Kato September Announcements

[FloridaBoy]

I thought Kato's idea for a PC E8/9 was bogus until I saw that photo of the consist on this topic.  Now I want to get one.........Picture was sort of alluring, in a rustic sort of way.

Speaking of Chessie locos, the GPwhatever local freight switcher in Ft Lauderdale was an old Chessie unit in the colorful livery, brandished by a healthy supply of rust.  It has just been replaced by an old surplus CSX GP unit.  I think they're 38's because they have the 3 fans on top of the hood.

Ken "FloridaBoy" Willaman

[Bob Bufkin]

The Rainbow Era.  Couldn't say it better myself.

[CBQ Fan]

Philip.

You should have seen the kind of units Amtrak ran in the beginning.  Anything goes in those days.  One photo I wish I had taken was a Southbound Florida trainh with a Burlington silver early E unit on the headend at Alexandria, VA.  Believe it was an E5 or 6.  Amtrak trains in those days looked like a model railroader couldn't make up his mind what to model, so said the hell with it an ran anything he liked. 

May have been a Burlinton E-7, but E-5's did not make it to Amtrak and Burlington, while they tried to buy some, never owned any E-6's.  All E-5 where gone by 1968, Amtrak started around 1971 I believe.

[CBQ Fan]

I am loving all of this hodge podge of equipment being brought together and given new life!

[Bob Bufkin]

May have been a Burlinton E-7, but E-5's did not make it to Amtrak and Burlington, while they tried to buy some, never owned any E-6's.  All E-5 where gone by 1968, Amtrak started around 1971 I believe.

I remember the unit having a very slanted nose not your standard EMD bulldog nose. 

[Puddington]

I am loving all of this hodge podge of equipment being brought together and given new life!

Second the motion !

[Dave V]

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG

(thump)


...gasp...


Okay, so now which organ am I gonna hafta sell?  This is like Chuck-Pak pre-order #6 in the last 3 months!!!

[Dave V]

One question mark...  PC blanked out the porthole panels with sheet steel on most of its E8s...  Will Kato do the same?

I was just thinking about making these mods to a LifeLike E8 I have in 5-stripe Pennsy to make a beat-up PC unit.  Let's face it; the PC paint scheme isn't the hardest around...  In fact, the more you screw it up, the better it looks.

[John]

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG

(thump)


...gasp...


Okay, so now which organ am I gonna hafta sell?  This is like Chuck-Pak pre-order #6 in the last 3 months!!!

Darn good thing you got promoted ...

[CBQ Fan]

I remember the unit having a very slanted nose not your standard EMD bulldog nose.  

It may have been a slant nose but I know it would not have been a CB&Q unit:

Per the Burlington Bulletin #10
"Of the all time 114 E's, 72 made it to the BN: 19 E7's, 37 E8's and all 16 E9's.  Five E'7s were retired without receiving BN numbers, and the others were gone by mid-1972.  Amtrak bought 21 of the E-8's, nine went to the WSMTD and the other seven were sold for scrap.  All E-9's went to the WSMTD."

The E-5's in their final months were used in frieght service very unsuccessfully and were run into the ground.  All but the unit that went to IRM were traded in on SD40's or U25B's.  I am certain none were restored to the point by EMD, let alone GE that they were later resold to Amtrak over 3 to 6 years later.  In looking into Amtrak rosters I do not see any evidence of anything older than an E-8.  With the distinctive fluting on the side of the E-5 it would be near impossible to mistake it for an E-3 or E-6.  If the unit you saw was painted for Amtrak with the "bloody nose" red paint can give the impression of a slant nose.

[Mark5]

One question mark...  PC blanked out the porthole panels with sheet steel on most of its E8s...  Will Kato do the same?

Place your bets! (I'd bet Kato just slaps paint on 'em) - here's the unit Kato is doing in a scrap line:

http://www.wx4.org/to/foam/big_rr/illinois/ids_p07.jpg

[CBQ Fan]

One question mark...  PC blanked out the porthole panels with sheet steel on most of its E8s...  Will Kato do the same?

I was just thinking about making these mods to a LifeLike E8 I have in 5-stripe Pennsy to make a beat-up PC unit.  Let's face it; the PC paint scheme isn't the hardest around...  In fact, the more you screw it up, the better it looks.

Could you see the porthole outline or did they smooth it over completely?

[John]

I think  could live with the port hole .. it's not like it's a sight glass

[CBQ Fan]

I think  could live with the port hole .. it's not like it's a sight glass

Just buy a couple extra glass units and paint it to match!

[davefoxx]

Could you see the porthole outline or did they smooth it over completely?

I always thought that they replaced the rectangular panel in which the porthole was located, because that would seem to require less work than patching the circular hole.  Not unlike when the railroads replaced the lower panels when they rusted out.  But, that's mere speculation on my part.

DFF