After seeing all the Vids of KATO's new GS 4 Daylight locomotive pulling 18 cars up a 4% grade my curisoty got the better of me so I decided to see how many passenger cars the Con Cor Daylight loco can pull on a 4% grade. A brief background history of the Con Cor loco. Con Cor working with KATO did a GN S2 4-8-4 locomotive. They were then going to do a SP Daylight loco, I have a KATO Japan catalog, planned new releases were always shown as color drawings in the front. At the same time UP E Units and passenger cars were shown there was a GS4 loco, this probably would have been a Con Cor Locomotive,but Con Cor and KATO severed their ties. Fast Forward, Con Cor re ran the GN loco now made in China with a KATO-like drive. This was followed by their Daylight GS 4 loco, usuing same GN drive which makes the driver size just under prototype size. The grade on the branchline on my layout is close to 4%,problem is sharp curves, I have never ran big steam or six axel diesels on this line, but found I could start right at the bottom of the grade which has curves that are not so sharp. To be fair I used only KATO Passenger Cars. An 11 car Cal Zeph set, then addational KATO cars. Results: the Con Cor Daylight locomotive will pull 14 free rolling KATO Passenger Cars up a 4% grade. Not bad considering the drive is baisically a KATO 1980's design mech. No I don't have a camera that would allow me to take photos and post them on Youee Tobee,you will just have to take my word on this. Nate Goodman (Nato). Salt Lake, Utah.
