As you might imagine, I have nearly a dozen vintage Atlas/Kato RS-3 switchers, most of them custom painted for New Haven. I had always assumed it wouldn’t take much effort to retro-fit the vintage Japan shell on the China mechanisms, and the new DCC/Sound version was the incentive to upgrade my 40-year-old engines. I bought a couple of undecorated Sound units to upgrade my two L&HR units, which were already China made so the body shells simply snapped into place. The rest are decoder-ready units (ironically NH decorated) for which I bought the appropriate LokPilot decoders. What I didn’t know is how much effort it would take to mount the Japan shells onto the new mechanisms. It turns out to be very simple and requires only minor work. The new deck is preferable because of the better handrails and enclosed pilots. The vintage body must be cemented to the new deck as it does not contain the side tabs to hold it in place. The new handrails fit into the vintage slots. On the mechanism, the four hemisphere nubs must be filed off. The fit is snug enough that the vintage body will stay in place. Starting with decorated donor units avoids having to paint the decks and handrails.
As with the L&HR units, TCS KA-N1 keep alive can be hidden in the cab, but the hood roof underneath the cab must be removed so that there is enough clearance.
