FIRST DUE FIREHOUSE REPLICAS

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 #36:

FDNY Rescue 3

“Big Blue”

The thirty-sixth release of First Due Firehouse Replicas:

FDNY’s Rescue 3 “Big Blue”

FDNY’s highly-specialized Rescue Company 3 protects the borough of the Bronx and northern Harlem. Their former quarters on 176th Street in the Bathgate section of the Bronx was located three blocks north of their current stunning Washington Avenue firehouse—the thirty-sixth release from First Due Firehouse Replicas.

About the Firehouse

Rescue 3’s firehouse was designed by Polshek Partnership Architects and was the first FDNY firehouse designed specifically to accommodate a rescue company. The building was also the first firehouse constructed under the design excellence program of the New York City Department of Design and Construction.

The building’s aluminum facade and zinc-clad roof distinguish it as a commanding and secure civic structure, while its oversized FDNY-red apparatus doors reinforce the FDNY’s identity and welcoming presence in the community. The firehouse exterior consists of colorful Alpolic panels, Mapes panels, flat-lock zinc panels, a standing seam roof, skylights, and clearstory windows.

The space is organized into ‘dirty’ and ‘clean’ functional spaces—the ground and basement levels contain tool storage, work areas, and the apparatus bays; the second level consists of rest, study and dining areas; and the mezzanine features a training and fitness space. The design for this facility captures the essence of the FDNY—toughness, strength, stalwartness, discipline and generosity.

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 Collectibles produced two versions of FDNY’s Rescue 3 (not included with firehouse purchase).

Rescue 3:

• HME/Saulsbury (#12701, 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

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

Location:

1655 Washington Ave

Bronx, New York, NY

Years in Service:

2009-present

Companies Quartered:

1. •Rescue 3 (organized 1931, quartered Nov. 2009–present)

Release Date:

• November 2023

Dimensions:

• Base width: 13 inches

• Base depth: 12 inches

• Building width: 13 inches

• Building depth: 10 inches

• Building height: 7.5 inches

Features Included:

1. •Black base with 2 inch apron in front
   

2. •Removable roofs
   

3. •Working apparatus bay doors (slide them into any position with the touch of a finger)
   

4. •Flag/Flagpole
   

5. •Printed firehouse fact sheet booklet
   

6. •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 eight 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.

In its organization, the building is an analogue of the company’s apparatus rig—

the most important piece of equipment in the house. All spaces in the building are

strategically located in relation to the centrally-placed rig, but are stacked to

accommodate the restricted site.

Our replica of Collapse Rescue 3 was created from a Corgi Juniors Ford Cargo truck for the cab, the rest was scratch built.

Collapse Rescue 3:

• Ford Cargo (custom made by First Due Shops, 2023, cab by Corgi Juniors)

Building Awards:

• Award for Excellence in Design,
  The Art Commission of the City of New York (2007)

• New York Construction, Best of the Year, Merit Award,
  Government/Public Buildings (2010)

Code 3 produced a version of FDNY RAC (Recuperation and Care) Unit 4 which can easily be converted to RAC 3. A printed sheet of unit numbers is included with the firehouse to assist in converting existing models.

RAC 3:

• Ford E-350 (chassis and body by Code 3 #12068, 2002, decals by First Due Shops, 2023)

Greenlight produced a version of FDNY EMS Division 3 which can easily be converted to RAC 3. A printed sheet of unit numbers is included with the firehouse to assist in converting existing models.

RAC 3:

• Ford Transit (chassis and body by Greenlight #53020, 2023, decals by First Due Shops, 2023)

Rescue 3:

• Emergency-One (#12693, 2004)