Kato E8 Rock Island

[wcfn100]

Which version are they going for, as-delivered or 2000's repaint?


Jason

[CBQ Fan]

???

Looking at that instagram photo, I wondered if it might be an HO model.  If it is in N, it looks like they are doing a major upgrade- with etched grills and and maybe wire grabs, or that their paint shop has installled some new equipment to achieve the appearance of paint under the grill.  Beautiful loco in any case.

Someone asked if it was a picture of an HO model.  I do not see a listing for a Kato HO E unit on the website.

[Bobster]

Good evening/morning,

Great to see Rock Island news!!!!

A whole train may not involve Kato tooling up a bunch of new cars.  The CB&Q diner car released years back is a very close match for the 2 Centennial type Budd diners and the three early Golden State Budd diners, like Yucca, Sahauro (spellling), and Ocotillo.  Kato does the smooth side 6-6-4 sleepers in the Santa Fe set these could be painted for the RI and SP if doing a Golden State.  Kato also does the New York Central Lake Shore and Atlantic Shore lounge cars which the Rock Island later acquired.  The observation car in the Super Chief set is very similar to Rock Island's  Golden Vista and Golden Divan as built. externally one window on the right side if I remember correctly.  A smooth sided 4-4-2 would be needed for the Golden State.  It seems that Kato made a Union Pacific short baggage car that would be right for the Twin Star.  Kato also does a short Sta FE RPO  which if it had a corrugated roof would pass for RPO cars in the 510 series.

Baggage Dorm 820, and Golden Vista / Golden Divan, and non Golden State  RI coaches were made by Rivarossi years ago and really show their age.  Bachmann produced what should have been the Golden Rocket's observation car La Mirada but they put a Budd corrugated roof on it.

Much as an E6 would be great I believe that mostly E7's started on the Golden State later the E8's followed on.  The Golden Rocket was a non-starter as only the RI built and painted any cars for it.  These went into Golden State service.

Finally the Golden State would have to have a few Southern Pacific cars as it was a joint operation.  There were 5 train sets.  Some had more SP cars some had more RI cars.

I believe I got all this correct but it is very late for me.
Thanks for your time,
Bob

[CBQ Fan]

There was also the Zephyr Rocket which had an interesting mix of Q and RI cars.  Lightweight cars, heavyweight cars, modernized heavyweight sleepers and some express freight cars up front. Usually pulled by one E each way. I would have to dig out a book or two for more details.

[ncbqguy]

It will be interesting to see if Kato can loosen up to keep their factory and business going...
Like Walters with their general public diorama subscription program, Kato is trying to sell to the S.T.E.A.M. Market in Japan in the face of kids not getting electric trains as toys.
I would doubt they would ever do the Zephyr Rocket with its eclectic mix of Q and RI cars... Budd, P-S, and Betterment streamstyled heavyweights ZEPHYR TOWER and  ROCKET TOWER.  I’d buy two sets just to get fodder for the four TOWER cars the Q had....
Charlie Vlk

[CBQ Fan]

It will be interesting to see if Kato can loosen up to keep their factory and business going...
Like Walters with their general public diorama subscription program, Kato is trying to sell to the S.T.E.A.M. Market in Japan in the face of kids not getting electric trains as toys.
I would doubt they would ever do the Zephyr Rocket with its eclectic mix of Q and RI cars... Budd, P-S, and Betterment streamstyled heavyweights ZEPHYR TOWER and  ROCKET TOWER.  I’d buy two sets just to get fodder for the four TOWER cars the Q had....
Charlie Vlk

I would be shocked if Kato made the Zephyr Rocket but with the handful of cars out there from other manufacturers you can get something that looks close without a ton of effort. Do a little modeling and you can get even closer.

[Leggy]

Looking at that instagram photo, I wondered if it might be an HO model.  If it is in N, it looks like they are doing a major upgrade- with etched grills and and maybe wire grabs, or that their paint shop has installled some new equipment to achieve the appearance of paint under the grill.  Beautiful loco in any case.

If you zoom in you'll see it's all paint, no wire grabs, no etched grills, just fine paint application on molded details. The grilles are the biggest giveaway when zoomed in (screenshot the image).

[wcfn100]

In addition to the unique equipment of the Zephyr Rocket, to make a full run from Minneapolis to St. Louis, you need two different RPO cars.  One for each road.

Jason

[squirrelhunter]

I think since the Rock had a fair bit of uncommon equipment like double vestibule PS coaches and 8-6 and 8-6-4 sleepers, Kato may just be best served by doing like they did for the IC sets a few years ago and piece together 5-6 RI cars that they have accurate or pretty close prototypes for.

I think that would be the Budd RPO, the Budd prewar coaches, the Budd prewar diner, the smoothside 6-6-4, and maybe just paint the ATSF Super Chief obs for one of the Twin Star parlor lounge or Golden State sleeper lounge cars?

[Bobster]

Good evening,

The Rock Island E8's and E9's had a variety of paint schemes with maroon and red, and silver.  maroon red and gray, solid maroon, solid "Chicago"red, red and yellow,  UP yellow and the 652 Centennial scheme with red, "bankruptcy" blue, several types of lettering and a huge white star on the nose.  E8 645 would be a great number as it kept its windows through most of its many paint schemes.  A RI red and gold E6 (630 final paint scheme)  would be really great for a Peoria Rocket or Chicago commuters.

If I may continue the Zephyr Rocket thread drift....

RI E6's were used initially on the Zephyr Rocket (ZR).  Later on RI E7's.  The Q started with E5's and later provided E7's and E 8's.  In later years the RI provided 6-6-4 sleepers to replace the heavyweight sleepers.  With all the head end cars there are lots of switching opportunities.   Silver Fountain, a Kato release,  appeared  on the ZR as a diner/parlor observation sometimes from Burlington Iowa South to St Louis.  RI had similar Pullman Diner/Parlor/Observation cars St. Louis and St Paul.  Rather than go on I would suggest Greg Stout's Route of the Rockets for a better car breakdown. 

It looks like Railsmith produces 2 ZR specific RI coaches Waterloo and Mistletoe.

On a more unpleasant note the cars with earlier mentioned vestibules on both ends were divided cars and were used in the southern states for segregation purposes. The section for white riders was larger and had access to the diner.  The smaller section had no access to the diner.  The cars were built with restrooms on each end.

Thank you, good night,
Bobster

[eja]

On a more unpleasant note the cars with earlier mentioned vestibules on both ends were divided cars and were used in the southern states for segregation purposes. The section for white riders was larger and had access to the diner.  The smaller section had no access to the diner.  The cars were built with restrooms on each end.

Thank you, good night,
Bobster

How sad.

[wcfn100]

This project came across Twitter today and can be pre-ordered through Kato.

https://www.katousa.com/onlineshop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=157

Looks like they are going with the museum paint job. 

Jason

[CBQ Fan]

I put my preorder in.

[thomasjmdavis]

According to the ad page on the website, the loco is painted as it appeared "in the early 2000s
https://www.katousa.com/onlineshop/images/176-5365-KB1_03.jpg

Here is the loco as it appeared in real life on the Midland Railway in Kansas
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMD_E8#/media/File:Rock_Island_locomotive_652.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EMD_E8 (the photo of 652 with caption is on the right of the page to illustrate an E8)

[wcfn100]

According to the ad page on the website, the loco is painted as it appeared "in the early 2000s
https://www.katousa.com/onlineshop/images/176-5365-KB1_03.jpg

Ha! Well good on them to advertise it correctly.  Red and orange LOL, not in my world. 

Jason