Hello, new to the site but old to modelling in general. I am looking at doing a short line engine from back in New England. I want to do a static display and put it in a nice acrylic case. I purchased an Athearn HO scale unpowered and undecorated unit from E Bay. It has been laying around for a while and there is some minor rust on the rails and coupler plates. Also one of the rails is broken. My concern is the rails, there are long and short staunchions, parts 10424 and 10425. Which is which? One seems to be 17mm long and the other about 14mm. I may just purchase a new whole set of railings. Also the trucks outer plates look a bit "corroded". Whats the best way to clean these or can I just paint them? I have been building plastic scale models, Revell, Monogram, Tamiya, Hasegawa, AMT, Airfix for about 55 years, since I was 10 years old. Any help or advise is most welcome. Here's a few pictures of the kit and my short line scheme, Housatonic Railroad which runs from Milford Ct to Pittsfield Ma.---John
I am ready to start but am a bit confused with the hand rails. There are 2 parts which confuse me. The stanchions, or posts, have 2 different lengths, I have 10 at about 17mm and 20 at about 14mm. From what I can see on the diagram I think I need 19 pieces 10424, 14mm and 7 pieces 10425, 17mm. Does this sound correct? First time at assembling a locomotive but I have had over 42 years figuring out blue prints, was a fabricator-welder and lay out man in a structural steel shop and railing shop. One of the ends is broken, can I buy replacements at Athearn or a dealer? Or would it be just as cheap to purchase a whole rail replacement? Some of the pieces have a lot of rust. Thanks---John
For the rusty parts, a soak in vinegar and some brushing and a bit of sanding should be fine for the stanchions. For the side frames of the trucks removal, vinegar and brushing before painting should be fine, but if you're making a static display, rust might look realistic... It's entirely reasonable that you may have extra stanchions. As for the broken part is it a stanchion or a railing? I'd just walk into your local hobby shop (especially if they deal in used stuff) and it's very possible they'll have one to give you or sell you cheap. If you can't find one that way, you should be able to order replacements from Athearn. If it's just one stanchion and you can't find it, let me know the size and I'll see what I can find. If it's the railing, you can either try and bend your own from wire or order a new one, in which case you might have to just order the whole set. I'm not sure.
Thanks. The broken rail is an end handrail 10423. The instructions don't actually call for two but there are two ends on the train. The broken piece is long gone so I can't even attempt super glue. How do I remove the trucks to get the side pieces off? This is ALL new to me. Thanks---John
Maybe this will show a bit better about the trucks: http://www.hoseeker.net/assemblyexplosionAthearn/Assembly Explosion Athearn GP35 1997.jpg I'd wait for another person to chime in to be sure, though because I thought the sideframes were plastic and can just be gently pried off without removing the trucks. I'm not sure about metal versions.
For the missing hand rail, if you can't find one from someone with a deep spare-parts bin, you'll probably either have to bend one yourself or buy the whole set.
I guess those side pieces do need some cleaning! Who is the best on line shop for parts? Also are there better looking couplers than the ones that came on it? I have a whole lot to learn, it's been 50 years since I touched a train and that was a Lionel 2-4-2 steam locomotive.---John
Those trucks look awesome and weathered, but if you want them clean them for painting then vinegar should work fine. For couplers, you want some Kadees. I generally go with #148 for ease of installation, but as this is a presentation piece I think there are some slightly smaller versions that would be even more precisely HO scale (I think most couplers are slightly oversized for better operation) and I'm sure someone here will be along with a suggestion for the model #. Looking at the picture you just posted, there seems to be some texture to the finish. Is it truly as-sold-undecorated or did the previous owner spray it black?
Thanks for the help. It came from E Bay and I don't think the seller was an "expert" at HO trains, just a seller. I noticed the texture also but the inside of the shell is black, untextured so who really knows. There are also some scrape and dig marks where maybe it was worked on or the decals removed at one time. Are undecorated Athearn Blue Box trains smooth plastic? I would guess so. It's my first attempt so I am not all that fussy but do want it too look decent. I saw a podcast and I believe the truck sides are press fit and can be pried off with a screw driver, I may just mask the wheels and paint the underframe a satin black and call it a day.---John
I just noticed that the steps are a different grey color. I'm fairly sure that Athearn undecorated are always bare unpainted plastic, probably like what you're seeing in the inside the shell. I'm 99% sure you've got an Athearn that was painted and that someone sprayed over in black. Sorry. Giving the body A long soak in high concentration rubbing alcohol from the drug store or "Super Clean" degreaser might get the paint off and send it back to the undecorated black plastic.
Just curious, do they still make undecorated shells? Are there other brands maybe with better detailed that fit Athearn chassis?---John
John, What you have there is a vintage Athearn GP35, I mean that thing is old. It has been many years since I have seen stantions built like that. The details on this is not very good, the hood part of the body is too wide and out of scale, but at the time it was necessary as narrower motors to accommodate the scale width hoods had not been come up with yet. To take the shell off simply take a small screw driver and gently pry the plastic body out at that little slot in the fuel tank, you will see a little metal nub on each side that fits into the hole in the plastic shell. Then you can see how the trucks come off (which are metal side frames), I would be very careful with the plastic on something this old it may be very brittle. Also some paint stripping chemicals can make the plastic even more brittle and can even destroy the shell. Just plain old DOT3 brake fluid works good too for stripping paint. If you look at the long handrails you can see that the left side has a little rise on the walkway and handrail and that is where your longer stantions go. I am not aware of any other shells that would fit this chassis but the vintage shell account their would be a lot of cutting and grinding to get them to fit. This is just my opinion, but I would go for a little newer locomotive, with a scale width hood and one piece plastic handrails, better details, and so on. Bachmann or similar would make a nice static display model, you can find undecorated locos at on-line bidding sites pretty cheap too. I dont know if you will find a dummy unit tho. Heck get a powered one you never know, you prolly have a friend or two, that have a HO MRR, you may want to try running it on someday. Hope this helps.
I'm not sure about that. IIRC, some of the early Athearn Bodies were a bit wider than scale in order to accommodate the larger motors. The Chassis itself might not be wider though so you might find a match. Buying a higher-end body is going to be an expensive proposition compared to the price of the just buying a better used undecorated locomotive. If you decide to buy a new one online maybe find a few examples and run them by the folks here. Here's one that looks like it has potential. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Spectrum-I...=item3d7ccbb00a:g:MnkAAOSw29JcEox9:rk:37:pf:0 It's a Bachmann spectrum so not super top of the line by today's standards but it's definitely better detailed and featured than the loco you have. It's also unassembled and clean. I also have a soft spot for the GP30 which is probably the last EMD road switcher with any "style". I have the current DCC version of this and it's quite nice.
Here's an opened version of the sealed loco I listed above so you can see the contents. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Spectrum-8...=item5467586c0f:g:LZMAAOSwEvZcFwSl:rk:38:pf:0 I like old Athearns, but it's easy to see how much nicer the spectrum is.
I like it but is it me or do the wiper blades on the windshield look "clunky"? Also are the hand rails wire and have finesse? Sorry, I probably have champagne taste on a beer budget. It's like comparing Airfix to Tamiya if you see what I mean. But overall it looks nice.You're right about the body, my Athearn fits wonky on it's chassis, almost too big for it.---John
Yeah, they may be a bit chunky. The prototype isn't exactly small, but they are bigger on the model. Much like military models, almost any detail that you want to have finer or more precise can be ordered as an aftermarket part it's just a matter of how much you want to pay and how many details you feel need adjusting. However if you do decide to add and remove-and-replace details, it's certainly easier to do it to an unpainted model that too add them to a ready-to-run painted model. As for the railings, they are going to be one-piece sections made of delrin and will be more realistic than the wire and looped stanchions on an Athearn. I personally prefer the durability and bend-back-ability of metal stanchions but they aren't as realistic and it sounds like you want realism.
From what I can tell, all the Athearn BB used the same end rails if needed. You could probably find pretty cheaply. Athearn always supplies a few extra stanchions in the kits. If you need, I have a couple of the GP 35 BB locos, I can post some pictures of a complete one to show you how they look.
Dale thanks, please do post images. That would be most helpful. How do you attach the stanchions to the rail....super glue?---John
Hi John, The stanchions are press fit. You have to tilt them in a bit to get them to start. After a few you will get the hang of it. I don’t remember ever having to resort to using glue with them. I’ll take a few photos and post them up later today/evening. You have the instructions there, those were written at a time you could actually make sense of them! Dale
