Got them in today, and I test ran a Great Northern F-45 for about 3 hours. I'd judge the top speed to be inbetween an Atlas "scale-speed" and a Kato. The one I ran would move very smoothly at minimum speed, about 1-2 seconds between ties on Atlas code 80 flex. Between 3-5SMPH there was some binding somewhere that made it hesitate, above that it smoothed out fine. BTW, I also ran it on a Digitrax Zephyr at 00. Makes some noise, but actually seemed to run smoother at slow speeds. ??? The GN is the "Big Sky Blue" paint. The top of the engine is actually green, a bit lighter than "Empire Builder Green", reminds me of the old Polly S "oily black". The blue is a bit(ahem) "intense". Darker and more saturated than the MT boxcars. Lettering nice and crisp. Painting is a little heavy, more appropriate for HO models IMHO. The Santa Fe "blue stripe" looks much better. The ATSF FP's are about at the limit on paint on the red "Warbonnet". It's not Atlas/Kato quality. There is a little vertical "float" on the pad printing of the FP's. If you compare several to each other, the "Santa Fe" lettering and the striping move about .01" closer to the seams in the body. Just enough I can see without magnifiers. The frame extends about 1mm below the shell(scale 6"), but the gear towers on the trucks are at least another mm tall, so it's a bit of a "high rider". New McHenry couplers work with MT's fine. Didn't have cars to test pulling power or how well the McHenry's stay coupled. Blue-white LED not obsenely bright. Without testing pulling power, I give it an 8, subtracting 1/2 point on the FP's for the paint, and another 1/2 point for the "high ride" look. Next week, I'll try pulling some cars and let you know how it goes. One excellent point are the very fine wire handrails, which make even Atlas handrails look bad. I guarentee you'll hate the inside molded packing insert, and the "jewel cases" come in a white slide-in cardboard box(strange).
