Fox Valley GP60M's

[SkipGear]

So I opened up my GP60Ms today and I think I know why the light is basically non-existent at the ditch lights. The light tube in the GP60M is very angular compared to the light tubes of the FVM GEVO or even other Kato locomotives which have more of a curve down to the front. What I'll probably end up doing is cutting the light pipe near where it enters the floor and install an additional 0603 in hopes that it transmits light better.

Has anybody tried painting the pipes with silver or alclad / spaztik chrome paint to keep more light in the pipes? I have good luck doing that to steam headlights that use light pipes.

[tehachapifan]

Has anybody tried painting the pipes with silver or alclad / spaztik chrome paint to keep more light in the pipes? I have good luck doing that to steam headlights that use light pipes.

I painted the fiber optic light tubes silver on a Kato SD40-2 I added ditchlights to and it actually robbed light somehow. Was really surprised.

[Wutter]

I painted the fiber optic light tubes silver on a Kato SD40-2 I added ditchlights to and it actually robbed light somehow. Was really surprised.

I've actually had the same result with ditch light pipes in a Kato F40PH. I think its because the light pipes are just molded and curved plastic and not more of a fiber optic-type material because I've definitely painted over fiber optic without any issue of light transmission at the ends.

[peteski]

Painting plastic light pipes changes the properties of the surface which is supposed to reflect the light back into the pipe.  Also, contrary to what seems to makes sense, white paint (not silver) works much better for reflecting light.

[w neal]

Please, nobody look at the shade of orange used on the BNSF GP-60s. Kinda bright.

[GaryHinshaw]

Ugh, really?  I have an HI B unit on order and I was hoping the color would be good.  The first run of FVM BNSF GEVO's was way too brown, the second run was neon bright (IMHO).  If it weren't for that, I'd probably own a lot more FVM locos.

[Scottl]

It seems to me a bright orange is easier to tame with some "fast fading" compared to a duller brown-orange?

[GaryHinshaw]

It seems to me a bright orange is easier to tame with some "fast fading" compared to a duller brown-orange?

Agreed - it's on my to-do list, but pretty far down the list...

[Scottl]

These GP60 models are impressive, I wish I could remotely justify one.

[davefoxx]

These GP60 models are impressive, I wish I could remotely justify one.

That didn't stop me.    But, I do love my GP60M.

[Leggy]

These GP60 models are impressive, I wish I could remotely justify one.

Follow Athearns lead?

[tehachapifan]

Oops....it appears you need to drill the holes for the ladder grabs straight back as the grabs themselves are skewed.

 Looks like I'll be using BLMA grabs instead as I didn't notice this until after I drilled the holes.

 I will also soon be posting a cautionary tale about trying to mess with the light tubes running to the ditchlights.

[Scottl]

Follow Athearns lead?

    Just say no.

[C855B]

Follow Athearns lead?

    Just say no.

Oh, I dunno. CN seems to be buying and repainting everybody else's stuff, so what's so preposterous about a GP60M? The Athearn foobie might even be prescient.

[tehachapifan]

OK, once again in the name of tinkering, I did some exploratory surgery to see how the ditchlight pipes were run on the FVM GP60M. The front walkway piece is a separate part from the rest of the walkway but was held in place with some glue, making it a bit difficult to pop off. Once I had it off, one side of the light pipe came out of the bottom of the ditchlight housing OK with some gently prying but the other side fractured at the base when I tried to pry it free. It appears the light pipes and the lenses in the ditchlights are separate pieces as well. I tried painting the light pipes white in hopes that this would help increase light intensity but, unfortunately, doing so robbed the light entirely. This is the second time I ever tried painting light pipes and I had poor results both times.