436 is a Texas and New Orleans unit (T&NO). The T&NO was an SP subsidiary and none of their GP9s were delivered with an SP light package. They also differed from the SP geeps one because they only had 3 digit numbers instead of 4 (i.e. they were in different numbering groups), but the TN&O engines had slightly higher gearing to achieve a higher top speed in the flat areas they ran. The SP ones were geared lower to be more well suited for mountain service.
I will definitely add a few Athearn Genesis diesels to my roster! The trucks are excellent! Great review and very nice locomotives! I enjoy your videos! Great job!
Sp ordered a batch of these geeps without the extra front and rear headlights.si, they had both versions of the gp9s that came with both options. One order had the extra lights ,and the rest of the orders for these locomotives had the single twin sealed beam head lights. So , yes, the had both with and without the Mars headlights.
Yes.this locomotive was delivered to the to subsidy line .and they ordered gp9s with only one set of headlights.only the Texas, one Orleans, and pacific ordered their geeps with one pair of lights on both ends.
Athearn made your excellent review a little easy for ya. Can't wait to see the consist in action as well. These units are real "cherries"! Thanks John A.
Oh man this is great. I’m going to have to buy some athearn equip again. I stopped for awhile Becca they were getting left behind. But wow Athearn has really stepped it up in the detail dept. they’re giving scaletrains a run for their money. Us the consumers are the true winners here.
Nice models John, tsunami2 is the best sound decoder from Soundtrax on the market, 16 sound files can be played at once and if I remember, George from Soundtrax mentioned, there are over 700 million sound combinations, unbelievable! Cheers and take care, regards Gary, Western Australia, Perth 👍🏻😊
These decoders are called dual-mode decoders. If you ever buy a loco or put sound in it yourself, it's a no brainer to have a decoder like this. Its user friendly for someone who does not have DCC but wants sound on DC
I love my Black widow. It's quite and it roles on demand. No hesitation. Sound is great. Liked your trains. Aiming to get a few myself. I run SF and SP. Working on a turntable and two stations. Have fun
Your Black Widow unit with three digit unit is a T&NO unit, which was a part of SP. T&NO units varied in some cases from SP in details just as the unit shown in the video. Some of them did have a barrel type of the first batch of T&NO units that were passenger units, the second batch were freight only and received the lights as on the model. Once as the T&NO finally merged in to SP they got the same treatment on head lights as the rest of the units in Espee system.T&NO was SP in Texas since 1880.s and it kept its own identity because some legal reasons. ESPEE Modeler site commented this: SP's subsidiary Texas and New Orleans (TNO) was also the first to receive GP9's for freight service, getting their first order in June of 1954 (#400-410). Because of the relatively 'flat land' TNO passed through, these had 61:16 gearing, giving a top-speed of 71 mph. In contrast to SP's GP's with 62:15 gearing (65 mph). Also like SP SD7's some units may have had the Nathan M3R24's which were later changed to Nathan P-3's. TNO continued to receive batches: #411-416 in 10/54 #417-428 in 5/55 #429-438 in 5/56 #439-448 in 12/56 #449-458 in 2-3/59 #400 to 448 would have been delivered in Black Widow paint, sublettered TNO above the numberboards at each end. SP style light packages were not in vogue for TNO, they had the simpler dual headlight where the signal light was on SP units. The last order #449-458 were delivered in 'blood nose' paint. As TNO was still being run as a separate company, all power was turned back at El Paso. Run through power to California didn't begin really until the early 1960's. It was at this time that the different gearing became a problem, so the TNO units gradually had theirs changed to the SP standard of 62:15. The 1965 renumbering brought these into the SP roster proper, and they received 34xx series numbers. Eventually going through the rebuilding program, to emerge as GP9E's...
Ok what is the SRL 7207 & FLM printed on the trucks. I couldn't read the lettering under the FLM. I know you did this in 2018. I just saw this today, if you don't know or can't remember that's ok. Thank you.
Athearn Genesis units always knock it out of the park. My only beef with the GP9's is that Athearn skimped out on the sand filler hatch on these models, but that one little lack of detail wouldn't prevent me from buying one or several. That's like a 99 out of a 100, not too shabby! And it's great to see the Gyralight working in straight DC too.
Stop now...You'll make me wanna switch back to HO! lol I think you're correct about the light package. I have an N scale Atlas GP9 in SP. I looked all over the interwebs for photos of the prototype loco. It doesn't have the light package in any of the photos and I discovered that it's a repainted T&NO loco.
You were correct on the T&NO lighting thing, only power for the Pacific lines had those extra lights. T&NO F units only had single headlights too I think. The Halloween units were diverse if few and far between, the scarlet and gray was soon to follow. My question is bulbs or LED's? Or did I blink and miss that in the video. Nice review!
Horizon Hobbies has jacked the price up on everything. Uncle Irv is probably turning over in his grave. His notion was to provide good quality equipment at a price everyone could afford. Though I like the Genesis series I can't afford it being on a fixed (railroad) retirement.
Another Great Video of an outstanding new Model by Athern, Thanks John, and think you're correct in that it raises ready to run Models to another Level. You didn't mention Drawbar Pull or Coupling Height. Being a Brit does the Coupler supplied mix and match with Kadee produced Couplers?
The only thing that still torques me up about sound equipped diesel locomotives is that the Loco is moving BEFORE the prime mover is revved up. I've seen manual fixes for this discussed but it can't be that hard for the original program to be adjusted to reflect the proper orientation of sound to movement!
Okay, 5665 sounds right. (I remember sound well.) 436 sounds too high in pitch and not much like an SP air horn. The bell is also slightly pitchy, as if both are being played back too fast (and thus raising the note).
Mr. Loveland, one of the neat features Tsunami2 has is prime mover pitch shift (CV 223). This allows for slight variations in the tone and pitch to match your preferences. You can also adjust the ring rate of all of our bells from a slow air rung bell to a fast air rung rate. For more detail on these features and more refer to the Tsunami2 User's Guide on our website: www.soundtraxx.com/manuals.php or contact our Customer Support Center Directly at (970)259-0690 ext. 22 or support@soundtraxx.com. Thank you!
Beautiful GP-9's but me being an inspector I noticed with the close up of the orange and black the grab on the short hood second from the bottom was a little rough where it attached. On the other one the paint was wrinkled just behind the center fan. OK so I'm picky but still fine work. Thanks for the review.
Irv Athearn sold his F7 for $7.00 Made in Gardena California at the time. I no longer buy any model railroad equipment that is new. The prices of the made in China crap are beyond outrageous.
I think these models are for folks who have more money than time. If you're a builder, then super-detailing an old model is an excellent way to enjoy the hobby!
436 is a Texas and New Orleans unit (T&NO). The T&NO was an SP subsidiary and none of their GP9s were delivered with an SP light package. They also differed from the SP geeps one because they only had 3 digit numbers instead of 4 (i.e. they were in different numbering groups), but the TN&O engines had slightly higher gearing to achieve a higher top speed in the flat areas they ran. The SP ones were geared lower to be more well suited for mountain service.
Superstars of SP history!
I will definitely add a few Athearn Genesis diesels to my roster! The trucks are excellent! Great review and very nice locomotives! I enjoy your videos! Great job!
These locomotives have great sound and details, I love it John
Sp ordered a batch of these geeps without the extra front and rear headlights.si, they had both versions of the gp9s that came with both options. One order had the extra lights ,and the rest of the orders for these locomotives had the single twin sealed beam head lights. So , yes, the had both with and without the Mars headlights.
Even though they now cost more, the detail and performance is way above the stuff from the 70's, GREAT thanks
Yes.this locomotive was delivered to the to subsidy line .and they ordered gp9s with only one set of headlights.only the Texas, one Orleans, and pacific ordered their geeps with one pair of lights on both ends.
Athearn made your excellent review a little easy for ya. Can't wait to see the consist in action as well. These units are real "cherries"! Thanks John A.
Oh man this is great. I’m going to have to buy some athearn equip again. I stopped for awhile Becca they were getting left behind. But wow Athearn has really stepped it up in the detail dept. they’re giving scaletrains a run for their money. Us the consumers are the true winners here.
Wow John.. I love the Halloween one the most..sounds are awesome.. thanks for sharing and keep up the great work.. Lance
Nice models John, tsunami2 is the best sound decoder from Soundtrax on the market, 16 sound files can be played at once and if I remember, George from Soundtrax mentioned, there are over 700 million sound combinations, unbelievable!
Cheers and take care, regards Gary, Western Australia, Perth 👍🏻😊
These decoders are called dual-mode decoders. If you ever buy a loco or put sound in it yourself, it's a no brainer to have a decoder like this. Its user friendly for someone who does not have DCC but wants sound on DC
I love my Black widow. It's quite and it roles on demand. No hesitation. Sound is great. Liked your trains. Aiming to get a few myself. I run SF and SP. Working on a turntable and two stations. Have fun
Those are amazing engine, I love the detail. Thanks for the review.
They both look good don't matter.
Your Black Widow unit with three digit unit is a T&NO unit, which was a part of SP. T&NO units varied in some cases from SP in details just as the unit shown in the video. Some of them did have a barrel type of the first batch of T&NO units that were passenger units, the second batch were freight only and received the lights as on the model. Once as the T&NO finally merged in to SP they got the same treatment on head lights as the rest of the units in Espee system.T&NO was SP in Texas since 1880.s and it kept its own identity because some legal reasons.
ESPEE Modeler site commented this:
SP's subsidiary Texas and New Orleans (TNO) was also the first to receive GP9's for freight service, getting their first order in June of 1954 (#400-410). Because of the relatively 'flat land' TNO passed through, these had 61:16 gearing, giving a top-speed of 71 mph. In contrast to SP's GP's with 62:15 gearing (65 mph). Also like SP SD7's some units may have had the Nathan M3R24's which were later changed to Nathan P-3's.
TNO continued to receive batches:
#411-416 in 10/54
#417-428 in 5/55
#429-438 in 5/56
#439-448 in 12/56
#449-458 in 2-3/59
#400 to 448 would have been delivered in Black Widow paint, sublettered TNO above the numberboards at each end. SP style light packages were not in vogue for TNO, they had the simpler dual headlight where the signal light was on SP units. The last order #449-458 were delivered in 'blood nose' paint.
As TNO was still being run as a separate company, all power was turned back at El Paso. Run through power to California didn't begin really until the early 1960's. It was at this time that the different gearing became a problem, so the TNO units gradually had theirs changed to the SP standard of 62:15.
The 1965 renumbering brought these into the SP roster proper, and they received 34xx series numbers.
Eventually going through the rebuilding program, to emerge as GP9E's...
Hi, Do the number boards light up?
looks like a great model... awesome review... thx for sharing.. vinny
Very nice.
Thank you John for the video.
that ingine was a yard geep used for switching not for the road.Raybo the Crocket Rocket.-------Retired.
Halloween and Black Widow schemes - very nice! (Although nothing like a F7 in Black Widow with the SP plate on the front!)
Great video as always!
Ok what is the SRL 7207 & FLM printed on the trucks. I couldn't read the lettering under the FLM. I know you did this in 2018. I just saw this today, if you don't know or can't remember that's ok. Thank you.
Athearn Genesis units always knock it out of the park. My only beef with the GP9's is that Athearn skimped out on the sand filler hatch on these models, but that one little lack of detail wouldn't prevent me from buying one or several. That's like a 99 out of a 100, not too shabby! And it's great to see the Gyralight working in straight DC too.
eSPeeScotty
Awesome engines and video John!
When am I going to see some Athearn Genesis AC4400 Southern Pacific's ?
Stop now...You'll make me wanna switch back to HO! lol I think you're correct about the light package. I have an N scale Atlas GP9 in SP. I looked all over the interwebs for photos of the prototype loco. It doesn't have the light package in any of the photos and I discovered that it's a repainted T&NO loco.
You were correct on the T&NO lighting thing, only power for the Pacific lines had those extra lights. T&NO F units only had single headlights too I think. The Halloween units were diverse if few and far between, the scarlet and gray was soon to follow. My question is bulbs or LED's? Or did I blink and miss that in the video. Nice review!
Horizon Hobbies has jacked the price up on everything. Uncle Irv is probably turning over in his grave. His notion was to provide good quality equipment at a price everyone could afford. Though I like the Genesis series I can't afford it being on a fixed (railroad) retirement.
5665 was painted in 1958 into that experimental paint.
Another Great Video of an outstanding new Model by Athern, Thanks John, and think you're correct in that it raises ready to run Models to another Level. You didn't mention Drawbar Pull or Coupling Height. Being a Brit does the Coupler supplied mix and match with Kadee produced Couplers?
I don’t know about the 5665, but I know there’s the 5623, now working on the niles canyon railway. I wonder if 5623 is available from them.
I'm pretty sure either Athearn or Atlas did that model in HO Scale.
Are the lights LED?
The only thing that still torques me up about sound equipped diesel locomotives is that the Loco is moving BEFORE the prime mover is revved up. I've seen manual fixes for this discussed but it can't be that hard for the original program to be adjusted to reflect the proper orientation of sound to movement!
Norman D Edgerly that’s a cv adjustment in the Tsunami2. Refer to the SoundTraxx TH-cam channel do info.
Nice looking locos--nice detailing! Good review John--how is the packaging on these?
Very robust package. Plastic clamshell held in the box well, surrounded by foam in a box.
Okay, 5665 sounds right. (I remember sound well.) 436 sounds too high in pitch and not much like an SP air horn. The bell is also slightly pitchy, as if both are being played back too fast (and thus raising the note).
Mr. Loveland, one of the neat features Tsunami2 has is prime mover pitch shift (CV 223). This allows for slight variations in the tone and pitch to match your preferences. You can also adjust the ring rate of all of our bells from a slow air rung bell to a fast air rung rate. For more detail on these features and more refer to the Tsunami2 User's Guide on our website: www.soundtraxx.com/manuals.php or contact our Customer Support Center Directly at (970)259-0690 ext. 22 or support@soundtraxx.com. Thank you!
Your assumption is correct
Beautiful GP-9's but me being an inspector I noticed with the close up of the orange and black the grab on the short hood second from the bottom was a little rough where it attached. On the other one the paint was wrinkled just behind the center fan. OK so I'm picky but still fine work. Thanks for the review.
Noice
John, will you be weathering the "Halloween" locomotive by throwing hummingbird eggs at it?
I had not considered that!
"jEeP NiNeS"
Irv Athearn sold his F7 for $7.00 Made in Gardena California at the time. I no longer buy any model railroad equipment that is new. The prices of the made in China crap are beyond outrageous.
I think these models are for folks who have more money than time. If you're a builder, then super-detailing an old model is an excellent way to enjoy the hobby!
N scale modeler is jealous, so jealous...
Caution ... Hand rails are way too fragile.
if you look at them wrong thay fall apart