Kitbashing an RS2m

[caldreamer]

I am kitbashing an Alco RS2 into an RS2m. It is a very simple and interesting kitbash that would replicate those that ran on the RI, Frisco and the MKT railroads.

["JaBear"]

Interesting kit bash of an interesting locomotive. While photos would be nice, what are you using as donors?

Cheers, the curious Bear.

[caldreamer]

I am in N scale and am using a Kato RS2 as the doner locomotive. I had an old GP7 shell in my parts box. I cut the body of the GP7 dirctly behind the cab. keeping the only the superstructure. The RS2 shell was a spare as wrll. I cut the superstructure cut from directly behind the cab as well. The RS2 nose and cab were placed on the drive. I lighlty sanded the GP7 superstructure square untill it was squaree and a perfect fit. I am in the process of painting it. The RS2m will then be decaled. It has a decoder and it will be ready to work on my railroad.

["JaBear"]

N scale!! Good grief, I find keeping things square while kit bashing in HO scale enough of a challenge!

Well done, no doubt being Kato, you’ll get hours of reliable running.

Thanks for the reply.

Cheers, the Bear.

[caldreamer]

Thank you Bear.  My question is was the RS2's and varients ever used in a yard to switch cars?. I know never say never when it comes to what railroads did, but does anyone know of any examples?

["JaBear"]

You’d think that the name Road Switcher would be a dead giveaway, but no! A quick search indicates that the Rock Island RS2 locomotives as delivered were used both for local passenger service, and for local freights, in which capacity in the latter, it would certainly appear that they did switch out industries.

 

The only mention, and you can make of it as you will, of switching a yard, is this 1971 photos caption “Putting a train together” showing CRIP 451, an RS2m. 

 

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2722749

 

Cheers, the Bear.

[Overmod]

caldreamer

My question is was the RS2's and variants ever used in a yard to switch cars?

If you mean in place of something like an S4... interesting question.  Most of these locomotives had more value 'out on the road' than flat-switching in reserved service.  I do think the six-motor units were sometimes used in hump service, and slugs built from them certainly were, but I don't know of any that used RSD4/5s as slug mothers.

When I was a child and we moved to Tenafly, NJ in the late 1950s, there was a small yard north of the passenger station, and RS units worked the drill/peddler freights as well as the commuter trains.  It was not unusual to see careful placement of cars on several tracks for unloading, plus carloads of lumber for the local business to handle with their straddle loader (always a treat for a kid!)    

[DrW]

The Santa Fe had an interesting use for some of their RSD5s. When steam ended, tail-to-tail coupled RSD5 pairs replaced the 2-10-2s as helpers on the Raton Pass.

https://www.railpictures.net/photo/424246/