with outside 3rd rail till 1940+ - ( 1940 was about the tipping point for the transition from outside 3rd rail to 2 rail in the scale world, for that point is the the tipping point for that little HO gauge rival to expand beyond the O gauge world , in the Model Railroad annual poles ).
please see link for a B electric in action running at the Milwaukee Model Railway Club , where it has run for 70 + years .
https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...ad-club-of-milwaukee
Cheers Carey
