Intermountain SD40-2 !!11!

[kalbert]

Whatever the -2 project is, it better be exquisite, DCC, and cheap. I'll believe it when I see it, as those are the 3 corners of the triangle. There's room for someone to do -2's in road names that Kato doesn't, and with a level of accuracy the old Bachmann's don't measure up to. It seems like Intermountain is in the best position to give it a go, they have most of the legwork done, and have interest in doing a wide variety of road names. If it hits the shelves at anything close to the price of a Kato the door is pretty much closed for anyone else. IM could crank those out like they do the 4750 hoppers, new paint jobs and road numbers every month, special runs or undec for the historical societies, custom builders, etc... No they aren't an exact match for every 4750 under the sun, but IM is certainly getting a lot of mileage out of them simply because with the right paint job they can about pass for anything.

[Jeff AKA St0rm]

A lot of talk about how good IM SD40-2W's look in regards to whether they are a good purchase .... to be honest, for me they are, but .... I still haven't bought any.

Why? Because I have yet to have anyone tell me how they run.

I have 6 tunnel motors that I regret purchasing, not because of poor/inaccurate detail, but because of how they perform. They run pretty smoothly, at least as well as the Atlas loco's they are decended from, but they are such weak pullers. I have grades on my layout, and a pair of tunnel motors pull barely half what even a pair of Atlas geeps can manage!

Sadly I don't have a physical LHS store her in the UK where I can view and test run loco's prior to purchase, I have to rely on Internet stores, basing my decision on forum reports and photos.

Unless someone can tell me that IM loco's have significantly improved tractive power then their release is as worthless as the '-2 project' rumours.

Cheers,

Kev

Have you added any weight to the locos? I found that my IM SD45-2 would only pull 6 cars up a 2% grade so i looked at them and found that i could add weight to them. I added peel and stick tire weights to the frame. Here are some photos noticed the 3rd there is still room under the shell for more weight. How they will pull 12 cars up the 2% grade. Look to see if there is room in the -2t to add weight.

[Denver Road Doug]

Whatever the -2 project is, it better be exquisite, DCC, and cheap. I'll believe it when I see it, as those are the 3 corners of the triangle. There's room for someone to do -2's in road names that Kato doesn't, and with a level of accuracy the old Bachmann's don't measure up to. It seems like Intermountain is in the best position to give it a go, they have most of the legwork done, and have interest in doing a wide variety of road names. If it hits the shelves at anything close to the price of a Kato the door is pretty much closed for anyone else. IM could crank those out like they do the 4750 hoppers, new paint jobs and road numbers every month, special runs or undec for the historical societies, custom builders, etc... No they aren't an exact match for every 4750 under the sun, but IM is certainly getting a lot of mileage out of them simply because with the right paint job they can about pass for anything.

So you want it cheap, and you don't care how it runs.  (no mention, anywhere, of performance)      IMHO, that is where the problem lies...people are still so focused on that 1980's price tag that they are truly willing to sacrifice quality for it.   

Give me Kato performance, (and I consider DCC not even a discussion at this point) and all of a sudden I'll give you some wiggle room on the rest.  But, I believe we can have Kato performance, a "Kato+" fidelity shell, and an Atlas release schedule...for about a 15% jump in price over Kato.   IMRC locos already cost more than comparable Katos, so that kinda blows up your triangle anyway...despite the fact that they also don't have Kato performance.   Or a Kato+ fidelity shell.   Fox Valley appears to be on the right path to what I would like to see but they still have "attention to detail" problems that will hold them back.   Kinda glad they switched gears over to the Gevo/70ACe arms race versus Kato...it'll help them cut their teeth on a few more releases until they finally get to the SD4...err...whatever their next locomotive is.

There is EASILY room for a 3rd, maybe even 4th manufacturer of n-scale SD40-2's, especially given Kato's limited release schedule.    I'm not saying IMRC diesels are BAD, I'm just saying that if Kato decided to go toe-to-toe with them like they are with FVM, it's no contest and Kato would bury them.   With FVM (or maybe a newly-tooled Atlas) I think it's a different story.   In reality though, with the SD40-2 there's no *need* to go head on with another mfg....there are plenty of schemes and phases to go around.

[Philip H]

So you want it cheap, and you don't care how it runs.  (no mention, anywhere, of performance)      IMHO, that is where the problem lies...people are still so focused on that 1980's price tag that they are truly willing to sacrifice quality for it.   

There is EASILY room for a 3rd, maybe even 4th manufacturer of n-scale SD40-2's, especially given Kato's limited release schedule.    I'm not saying IMRC diesels are BAD, I'm just saying that if Kato decided to go toe-to-toe with them like they are with FVM, it's no contest and Kato would bury them.   With FVM (or maybe a newly-tooled Atlas) I think it's a different story.   In reality though, with the SD40-2 there's no *need* to go head on with another mfg....there are plenty of schemes and phases to go around.

Excellent points.  I bought one of the recent Katos in undec to do as a KCS Ghost - a seminal SD40-2 Scheme that neither Kato or IMRC have announced (yet).  I stripped another Kato from the BNSF Pumpkin scheme to do in KCS Grey.  IF these new IMRC's run well, and the DCC is an easy conversion, I MAY buy two of the them to do a KCS SD40-3 in Retro Belle, and an all yellow MOW Cab-less.  But I agree - if they don't run well they can roll all the Ghosts they want and they won't see a dime of my money.

If you want an SD40-2 at 1980's prices, go get an old Bachmann one (or the even older Con Cor's that seem to be flooding eBay).

[ryan_wilkerson]

IM just sent an email out...here's the link to the SD40-2 page.
http://www.ircmodelersclub.com/reservationflyers/RF0214NSD40-2s.htm

Interesting that we'll see sound, road specific details and etched parts applied.

[soo]

I hope these models are knockouts,, so all the negative nancy's can eat lots and lots of crow.

Wyatt

[trainforfun]

They run fine, imo. I have 7 of them (and two more on order) and I haven't found any that run poorly at all (I have three tunnel motors, so I have something to compare to). I think the Kato mech is better by far, but they run as well as any Atlas SD50/60. I was apprehensive enough to buy a fleet of Kato SD40-2's to re-power them, but haven't seen the need to (the Kato's will find other uses, like chassis for SD40-2F's). Now, I ran them on my Unitrack oval and not on a layout, but they were in trio's on a 30 or so car train, DC only. I will be upgrading the trucks with Kato wheels and gears, which many claim improve performance.

I have no way to really test their tractive effort.

I will try to make a comparaison pulling test . Your picture are showing a lot of details , there maybe no thread on the walkway but there is separately applied stanchions .
I will compare a KATO SD40-2 , tunnel motor and SD40-2W on grades and all . I will throw in an Atlas SD60 just for fun .

[Denver Road Doug]

I hope these models are knockouts,, so all the negative nancy's can eat lots and lots of crow.

We'll let you buy 'em and test em out for us...we expect a detailed report on your findings by October 1st.   

[6axlepwr]

I hope these models are knockouts,, so all the negative nancy's can eat lots and lots of crow.

Wyatt

I'll be happy to eat crow on this one because it will be a good benefit to N-scale and a step in the right direction. I am not so confident I will have to though.

If you look back at their SD40T-2 release notification, it claimed " Look for outstanding detail - comparable to InterMountain's EMD FT's." As it turned out, not even close to the IM FT. I did see the new release notes on the new SD40-2 and it states "Extremely Fine Molded Details". It does not say anything about a smooth running mechanism. So there is a way out. "We never claimed it would operate well".

[drgw0579]

I know some of the people that work there.  They are in the local model railroad club and some of the best modelers in the area.  One of them actually had business producing high-quality kits of modern railroad cars.  And to top if off, BNSF has been keeping several SD40-2s at the local yard.

Bill Kepner

[Scottl]

Six months from now...

[soo]

Man, ok you guys win.. IMRC bites and everything that they are going to do is going bite also.

  TTHWE,,

  W

[6axlepwr]

I am not trying to be a winner. Just being realistic about my expectations from IM. I do not do reviews on models either. I WANT the IM SD40-2 to be a winner. I just do not expect it to be. I do not expect it to be even close to running as smooth as a Kato or have the fidelity in detail as an Atlas. It is simply their track record so far.

I do not believe IM is as serious about their N-Scale products as they are about their HO products. They can produce a beautiful autorack in HO, but will not put that same effort into N. That is my opinion.

[Philip H]

The most indepth reviews so far (YMMV):

http://www.spookshow.net/imsdt.html

http://www.spookshow.net/imsd45-2.html

http://www.spookshow.net/loco/imsd40-2w.html

[chessie system fan]

Looking at the flyer, it appears the variations are short nose with ratchet or long nose with brake wheel, anticlimber or no anticlimber, horn location, horn type, vent on cab or not, large or small snow plow, corrugated or chicken-wire grills, hatch door or no hatch door on dynamic brakes, and antennae or air conditioner where applicable.  Anything I missed?

Here's two of the numbers.

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/atsf/atsf5053gea.jpg

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=19752