[Eilif]

Maybe smooth running, but pretty rough looking.....

Ha! That's true. Thr plastic rails are integral to the frame and look all busted off, but some Athearn stanchions and wire could have it looking halfway decent.

I'd still like to get one of these in the orange AMTRAK MOW livery.

 

[CTValleyRR]

I am sorry for the overload, I am trying to identify which locos I have and understand what someone means by a Consolidated, a Niagra, or a GP35, and so forth. I am probably not going to sell the units in the photos, I have a separate box of those. I have looked at some of the lists you mentioned, but have trouble matching the real life photo with the unit on the layout. One responder suggested searching through EBAY and I will try that approach.
Thanks for the responses,

Well, yes, it's a ton of information to assimilate, but you need to start doing it. Just on the steam, every wheel notation has a "name", sometimes more than one, associated with it. Does it do you any good to know that you have a "Consolidation" of you don't know what that means? I'll help you on that one -- it's a steam locomotive with a wheel configuration of 2-8-0 -- two non-powered wheels (one axle) under the pilot of the locomotive, 8 drivers (powered wheels) and 0 trailing (unpowered wheels). The rest of the steam works the same way.

Likewise, a lot of the diesels look similar at first glance. You need to start getting a feel for what an ALCO diesel looks like. How about a GE model? What is it that makes it one or the other? Otherwise, just run your GN diesel. Does it really matter if it's a GP-18 or a GP-25? GP and SD models are made by EMD.

 

[CTValleyRR]

And for people responding, the OP is not looking to identify what brand of model he has (Athearn, Atlas, Model Power, etc). He wants to know what REAL WORLD make and model locomotive it represents.

 

[East Houston]

Well, yes, it's a ton of information to assimilate, but you need to start doing it. Just on the steam, every wheel notation has a "name", sometimes more than one, associated with it. Does it do you any good to know that you have a "Consolidation" of you don't know what that means? I'll help you on that one -- it's a steam locomotive with a wheel configuration of 2-8-0 -- two non-powered wheels (one axle) under the pilot of the locomotive, 8 drivers (powered wheels) and 0 trailing (unpowered wheels). The rest of the steam works the same way.

Likewise, a lot of the diesels look similar at first glance. You need to start getting a feel for what an ALCO diesel looks like. How about a GE model? What is it that makes it one or the other? Otherwise, just run your GN diesel. Does it really matter if it's a GP-18 or a GP-25? GP and SD models are made by EMD.

CT Valley,
Thanks you for the response. I am trying to be better able to recognize the various models and talk somewhat intelligently about what is running on the layout. Also, I would like to be aware of what locos should be pulling freight and/or passenger cars.

 

[East Houston]

Ha! That's true. Thr plastic rails are integral to the frame and look all busted off, but some Athearn stanchions and wire could have it looking halfway decent.

I'd still like to get one of these in the orange AMTRAK MOW livery.

I am told the previous owner's grandkids got into the layout, but did not know you had to have electricity to run the things. So they pushed the locos and cars around by hand; lots of damage to couplers and small details, but mostly repairable.

 

[Old_Hobo]

It can take a while to learn all the types and makers.....I am fairly comfortable with all the older locomotives, but I couldn’t tell you anything about the modern ones, just not interested.....but I have been doing this since 1986, so......

 

[East Houston]

Someone mentioned my Pennsy FA2 units were Proto 2000; however, the chassis are stamped Life Like. From some searching, it appears Proto 2000 and Life Like are one and the same. Is this true? There appears to be some history here.

 

[Old_Hobo]

Life Like stepped up their game and produced the Proto 2000 line back in the 90’s.....Walthers bought Life Like about 16 years ago, and now produce the Proto 2000 line as their Walthers Proto line......

 

[East Houston]

Thanks Old Hobo,
There seems to have been a lot of buying, selling, and consolidation among the model train manufacturers over the years.

 

[Eilif]

Thanks Old Hobo,
There seems to have been a lot of buying, selling, and consolidation among the model train manufacturers over the years.

That's very true. Some model train tooling has passed through several companies over many years.
Here's a case study tracking one example over 6 decades.

Evolution of the Varney 40' Gondola. Update 12/30/19!

UPDATE 12/30/19. A friend comes through with another clone for comparison. Jump to the end to see. One of the interesting aspects of the...

chicagovalleyrailroad.blogspot.com

 

[CTValleyRR]

Someone mentioned my Pennsy FA2 units were Proto 2000; however, the chassis are stamped Life Like. From some searching, it appears Proto 2000 and Life Like are one and the same. Is this true? There appears to be some history here.

Lifelike made 3 product lines, the regular LifeLike models(Tyco trainset quality), and their higher end Proto 1000 and top of the line Proto 2000.

After the Walthers acquisition, the basic LifeLike went away (Walthers rebranded their basic models "Trainline"), and Proto 1000 (or 1K) and Proto 2000 (2K) became Walthers Mainline and Walthers Proto, respectively. Proto 2K, now just Proto, remains among the best plastic models you can buy -- silky smooth drive trains and highly detailed.

One issue that DID plague early Proto 2K locos was a tendency for their drive gears to crack. Fortunately, it's a pretty easy fix.

 

[Old_Hobo]

Yes, those gears were cracked brand new, in the box....very few of those early ones were not cracked......

However, the fix was/is easy, and when fixed, they are amongst the best running locomotives around.....I have 22 of them.....

 

[East Houston]

My FA2s are quiet running; so I assume no cracked gears. I guess the gears you mention are in the trucks.

The only problem I have with the FA2s is the drive belt for the radiator fans. Any idea where I can find them or should I just find a rubber band to fit?

The link that Eilif sent was very interesting. I just finished a book on Lionel manufacturering where the tooling was valuable enough to warrant storage vaults.

Interesting. Thanks to all for the information.

 

[Old_Hobo]

Just find a rubber band to fit.....I doubt you can get original replacement parts on those, they are long out of production now, and parts are no longer available from Life-like, as we have discussed.....

 

[East Houston]

Thanks Old Hobo. Just as the rubber bands from my braces fit the old Athern locos.