Supertrain

Models

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Supertrain Models

NBC reportedly spent in the neighborhood of five-million dollars for the "Supertrain" sets and models. For only 10 one-hour episodes, that's half a million dollars per hour for the minatures and sets.

Supertrain Large Model

Pictured above and at the top of this section is the 3/4-inch-to-one-foot scale model. This was the smaller of the two operating models created for the series. Shots with this version of Supertrain were done in a Burbank, California Lockheed aircraft hangar. Like the larger version of Supertrain, this model also worked via remote control with its engine located not in the locomotive, but inside one of the passenger cars. The engine was apparently too large to fit into the loco, and needed the double-decker space provided by the Supertrain passenger cars.

For departure and arrival shots, the Supertrain locomotive and the first passenger car were constructed across three movie sound stages an MGM Stage 27 in Culver City, California. The rest of the train appears behind the first passenger car, but is only a background painting. The full-size passenger car is 64-feet in length, 26-feet wide, and 22-feet tall.

The largest operating Supertrain model was used for outdoor location shots. This version of Supertrain had a 3,000-foot snap-track layout that could be set up in various locales to add realism to Supertrain's operations.

The above scene with Supertrain crossing this tall steel trestle with mountains in the background is an impressive shot. It is also one of the more common publicity shots of the models given out by NBC. However, no episode contains this scene.