FIRST DUE FIREHOUSE REPLICAS

Website by Andrew Benzie Creative Design.

About the Owner/Designer/Builder/Author

Andrew Benzie began collecting model emergency vehicles in the 1970s when his grandparents gave him his first Corgi and Dinky toy fire engines. He has an extensive collection and knowledge of Code 3 models, and has published three books on Conrad, Siku, and Tomica emergency vehicles. Andrew currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area where he runs a design and book publishing company, and plays bass and drums with several local bands.

First Due Firehouse Replicas

Release #32:

FDNY Engine 9/Ladder 6/Satellite 1

“Chinatown Dragon Fighters”

The thirty-second release of First Due Firehouse Replicas:

FDNY’s Engine 9/Ladder 6/Satellite 1 “Chinatown Dragon Fighters”

Code 3 produced a replica of New York City Fire Department’s Engine 9 in April 1988 as part of their second series of FDNY Seagrave pumpers (the other releases were Engines 42, 45, 58, and 279). Together Engine 9, Ladder 6 and Satellite 1 are known as the Chinatown Dragon Fighters—the thirty-second release from First Due Firehouse Replicas.

About the Firehouse

The Chinatown Dragon Fighters firehouse is located at 75 Canal Street, Manhattan, New York City. The building was erected in 1968 to better protect the Chinatown section of lower Manhattan. The structure contains a unique ‘screen’ design element which covers nearly the entire second floor facade.

Ladder 6 was first established as a volunteer company on September 27th, 1865 at 180 Clinton Street. They relocated two years later to their new firehouse located at 77 Canal Street. Engine 9 was established on September 29th, 1865 as a single volunteer engine company at 55 East Broadway. Engine 9 and Ladder 6 moved in together to their new firehouse at 75 Canal Street on May 6th, 1969.

Satellite 1 was organized in Brooklyn on October 1st, 1965, and a month later relocated to Manhattan. After spending time at numerous locations, Satellite 1 moved in with Engine 9 and Ladder 6 on November 22nd, 1975. Satellite 1 is part of the Maxi Water System (ex-Super Pumper System).

The Dragon Fighters are part of the FDNY’s 4th Battalion (along with E15, E28, E31, L11 and L18). Their first due response area includes a variety of commercial and residential buildings, a hospital, and incidents occurring on the Manhattan Bridge.

About the Replica

First Due Firehouse Replicas goes to great lengths to capture as much accuracy and detail as possible within each model we produce. Once the research is completed and a firehouse is chosen to replicate, the process involves taking photographs, creating an architectural building plan, assembling and editing the photos to digital 1:64 scale artwork, printing the artwork on glossy poster-quality paper and mounting the prints to foam-core board. Next the walls are cut out using a professional-quality mat cutter (to achieve 45° angle cuts for joins), and each model is then assembled by hand. Additional exterior details are added including air conditioning units, railings, exhaust vents, etc. Finally, remaining small details are hand-painted, the custom-built apparatus bay doors are installed and the raising of the flag completes each firehouse replica.

Fore more information about this product, please see our Frequently Asked Questions page. If have any further questions, please Contact Us.

Code 3 produced a replica of FDNY’s Engine 9 in 1998 (not included with firehouse purchase). Unfortunately they never released a replica of a Ladder 6, but they did release three FDNY Seagrave tiller trucks (Ladder 147, 175, and Bureau of Training) which can easily be converted. A printed sheet of unit numbers is included with the firehouse to assist in converting existing models.

Engine 9:

•Seagrave (series 2, #12300, 1998)

About the Apparatus

How to Order

You may Place an Order for any of our products online. Once we receive your order we will contact you via email with more information about availability, payment, shipping costs, etc.

About Us Firehouse Replicas Custom Models Fleet Services FAQ Contact/Order

Join our Facebook Group where you can learn about upcoming releases and share photos of your own models.

About Us Firehouse Replicas Custom Models Fleet Services FAQ Contact/Order

Location:

75 Canal Street

Manhattan, New York, NY

Years in Service:

1969-present

Companies Quartered:

•Engine 9 (organized 1865, quartered May 1969–present)
•Ladder 6 (organized 1865, quartered May 1969–present)
•Satellite 1 (organized 1965, quartered Nov. 1975–present)

Videos:

FDNY Dragon Fighters – Chinatown Ladder 6 + Engine 9 (code 3 response, 2017)

Release Date:

• May 2023

Dimensions:

• Base width: 11.5 inches

• Base depth: 14 inches

• Building width: 11.5 inches

• Building depth: 12 inches

• Building height: 8 inches

Features Included:

•Black base with 2 inch apron in front
•Removable roof
•Working apparatus bay door (slide it into any position with the touch of a finger)
•Flag/Flagpole
•Printed firehouse fact sheet booklet
•Apparatus re-number sheet (a poster-printed sheet of apparatus numbers you can use to convert existing models into units quartered in this firehouse)

Pricing:

Our introductory price for this firehouse replica is $429 plus shipping (Note: the models of the apparatus are not included). The price covers the cost of the photo-quality prints (starting at about $50), the building materials (various paper, foam, plastic, wood and metal products), and around ten hours of time to construct (not including the many hours of preparatory research and design time spent to create each prototype model). Note: We create each or our replicas by hand—this is NOT a 3D printed or laser cut model.

Ladder 6: