Rapido RDCs? I think so!

[Angus Shops]

Ooh, I don’t typically make purchases to “support the hobby”, but if  Rapido does CP RDC’s I might have to make an exception! They’d be in my time frame but outside my geographical area. I’ve never seen a photo of an RDC operating on the mainline in the Rock Mountains.…

[towl1996]

I cut a groove in the cracked part then glue in a small ring made from brass tubing.  I already have the photos documenting the procedure, I just have to create the write-up. I'm planning to use to for a future magazine article.

Looking forward to that article. Cutting that grove looks tricky.

[learmoia]

Knowing Rapido.  They will do a Roger Williams? Maybe even RDC5s

Weren't there both New Haven and B&M custom versions of RDCs?

[peteski]

Looking forward to that article. Cutting that grove looks tricky.

Not that difficult using a home made "hole saw" type tool I fabricated from brass tubing.  It self-centers on the coupling.

[thomasjmdavis]

There was a drop in decoder available at one time.  I think it was digitrax.


Jason

I have one of the digitrax. It is not exactly "drop in"- it is 4 small boards, 2 of which replace light boards.  For me, it is a bit simpler than a TCS CN-GP, but still requires more work than the common "drop in".

[railnerd]

I wouldn't get hopes up for N Scale B&M RDCs— in HO Scale, it wasn't a good seller.  I seem to recall the top selling RDC for Rapido was the SP single unit.  (I did buy an B&M HO RDC-1 and RDC-3).

Like others I grabbed fire-sale N Scale Kato RDCs for about $40 from various places.

-Dave

[peteski]

I wouldn't get hopes up for N Scale B&M RDCs— in HO Scale, it wasn't a good seller.  I seem to recall the top selling RDC for Rapido was the SP single unit.  (I did buy an B&M HO RDC-1 and RDC-3).

I guess you do have a point.  Makes sense. Even though B&M owned oodles of RDCs, there likely aren't many modelers with layouts depicting B&M.  So the sales numbers would reflect that fact.   Going by this, even if Kato produced B&M N scale RDCs, that would not have increased their sales by very much.  Why would for example someone modeling SP, NP, ATSF, PRR, NYC, or one of other railroads would pick up couple of B&M RDCs?

[Point353]

I guess you do have a point.  Makes sense. Even though B&M owned oodles of RDCs, there likely aren't many modelers with layouts depicting B&M.  So the sales numbers would reflect that fact.   Going by this, even if Kato produced B&M N scale RDCs, that would not have increased their sales by very much.  Why would for example someone modeling SP, NP, ATSF, PRR, NYC, or one of other railroads would pick up couple of B&M RDCs?

B&M wouldn't necessarily have to be a high sales volume road name in order for it to be produced on the Rapido N scale model.
Rapido takes pre-orders and seems to tailor their production quantities to closely match the number of pre-orders so that there aren't many leftovers.
As long as the number of those pre-orders at least meets whatever minimum production quantity Rapido requires, then the B&M units could indeed be made.

[Mark5]

B&O had oodles of RDCs ... many of them went to MDOT, which later became MARC. The last were retired in 1993 I think.

I rode on them a few times on the Brunswick line (MARC kept at least one in B&O lettering seemingly up to the end) - if someone did B&O I'd probably shell out the bux. 

On the Thomas viaduct: https://www.railpictures.net/photo/568102/

[Frank Amato]

Ooh I would even go for a pair of undecs to letter for Lehigh Valley or Reading.

  Frank

[ncbqguy]

And I will proudly point out that Kato USA was the only company that has done RDC 1, 2, 3 & 4 models.   Lionel perversely had an RDC 4 but only because the didn’t have to tool a shorter mechanism….they did one other version on the too-short one.  Con-Cor, Triang, Athearn, Kusan, Lionel, Marx,  Life-Like and even Rapido did not have all four units.
Charlie Vlk

[JMaurer1]

SP only had one. It operated on the NWP so I had to have one. I have one by Concor and one by Kato. That's still one too many...

[wazzou]

One of the things that turned me off about my KATO NP RDC was the kerning on the word "NORTHERN".
It had an unnecessary gap between the "H' and the "E" as seen in the pic.

[MK]

"H" ?

[wazzou]

"H" ?

Yep.  Fixed.  I think I fat fingered it, so to speak.