SD50

[Anonymous]

I want to make an SD50 out of a Rail Power Products SD60. Do any of the Rail Power Products engines have motors in them and if so, do they come with handrails and so on.

[Anonymous]

First of all, Rail Power Products has been purchased by Athearn (see the press release at:
http://athearn.com/chicagoshow/RPPDW/rppdw.html). So, if you're fortunate enough to have found a shell or shell and frame, grab it. These kits are the shell only (or shell and frame for some models) and do not include the handrails, trucks, couplers, motors, lights, etc. and few are offered painted. However, they are designed to accept Athearn components, which made the purchase of RPP by Athearn seem natural.

In the scenario you present, i.e., kitbashing an SD50 from an SD60, a good starting point would be Athearn's powered SD40T-2, an RPP SD60 shell and frame kit, and about 36" of 0.015" wire (to bend your own handrails and use Athearn's stanchions). At this point, you can simply ignore the differences between the SD50 and SD60 and fire up the airbrush.

Should you choose to go the kitbashing route, you'll also need 0.010", 0.020" and 0.040" sheet styrene (for the new engine compartment sides) and the appropriate Cannon & Company doors to replace the SD60's engine compartment doors. You can add more details to your shopping list as you see fit. Since Cannon & Co. offer most of these detail components, this (expensive) process is known as "Cannonizing." RPP's shells are a great starting point (much better than the days of keeping loads of Athearn SD40-2 shells on hand!), but the longer you look at them and the more you long for "prototype fidelity" the more you'll start replacing "offending" parts such as RPP's cab, hood ends, fans, grilles, doors, blower ducts, anticlimbers, nose, brakewheels... you get the idea.

Since I haven't done the SD50 conversion, I can't offer you specifics on what the conversion involves, but I have done a number of other conversions and can attest that it gets expensive if you're looking for an accurate model. Maybe not "brass" expensive, but Life Like's Proto 2000 series SD60 (even at list price) will become very attractive.

Best of luck to you in this project. I hope my post is helpful.

RC Harris
Roanoke, Texas

[nfmisso]

As Ryan alludes to, start with a Life Like P2k SD60. The only difference between the SD50 and SD60 are the doors below the radiator intakes.

Or, just wait for the P2K SD50 model to come out, it should not be a more than a couple of years.

Nigel
[e-mail]

[Anonymous]

I also agree with the previous replies. P2K's SD60 is a good start. I used it for all three of my SD50's, although I must confess I didn't get real involved with the conversion from SD60 to 50. I've done a Union Pacific SD50 (I pretty much just stripped and repainted it and added some of the details in an SD50 arrangement.) Same with my C&NW SD50, I just renumbered a Zito yellow SD60 and weathered it, it's a pretty good match. Finally the last one I did was for the D&RGW, here too I just stripped it and added the headlight in the nose and then painted and weathered it, and all three turned out I better then if I had used rail power shells. Or at least I think so, plus I probably had all three done in the time it would have taken me to kit bash and complete a rail power shell.

I'm not trying to sway your decision but I did at least want to mention it.

Good luck with your project!!