RITS Newsletter
Issue 109 First Quarter, 1999 Volume
26, No. 1
Speaking of Models
by Steve Hile
E-R Model Importers has brought out a new run of Roco (Austria) FP-7s
which includes two numbers (405 and 406) for Rock Island in the classic
Rocket paint scheme. The Roco engines are traditionally good runners,
quiet and smooth, and my initial trial seemed to bear this out. I
will leave exhaustive testing to the commercial press. Clearly Kato
and P2K have raised the bar and the Roco engines may now be only average.
The basic body shell is the same as released a number of years ago by Atlas
with a few exceptions. It no longer has the large dynamic brake fan
(to match the RI prototype), this is good. The steam generator detail
at the rear of the roof is pretty rudimentary (a step backwards!).
The body has molded on handrails and grabs. Actually, I think it
might be better to highlight 
them
with the silver body color as they are now painted as part of the striping.
Don�t do the two vertical grabs beside the nose door, however. For
me, the biggest visual discrepancy is in the side panels. The Roco
body has the later side venting which includes vertical slots rather than
horizontal louvers (which would have matched the RI prototype). The
lengthy grill at the top of the sides is also of the later style which
doesn�t match the RI either. A replacement part could be obtained
from Detail Associates, but it would be a big job to remove the existing
one from the casting.
We should say a word about the paint and lettering. E-R has done
a good job in matching the maroon and crimson colors; and with the lettering
and striping (including the black pinstriping.) However, they have
fallen on the other side of the silver vs aluminum white color debate.
While I find the E-R model pleasing to look at, I now believe that it should
be more to the aluminum white than silver color. Frankly, I wouldn�t
let this deter me from buying one of these models. A little weathering
would probably help the unit blend into the fleet of P2k and other passenger
units. Things continue to be good for RI modelers. For those
with the desire to kitbash do have an undecorated unit available.
I have always had a difficult time mounting Kadee couplers on the Atlas
units. The E-R model makes this somewhat easier. There is very
little room behind the rear truck. Kadee recommends their number
34 coupler, which is the shortest shank they have. On the rear of
my unit, I followed Kadee�s instructions in building the coupler box.
In order to get this to fit, I had to remove the bottom of the slot where
the original coupler was mounted. I used the original friction pin
and everything worked fine. I got a lot smarter on the front coupler.
Here I mounted the Kadee number 34 coupler back into the case that E-R
provided for the X2f (NMRA) coupler. I used a normal Kadee flat spring
rather than the little coil springs that come in the number 34 envelope.
The total conversion time, less than 5 minutes. I would do both front
and rear that way next time. I hope this is helpful!
Short Hauls
In HO, Life-Like has released the list of road names for their Proto-2000
E-6 A/B. A units will retail for $110 and B units for $50.
Catalog 23232 is for E6A CRI&P #628 and catalog 23233 is for E6A CRI&P
#630. These will be in the Maroon and Yellow scheme with Mars/single/dual
headlights as appropriate. Delivery is scheduled for late April....
Life-Like also has announced the second release of Proto-2000 GP-7s.
Catalog 23056 is for CRI&P #1266 and catalog 23057 is for CRI&P
#1283. These will be delivered in the Red, White and Black �wings�
scheme w/o dynamic brakes or steam generators; and with directional lights.
The expected release date is in late March... Until next time.