Kato NYC 20th Centurty Limited - PWRS, official announcement soonish?

[Mark5]

Honestly in looking at who owned FP7s the fact that they made one at all is impressive.

Lots of roads that Kato could do:
WP (California Zephyr) - that's one I will buy if they ever do it.
ACL
ARR
AWP
CEI
CGW
C&O
FEC
L&N
MILW (of course!)
NP
PRR
RDG
RF&P
RI
FRISCO
SOO LINE
SOUTHERN
UP

& Others that I missed.

 

[wcfn100]

Erm, hasn't every single named train with the exception of the daylight been offered with some forum of an F unit?

Not by my count.  Just the Super Chief/El Cap, COLA and CZ.

I'm talking about getting something made now. Kato could have just as easily made something different than the Olympian Hiawatha utilizing their E8s and F3/7s, but instead went with all new tooling.  Same with the 20th Century Limited.




Jason

[ncbqguy]

I haven’t checked for literally decades, but the JNR EF65 had the same truck centers as the EA Shovelnose units and I think the CRI&P TA.  Back in the day I figured out the Con-Cor gas turbine trucks would work in the old EF65 mech but never tried to build a shell for it.  Maybe that would normally cut down on tooling costs but that is not the way it works at Kato-the factory will do a new mech instead.
Charlie Vlk

[pjm20]

Erm, hasn't every single named train with the exception of the daylight been offered with some forum of an F unit?

The Broadway Limited had the GG1 besides the E8.

[CBQ Fan]

Not by my count.  Just the Super Chief/El Cap, COLA and CZ.

I'm talking about getting something made now. Kato could have just as easily made something different than the Olympian Hiawatha utilizing their E8s and F3/7s, but instead went with all new tooling.  Same with the 20th Century Limited.




Jason

What F unit was released with the COLA?

[CBQ Fan]

Lots of roads that Kato could do:
WP (California Zephyr) - that's one I will buy if they ever do it.
ACL
ARR
AWP
CEI
CGW
C&O
FEC
L&N
MILW (of course!)
NP
PRR
RDG
RF&P
RI
FRISCO
SOO LINE
SOUTHERN
UP

& Others that I missed.

 

There is a distinct difference between what real roads existed and which ones Kato have the potential to make.  Outside of Pennsylvania and the yet to be released NYC train, there are no Kato eastern name trains. So you can cross off any eastern road from that list and most of the smaller west coast roads. CEI’s sexiest passenger train was..........hmmm. 

[Mark5]

Well then, I guess we're stuck with the NYC E7 for a while then. 

[CBQ Fan]

Well then, I guess we're stuck with the NYC E7 for a while then. 

I guess the nice thing is KATO makes what they announce! 

[wcfn100]

What F unit was released with the COLA?

Yeah, you're right.  Not sure what I was thinking.

Jason

[thomasjmdavis]

CEI’s sexiest passenger train was..........hmmm. 

1954 "New" Dixieland.  Ran Chicago to Miami across territory of 5 railroads that pooled resources to buy new Pullman sleepers, also carried an FEC observation, and in winter months a leased C&O sleeper-lounge obs (square end) ran mid train, in addition to the FEC obs on the tail.

Could also make a case for the Georgian (Chicago to Atlanta) with L&N and NC&StL.  But since it only occasionally carried an obs (the C&EI tavern-parlor), not likely to be done by anyone as a set.

And for that matter, the Whipporwill, Chicago to Evansville (the contact point for L&N to southeast destinations)- only ran for a year (ended when the Georgian started running through to Chicago), for which that obs was built.  Coach streamliner, with that parlor-tavern-obs tacked on the end and a full diner.

[altohorn25]

I know Lowell Smith is doing it, but the Texas Special is one heck of a pretty train.  Two E7's and 12-14 cars.

[Point353]

What F unit was released with the COLA?

[prr7161]

If the number in the artwork is correct for a phase 2 unit (4008, which was delivered in 1947 if my source is correct- http://www.trainweb.org/emdloco/nyc.htm ) that would seem to indicate that EMD adopted phase 2 in 1947, and that the E7s delivered 1947 through 1949 were phase 2 ( or is there a phase 3?).  Problem is that from the day they were delivered, it appears that a lot of roads' repair shops (and maybe EMD itself) mixed and matched side panels, added and subtracted windows and louvers, and there were several "custom" variations, and some got E8 parts later in life.
The NYC units certainly look like they would be good stand ins, even if not exactly correct, for a lot of the E7s out there.

I got curious and did some poking around, looking for the earliest possible photos of various numbers.  It looks like the artwork shown for the 4008 is a body style first adopted as-built in early 1948 on NYC 4024 and later numbers http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=3451879.  But the two configurations seem to be simultaneous - PRR 5880 was delivered as a phase I in early 1949, over a year later http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=5287273.  And as you mentioned, there was a lot of tinkering going on.  Here's an early photo of NYC 4008, in a trial black lightning-stripe scheme http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/nyc/nyc4008wka.jpg, and in 1953 with more ventilation cut in http://www.godfatherrails.com/photos/pv.asp?pid=75.   Or, for comparison, PRR 5842 as-built in 1948 https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt%3APRR-1021-5842-4 and as modified in 1953 http://www.godfatherrails.com/photos/pv.asp?pid=753 (photo's a bit dark , but the extra ventilation in the front part of the loco can be seen).  So, yes. there may be some mileage folks can get out of the Kato model as a stand-in for a lot of later-life E7s.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I suddenly really want a nice and grubby PC E7.

Anyone taking odds on Kato doing an Englewood station next?

[greenwizard88]

The Broadway Limited had the GG1 besides the E8.

The E8 is just a stretched F unit

Seriously though, I should have said streamlined diesels with a cab in front, and no cab in the rear. That's E units, F units, and even P42s for Amtrak... From a few feet away in a display cabinet, they look similar, save some window placement and the color everything is painted. Perhaps I was painting with too broad of a brush though.