I tried to find the NPC Berkshire but ended up getting both Holiday Mikados.
I have all 8 of the passenger cars and here is a few quick photos of a test run with the red engine.
I set up the Christmas scene after Thanksgiving in my office. I did run the North Pole Central freight set and the North Pole Central passenger set on separate tracks. Due to space limitation, I must use O-27 track in order to have more than a two loop layout. The 4-4-2 NPC engine did not pull the entire NPC string of passenger cars very well. The NPC freight car set operated fine with the 4-4-2. I used a 2037 to pull the passenger cars and it did quite well.
I recently gave the NPC freight set to my grandson and made up a Christmas freight using the 2037. I am now using a Williams to pull the NPC passenger cars and it works well.
As much as MTH copies Lionel, it is beyond me why a Lionel Rudolph NPC passenger car is not available. On the freight set we see an elf chasing the red nosed reindeer in a gondola. Who owns Rudolph anyway?
Wikipedia explains:
The story is owned by The Rudolph Company, L.P. and has been sold in numerous forms including a popular song, a television specisl (done in stop motion animation), and a feature film. Character Arts, LLC manages the licensing for the Rudolph Company, L.P. Although the story and song are not public domain, Rudolph has become a figure of Christmas folklore.
I’m trying this again, hope it works
No problems pulling, glad to report.