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Fitting an athearn shell on a Bachmann Frame

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  • Member since
    April 2009
  • From: Staten Island NY
  • 1,734 posts
Fitting an athearn shell on a Bachmann Frame
Posted by joe323 on Monday, August 16, 2021 12:40 PM

I have a Bachmann GP 35 Frame that I would like to put an Athearn Shell on.  Is it possible and modifications would be needed?

Joe Staten Island West 

  • Member since
    January 2009
  • From: Bakersfield, CA 93308
  • 6,526 posts
Posted by RR_Mel on Monday, August 16, 2021 2:07 PM

Any shell swap is possible, just depends on how much work you want to put into it.

I swapped a Rivarossi Krauss Maffei ML-4000 shell to an Athearn PA-1 frame.




The Krauss Maffei only had two axles powered in the rear truck and that was terrible.

The Athearn has all six axles powered.





Now it has all wheel drive and is a very nice runner.  As well as 12 wheel power pickup, the Rivarossi frame only had 4 wheel power pickup, two wheels off the front truck and two wheels off the rear truck.


Mel
 
Modeling the early to mid 1950s SP in HO scale since 1951



My Model Railroad    
http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/
 
Bakersfield, California
 
Aging is not for wimps.

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