BLI Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad (GM&O) E7s and Erie E8s

[Ntrainz1]

Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad (GM&O) E7s and Erie E8s

https://pioneertrains.com/

[jargonlet]

I had hoped that kato would do the Erie units but you take what you get. I’ll be buying a pair of stealth.

[thomasjmdavis]

I had hoped that kato would do the Erie units but you take what you get. I’ll be buying a pair of stealth.

Maybe me too.  Should there be "radio equipped" lettering below the cab side window (not shown in the graphic on the referenced page)?  I have one of the Walthers edition upgraded Life Like units that has the lettering.  Is it date/era/unit specific?

[garethashenden]

Are these a special run for Pioneer Trains? I don’t see them listed elsewhere, but I haven’t looked at too many places.

[Sokramiketes]

Are these a special run for Pioneer Trains? I don’t see them listed elsewhere, but I haven’t looked at too many places.

Yes

[Mark5]

Maybe me too.  Should there be "radio equipped" lettering below the cab side window (not shown in the graphic on the referenced page)?  I have one of the Walthers edition upgraded Life Like units that has the lettering.  Is it date/era/unit specific?

I suggest that someone should reach out to Pioneer Trains.

According to this, Erie started deploying radios in 1948: https://books.google.com/books?id=m4szAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA9&lpg=PA9&dq=erie+radio+equipped&source=bl&ots=GOOH4f0fJX&sig=VkXCSP_AxNBetdAZX6UcCRmlKPg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjn47zc3_PYAhXkzIMKHXvOAmEQ6AEIWDAK#v=onepage&q=erie%20radio%20equipped&f=false

Here's a photo of #821 11/27/1960: https://www.rr-fallenflags.org/el/loco/erie0821lbC.jpg with "Radio Equiped" on the cab side.

Mark

[Peter Amling]

Gentlemen,

Thank you for your attention to detail! Looking back at the photos I have of 820 and 821, they all show the Radio Equipped on the side.

I started Pioneer Trains last year in an effort to bring more paint schemes and passenger trains to N scale. I just reached out to Broadway Limited to see if they can correct it.

Thanks,
Peter

[thomasjmdavis]

Yes

Are these for sale, or is this a pre-order situation and we might see them in a year if there are enough pre-orders? 

[Peter Amling]

This is a pre-order situation. However they are not conditional. They are being delivered along with all the other BLI E7s and E8s in the spring. The tentative date is May 2025.

[CBQ Fan]

Am I imagining things. I thought I saw a preorder discount yesterday, but it isn’t there now. The GM&O is very tempting.

[Peter Amling]

Am I imagining things. I thought I saw a preorder discount yesterday, but it isn’t there now. The GM&O is very tempting.

It' should be there when you add it to your cart.

[thomasjmdavis]

Just ordered mine, and yep, a discount in the cart.  Not a big discount, but this is essentially a limited edition, so I'm thankful there wasn't a big upcharge for the Erie paint job.

And Peter, prepare yourself for all the emails starting about May 25th, asking "Are they here YET???"

Ok, now, I need to find a $300 gift for my wife to be delivered the day before these show up.

[Peter Amling]

I'm preparing for the onslaught of emails.

Back on topic, it looks like when they were originally delivered, they did not have the Radio Equipped on the side. Here's a photo from April 1951 without the slogan. I'm not sure when they were added.

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/locoPicture.aspx?id=256333

[MRLX1020]

@Peter Amling

Thanks for the prompt response this week regarding the PayPal concern.  I wish you the best in this venture with BLI, and ordered a set of Stealth GM&O E7s to replace the earlier set I sold in 2018 (before there was anything to run with them)

Justin

[R L Smith]

Did a little research on the "Radio Equipped" slogan on the E8's. The first two "Erie Railroad" books by Morning Sun contain several photos, but most are from the late 1950's and the slogan was very prevalent by then.  That said, a unit at Corning NY in November 1951 does not have it. Another photo from 1955 shows 824 does not have it.  But, a John Long (Erie company photographer) photo dated "1952" shows 822 with the decal. 

The book notes that the Erie did not have complete system-wide radio coverage until April 1951, shortly after the E units were delivered.

And oh, another potential "problem".     When delivered, these units had much longer "wings" on the nose, and they were lower on the carbody.  They were replaced with what became the standard "wings" in relatively short order. So an "as-delivered" paint scheme would have a very limited market...

If I were the one making the production decision (thank goodness I am not), I would release these without the slogan and provide decals for the modeler to add.  I'm grateful Pioneer / BLI isn't duplicating the Walthers / Life Like road numbers.

Ron