So has anyone gotten their hands on these new release one's yet? I was looking at the pictures on their website, and they don't look so hot. I really want a few of these in Santa Fe, but I don't want to pay $90 bucks if they have problems. Can any of you guys that work at hobby shops give me any info? :tb-biggrin: Did they fix the problems that the first releases had? -Mike
I have been semi out of the loop for awile in the model train world due to my new daughter, actually she just turned 2 and picked choo choos as her party theme. I didn't know that the SD45-2's were out yet. I really looked forworad to these. So are they poor performers? Were they worse than the first release of the tunnel motors? Brian
My friend models Clinchfield and I model CSX so we both went to the lhs when they first arrived. They had 2 CSX units and both were not up to Kato/Atlas/LifeLike standards so I didn't get them. My friend looked at all 7 Clinchfield units and found only one he was satisfied with. Some run ok some not. Some are ok visually some not. A overpriced loco IMHO. A shame as there F units are awesome. Jeff
Ditto with my Santa Fe blue units, mediocre mechanisms and sloppily applied details and paintwork in places. I've ordered a pair of Santa Fe bicentennials and hope they've improved in quality by the time they come out. I passed on the yellow warbonnets because I have a Hallmark brass AB set.
I have a couople of first release MRL units.......the paint and detailing were fine, although the blue they chose was too light compared to what other manufacturers are using, or to the prototype. My 2 units run beautifully (as do several others owned by club members) and if you ran them separately you'd be very happy....but my 2 run at different speeds......not even close......about like an old atlas and a scale-speed motored Atlas. There seems to be some quality control issues, but if you find a good one they are nice units.
Just got 4 of them in the Seaboard Coast Line black and yellow paint scheme. Very nice crisp and clean job. I bought them site unseen and then started reading all the horrible reviews on the first batch that came out. I am very pleased with the appearance. I can't wait to get them on the track and see if they pull as good as they look. I can say they are worth every penny as far as looks go. I hope to get to run them within the next couple of days and I'll be sure to let you know how they run. Eddie
Here are a few pictures. The demo unit we have runs very nicely. Quite and smooth. Pulling seems to be about normal for this size loco. Equaled the Atlas Dash 8 I had on hand. Pulled 12 cars on level grade OK. If you have hills or run with longer trains double heading will be needed. There are no traction tires. The headlight and rear light are golden white leds a bit yellow but OK. MT couplers are a plus
Vince, thank you for those pictures.:tb-smile: They look pretty good. I guess I'll have to buy one and check it out. I'm not too worried about the pulling power, just the looks. I really like detailing my locos, so I guess I have a higher standard than most. But non the less, it sure would fill a void in my roster. Thanks again for the pics! -Mike
When I got this a few months ago, I really didn't take a good look at it. I ran it by itself to make sure it was okay. Since you posted this thread I decided to give a better look and test its pulling ability. First... the looks: I don't see anything acutely wrong with the one I got. I have had some of the Tunnel Motors previously run which had some paint flaws and poorly moulded parts. This one doesn't seem to be bad... though there were a couple of minor paint issues; such as, a paint blotch on fuel tank which was somewhat noticable. Otherwise... I wouldn't consider this a poor job... just not a pristine perfect paint job. I'm not a major Santa Fe nitpicking rivit counter... but... it does look like a very good model of the SD45-2. See photos below: As far as the running ability. It's pretty good as far as speed control, quiet drive and up to current mechanical standards. It is a fairly lightweight model for its size. As a result... it doesn't seem to pull as well as I would have expected. I had 17 various cars in the consist; 5 Atlas shorty tankcars, 8 Athearn PS2 hoppers and 4 Kato ACF hoppers. The engine was able to easily handle all 17 cars on level track. Unfortunately... it could not get up the 2% grade with that consist. It was able to take 12 cars up that grade. To its credit... the 12 cars were the 8 Athearn PS2 hoppers and 4 Atlas shorty tankcars... which are some of the toughest to pull because the wheelsets don't roll as smoothly as Micro-Trains wheelsets. Unless you are expecting much better performance than that... I don't really see a reason to avoid this model. If you feel that paint or fit and finish are big issues... then go to a local hobby shop to buy instead of ordering sight-unseen. BTW: This model probably pulls on par with the typical Atlas SD50 & SD60 units which are comparable in size and weight.
picked up two CONRAIL ones a few month's ago,finally got them running (had to convert them to DCC) overall not to bad ,after a little detail work(i have to paint the running boards ,hand rail end's & weather them,the paint is too blue) they will be fine,the detail's really not so bad, they run smooth & quiet,i had mine pulling about 16 cars with no problem.as far as DCC goes, digitrax DN163IO(tunnel motor loco's) works but it installs just like digitrax atlas loco's,the instructions say otherwise. digitrax dosn't have a listing for the SD-45-2 yet
Hi, I know this thread is a couple months old, but anyone have anymore / extended impressions of Intermountain's SD45-2's? I just saw two of these at my local hobby shop and I was smitten. Thanks Dave
Speaking as someone who doesn't have one, the prices are enough to keep me away. How can a company justify a higher price than Kato with a model that has questionable painting, details and operation. You'd think since they are Atlas mechs that they'd be priced more in line with Atlas. Would love to get some of these but for the money I'm not taking any chances.
The price is right in line with the recent Atlas releases. They just raised their prices a few months before Atlas did. Atlas being a larger company could probably hold out longer before the prices had to jump up. I was thumbing through some ancient Model Railroaders today, March 1970 to be exact... Atlas add in the back: 2-8-2 - $27.95 0-8-0 - $22.95 SD45 - $15.95 C-Liner A-B $22.95 I started looking at those, compared to inflation and prices really haven't changed that much. You figure a nice auto in 1970 was around $3000-4000. Comparable nice car now is in the $20-30K range. The days of $25-50 loco's are long gone. What suprised me was the ammount of N scale adds in the 70's mags.
The one's we have in the shop look good and run, much better than the recent Atlas Dash 8-40B's. My main complaint with Intermountain in general is their handrails are too fragile. They need to move to a different plastic for them. I have an SD40T-2 that runs and looks great, I am just afraid to pick it up for fear of damaging something.
I did that kind of math in a post several years ago here, and you are correct. Recently, I saw an article in WSJ about how inflation is calculated. In short, one reason the govt lowered the rate was because it was impossible to compare apples to apples. In all fields, MRR included, the products have gotten much better over time. So, in theory, our locos have gone up with inflation, but also gotten better. Thus, modern N scale locos are a true bargain. Lets face it, if they hadn't gotten better, N scale wouldn't have survived. And, its hard to put a price on the satisfaction of a smooth running loco, doing what N scale does best - pulling a long train not possible in any reasonable space with HO or larger scales. The IM locos may suffer by comparison to Atlas and Kato, and they need to raise their bar just a wee bit, IMHO, but they have chosen to run locos that are less common in the Tunnel Motor series, which is also a great service to N scalers.
Try comparing it to a similar EMD as opposed to a GE. Note how the IM model has no mesh behind the radiator grills... note how IM forgot that SD45-2s have a gap between the dustbin hatch and the exhaust hatch (look at the Kato SD40-2 to see it). Note the crude renditions of the equipment and battery box doors under the cab compared to an Atlas or Kato EMD. And unless the overly thick paint is hiding them... no neads on the blower duct... and don't get me started on the supposed EL version. Not a single low-profile component on the roof (dustbin hatch, exhaust hatch, fans, engineroom vent)... If you can get one near dealer cost (better, distributor cost), then they're worth it.
