Athearn 2-8-0

[RDG_Rich]

Mailman just delivered my first from the 'bay.

All I can say is wow. The pictures on Athearn's website don't do this little gem justice, and I threw it on the test loop...dead quiet, and great low speed performance out of the box. I didn't need one, but I couldn't stop myself for the price.

I dug around in Steam Locomotives of the Reading and P&R Railroads ~ Wiswesser, and it turns out the Reading's I class camelbacks shared similar dimensions to my new toy. I1, I2, and I5 classes all had 50" drivers and small 20" to 22" cylinders. The boiler diameter is good, and overall length and wheelbase are darn close enough. The major difference is the smokebox length. The models is several feet too long, and of course the tender is too short, but I can live with that (considering the motor is wedged in there).

When I first got into the hobby, Father Nature had camelback conversion kits for the then MDC connies. I haven't seen any since, so I suppose I'll have to roll my own.

Athearn isn't as nice as B-man or Atlas as far as adding an exploded diagram for this locomotive, so I am really pensive about tearing this thing apart. Anyone know of somewhere to look to find some info about this model?

Thanks

[brokemoto]

Erie Chris made a camelback out of something, but I forget what it was.  Maybe he will read this topic and post his camelback.

It is easy to take this one apart.  Do be careful of the plastic plug in the locomotive that holds the drawbar as it breaks easily and 'Athearn don't sell no parts'.  (Parts? YOU don' need no' stinkin' parts!).  If you unscrew from the tender, you will have better results.  The drive shaft will pop out of its U-joints easily.  There are two screws under the cab and one under the pilot truck and the superstructure slides and lifts off.  The locomotive frame is made from halves.  Do be careful, lest you damage the whistle.  The tender trucks will also come off.  Be careful when you reassemble the drawbar.  Make sure that there is one wiper on either side of the contact posts.  You can take the trucks off the tender on the Athearn 2-8-0 (but DO NOT take them off the
MDC 2-8-0).  Athearn constructed its 2-8-0 utilising the updated construction methods that MDC used on its 2-6-0.

You are correct, this is a great little locomotive right out of the box.  I recommend it without reservation (and the 2-6-0) to anyone.

[Chris333]

I did a 4-4-0, actually I sold it and have started working on another one.

I think there are P&R camelback drawings in MR.

[RDG_Rich]

Well, I can take it apart and put it back together again, without the usual "optional" parts leftover. 

What I didn't realize is that the boiler is cast metal, as is everything else but the cab. All of the parts appear to be press fit in place, but I didn't test it. This does however pose a bit of a problem, because the domes need to be relocated, the smokebox shortened, etc..

And my machinists tools include files, a dremel, and cordless drill. This could get ugly.

Looking around my book some more, P&R did have a locomotive almost identical to the model, built by Baldwin in 1888, but rebuilt in the Reading shops as an I5-a in 1892. So I could opt just to repaint and decal this one and call it a day. Then the problem becomes rolling stock.

[up1950s]

I think it looks a bit like this .

http://users.adelphia.net/~brmetcalf/rr/consol/drgw670.jpg

http://www.blwnscale.com/blwphotos/l280M-drgw.jpg

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Someone over on the Atlas forum did a REALLY nice job of converting one to that Rio Grande engine.

3rdRail also has a couple of nice conversions into Pennsy H3 (R)s.

I'm VERY tempted to get one of these myself.

[brokemoto]

There is a screw underneath the firebox that holds the cab in place.  You must remove the locomotive superstructure from the chassis to access it, though.  That is the one gripe that I have with the construction of this thing.

The coal load is a snap-fit.  If you remove it, there are four screws, one in each corner of the tender.  Unscrew them, and you can remove the tender shell from its chassis. 

The mantleclock headlight is a press fit.  You can work it out, slowly.  I had to remove it to 'update' some of my MDC moguls.  In two cases, I simply cut it down, but in one case, I chopped off the fixture, replaced the platform and put a generator on it.  I then drilled a hole in the smokebox cover and attatched a headight fixture to the center of it.  The bulb will shine through a hole in the center of the smokebox cover.  I have never tried to remove the smokebx cover, so I do not know if it will come out.  The whistle is delicate, so I have never tried to do anything with it.  I did break one, the first time that I tried to take apart one of these, so I cut open one of my Kato parts bags, took out the whistle, enlarged the hole in the steam dome and replaced the factory whistle with the Kato whistle.  Too bad that Kato no longer sells that parts bag.

And Ed, buy one. Your former employer is selling them cheap.  Buy a few wood cars and run an excursion train.  I often recommend the Athearn/MDC power and the wood cars to those who start a topic asking what they should buy for an excursion train on a brickhead pike.  Be careful, though, there is one other brickhead who recently acquired some steam and is showing signs of...............................

[hegstad1]

Someone over on the Atlas forum did a REALLY nice job of converting one to that Rio Grande engine.

I'll take credit for it!  It was actually an NP unit that I did.  The Rio Grande unit came up as part of the discussion.



The thread can be found at the following link

http://forum.atlasrr.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34069&SearchTerms=Northern,Pacific,F-1

Andrew Hegstad

[up1950s]

Not as nice , but here is one I did for "The Beaver" .

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Someone over on the Atlas forum did a REALLY nice job of converting one to that Rio Grande engine.

That's the one! That thing is so absolutely gorgeous. Wow.

I'll take credit for it!  It was actually an NP unit that I did.  The Rio Grande unit came up as part of the discussion.



The thread can be found at the following link

http://forum.atlasrr.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=34069&SearchTerms=Northern,Pacific,F-1

Andrew Hegstad

[TiVoPrince]

Anyone
know of a way to cut the tender down by a third?  I would love to build one as Sierra 18 but that tender is way too tall.  Remotoring may be an acceptable option if DCC can still be crammed in...

[hegstad1]

Anyone
know of a way to cut the tender down by a third?  I would love to build one as Sierra 18 but that tender is way too tall.  Remotoring may be an acceptable option if DCC can still be crammed in...

Re-motoring would be the only option as far as I can tell.  Luckily on the NP unit, they swapped out the original tender for one with larger capacity.

Ed,  Thanks for the compliment!

Andrew Hegstad