I am so thankful Mr. Fukushima from Japan contacted me about the decals I am in the process of making.
Through him a lot of questions were answered.
This is all interesting for collectors and from a history point of view.
Problem: around late 2013, I found out Kumata had some EP-2s, mostly in kit form, collecting dust.
I offered to buy all of it- which was 10 kits and 1 ready to run.
The problem was it was a puzzling challenge to know what I had.
Here are the 11 boxes-- but you can see the names have been scratched out. So what was in the box was not related to the label any more. In fact, the fully painted one is on top with the sticky note- and the box says Hiawatha Painting.
So there were three labels.
They read:
Black Painting
Hiawatha Painting
and Milwaukee Painting
And I had three variations of models. But which was which.
As for identity, I saw three details.
Sandboxes/no sandboxes
Diesel horn/no horn
open nose door window/plated over nose door window.
The plated window simply had to be later.
But I confess I was confused and only guessing with the rest.
And to make it MUCH more confusing, KMT had a paper insert in the boxes.
Notice- the black has no sandboxes, the cigar scheme is actually a streamlined version- which was not even the same model. And the black and experimental have no horns.
And to make matters worse-
1. Did KMT paint one in the Experimental Scheme as shown middle?
2. Is the experimental scheme the "Hiawatha Painting"? Or is the Hiawatha Painting the cigar scheme?
Questions and confusion.
All I know is... one of the variations was a really good starting point for the 1948-1949 Railroad Fair locomotive. It was just one locomotive. And it looked like this only for the fair. Milw Rd removed the sand to lighten it, and they removed the entire boiler-- filling the boiler room with batteries so the thing could move in the show under its own power. But 1. There WERE diesel horns, and 2. Once the show was over, they put the sandboxes back.
Here is my finished model.
Well, now with Mr. Fukushima's info, my questions have been answered- and I was not that far off in my guesses.
The original EP-2 was produced by KMT for NJ Custom Brass in multiple scales (N, HO, and O). The N was made in 1983.
Mr. Fukushima says that he bought his newer model at the Kumata store and the President told him the following.
In the late 1990s, Hallmark was commissioning Kumata to make an all-new EP-2. The additions would be 1. a plug (a better plug- since the old one had one?); 2. cooling coils and piping on the roof; 3. horn; and 4. sunshades.
But Hallmark cancelled the project.
Overland picked up the project- and OMI has produced a nice EP-2 in HO. So on the N models, at Overland's direction, additional improvements were to include 1. pantograph equalizer, 2. working headlights 3. a better motor. But then OMI cancelled the project. So finally, Kumata just decided to do the project anyway, and then sell it in Japan.
Most of that was new info for me. When I was purchasing, the President of KMT told me that they had planned to sell the model in the USA, but the exchange rate was not favorable at the time. I always assumed he meant in the 2000's AFTER these models were produced. But with this new info, maybe (without giving me the full story), he was talking about one of the reasons OMI bailed out BEFORE the models were made.
Mr. Fukushima sent me photos of his model.
From them, you can see it is indeed the newer model, and it is the same 1948 Railroad Fair loco that I built!
So his is the "Hiawatha Painting."
So now it all makes sense.
The Black Painting is this model.
Sandboxes, horn on the A end, and window on the nose.
This one is the Hiawatha Painting.
No sand, no horn, and open nose windows.
And this one is the "Milwaukee Painting".
Sand, horn, and plated nose window.
My assembled and painted model is thus a Milwaukee Painting version.
So that about sums it up.
A few other important facts-
1. None were painted in the experimental scheme- so that paper insert is misleading.
2. My painted loco and all of the kits do not have a plug. In fact, it is one reason why the models as-is run poorly even compared to the old NJ models. I instinctively added a two-pronged plug. So if OMI was originally wanting them, what happened?
3. KMT did a pretty good job, but their research and planning could have been better.
Sorry to sound like a next day quarterback, but here is what could have been better/different- based on my research to date.
A. I have seen no photo so far of a black EP-2 with a horn. Would love to see one if out there. So the FIRST diesel horn I can find is on the 1948 Railroad Fair #E3. It is *possible* the #E1 in the experimental scheme had one- but all I see is a spot for one (older parts removed) - but no horn.
For reference, here is the only and best/clearest photo of the experimental scheme I have found to date. A end is right. B end is left. On the B end, between the bell and the cab, notice there is nothing there. That spot is where that hoop thing was (which I believe was the steam whistle). However, in this photo I can see no diesel horn yet installed. My guess is it probably had one (removed for servicing?) or was about to get one.
B. One of the things that separated the old NJ model from the newer ones was the sandboxes. The EP-2s were delivered in late 1919 and early 1920 with NO sandboxes. So an NJ model best represents 1919/1920. But by about 1921, All EP-2s had sandboxes except for one loco for one moment-- and that was the 1948-49 Railroad Fair #E3. And after the fair was over, they put the sandboxes back. I would have made all the models with sand.
C. Earlier in this thread I showed how that dome-curved shaped thing near the cab was a problem. I'm still only guessing, but I think that dome is where the original steam whistle was housed. So it would be accurate for the Black Painting. But I've never clearly seen it on a non-black EP-2. So Kumata should have removed it-- which is what I'm doing on all the rest, except for the first one I made.
D. Lastly, though not that critical- the "helpful" paper insert KMT provided was actually confusing since the drawings did not match TWO out of the three variations.
Mr Fukushima says he has a friend who has one model of each paint scheme.
I would love to see an actual shot of them.
Thanks again Mr. Fukushima for your help.
