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 #15:

FDNY Engine 73/Ladder 42

“La Casa Caca/La Casa Elefante”

The fifteenth release of First Due Firehouse Replicas:

FDNY’s “La Casa Caca/La Casa Elefante”

Code 3 produced replicas of FDNY Engine 73 in 1998 and Ladder 42 in 2001. These companies are known as La Casa Caca and La Casa Elefante in the Bronx—the fifteenth release from First Due Firehouse Replicas.

About the Firehouses

Engine 73’s firehouse was erected in 1900 at 659 Prospect Street, The Bronx, New York City. For the next 13 years, this single engine company covered the Longwood section of the South Bronx. Ladder 42’s firehouse was erected in 1913 directly adjacent to Engine 73’s firehouse.

Engine 73’s two-story Northern European Renaissance Revival building was designed by Horgan & Slattery, and Ladder 42’s three-story Neo-Classical house was designed by Hoppin & Koen. Both buildings were landmarked by the City of New York in 2013.

Engine 73 was organized in 1900 and Ladder 42 was organized in 1913. Both companies have remained at their respective firehouses for over 100 years.

Engine 73 and Ladder 42 saw heavy action during the famous war years. In 1969, Engine 73, Ladder 42, Squad 2, and Battalion 55 responded to a mind-boggling twenty-five thousand runs.

Due to the deteriorating conditions, both firehouses were closed from 1999-2001 for renovation. The nickname of the engine company refers to the fragrance of the basement during the pre-renovation period. The ladder company’s nickname refers to the large size of many of the firefighters assigned to this company.

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 released replicas of FDNY’s Engine 73 in July of 1998 and Ladder 42 in October of 2001 (not included with firehouse purchase). Engine 73 was part of the 3rd series of FDNY Seagrave pumpers (the others were 46, 235, 283, and 292).

Ladder 42 was a unique release as it shared the same body as the Seagrave rear-mount ladders from series 1 and 2, but it was released later independently in 2001. This final release of this mold has unique painted lines detailing the lights on the front of the cab as well as a red ladder tip. With only 1,500 models produced, Ladder 42 is by far the lowest production run of all the Code 3 Seagrave rear-mount models.

Engine 73:

• Seagrave (series 3, #12302-0073, 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:

659 Prospect Street

The Bronx, New York, NY 

Years in Service:

1900/1913-present

Companies Quartered:

1. •Engine 73 (organized 1900, quartered Nov. 1900–present)
   

2. •Ladder 42 (organized 1913, quartered Nov. 1913–present)
   

3. •Squad 2 (organized 1955, quartered August 1955–1976)
   

4. •Battalion 55 (quartered Oct. 1968–1988)
   

Website:

http://www.e73l42.com

Videos:

Brand New FDNY Engine 73 Responding Out Of Their Station

(code 3 response, 2014)

Release Date:

• May 2022

Dimensions:

• Base width: 10.5 inches

• Base depth: 14 inches

• Building width: 10.5 inches

• Building depth: 12 inches

• Building height: 10.5 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 (if applicable: 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 $379 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.

Ladder 42:

• Seagrave (#12722, 2001)

The Special Services Ladder (SSL) unit was built in-house by our First Due Shops. A printed sheet of unit numbers is included with the firehouse to assist in converting existing models.

SSL-42:

1. •Ford F-150 (chassis and cab by Greenlight, body and paintwork/decals by First Due Shops, 2021)