Review: Athearn RTR P42

[CP5415]

After asking Bergie about us reviewing the various products that we have bought, & Bergie giving the green light, I thought I'd start it off.

I purchased this one back in December.

Liked:

Detailing, many small pieces installed.
Paint, crisp, correct fo VIA, I've heard that the shade of green is off, but unless I take it down to the Train station & put it against a real one, no one is going to be able the tell.
Ran rather quiet.

Disliked:

Needed to lube the drivetrain after about the second lap around my 9X12 layout.
Nothing in the parts listings telling me where to take the body off.

Overall:

I'm pleased with my purchase & will probably pick up another when the funds are available.

Gordon

[Anonymous]

Model Power N-Scale FP7/FP9:

Bought one of these about a year or so ago, mine's in Amtrak livery. The loco has a metal modyshell and chassis, twin-flywheel motor, all wheels driven and pickup on all wheels. There is also a working headlight which doesn't suffer from the common problem of light leakage. Paintwork is nicely applied with crisp lettering and numbering.

As people may or may not know, the FP-series locos were EMD F-units stretched to carry larger train heating boilers. The model is noticably longer than a normal F, and has the correct longer space between the lead truck and the fuel tank. The body is a nice, crisp casting with plenty of rivet detail present. To remove the body you simply squeeze the fuel tank at the sides to unclip it, the bodyshell will then just pull off after you unscrew the front coupler.

Problems:

There are a few. While I welcome the addition of an FP in N, I just wish a few things could have been done differently. For example, the wheels are bright chrome rather than blackened, I'm not entirely sure about the shape of the nose (though this could be due to the livery), somehow it looks too flat. The motor is also a bit odd. As delivered, mine was wired backwards. I simply turned the motor over to fix this, but the motor mounting system is a bit weak - the motor has considerable "slop" in the mountings. The loco also has a pronounced wobble when cruising along at a reasonable speed, probably due to the motor. I also had problems with the metal body rattling until I used some masking tape on the chassis to insulate it. I'll probably try to stiffen the motor mounting at some point as well.

So, would I buy another? Overall yes, as I said, this is the only RTR FP model that I know of in N, and most of the deficiencies can be corrected. I'm currently trying to find suitable knuckle couplers for my loco as it came with "Rapido" type couplers. It runs well apart from the wobble, and will move at reasonably slow speeds. I intend to buy another when I can afford to do so.

PS. Would people be interested in reading reviews of other model RR equipment apart from US-outline? I have a collection of Fleischmann German N-scale and I would recommend these products to anyone. If anyone's interested I'll post some advice/reviews on Fleischmann and European models in general?

[AntonioFP45]

Purchased: HO Scale Proto 1000 RDC. New Haven Railroad scheme

Liked:
Great price: $45 Brand new!
Working twin beam directional headlights.
Solid, heavy car! This little beauty is a BRICK!
Very smooth runner, can creep to a stop.
Runs reasoably quiet. Very "slight" noise at 60 scale mph but not irritating at all.
(Still quieter than my friend's SD75 Athearn Genesis!)
Good body detailing and interior.

Criticisms:
Body paint job (NH only) slightly grainy. ( Smooth in the other paint schemes offered.)
No interior lighting.

Overall:
I was very surprised by this model! I originally bought new at a train show to GUT the motor to put into one of my Bachman Amtrak Metroliner cars that I'm currently rebuilding into Penn Central. After running the RDC on my test track, I was so impressed with it that I've decided that my future layout could have RDC service since I will be running New Haven passenger trains, anyway. I plan on buying one more NH RDC to make this a two car set as the prototype didn't pull any trailers.

Modifications: Only items that I will be adding are:
DCC/Sound decoder.
Interior lighting kit from Richmond Controls.

Recommendation
I would absolutely recommend one of these units to anyone trying to decide whether to get an Athearn RDC the Proto unit. This Proto unit is an absolute winner!

[CP5415]

I second that Antonio. I have two of them, a CP & a B&M unit.
Both are relatively quiet & smooth runners.
I paid $90 Canadian for the CPR unit & $30 Canadian for the B&M unit. Both powered & new in the box.

Gordon