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Athearn HO scale EMD SD45T-2 diesel is a mountain climber
I have the Cotton Belt version of this Tunnel Motor by Athearn in HO. It is a great locomotive indeed! As a kid, I have always wondered why the hollow space in the rear of the locomotive. My dad worked for SP, and my only vantage point was by peering through the station wagon windows while riding along the staging tracks at the Sacramento Shops in the early 80’s. From such a perspective, I always thought the locomotive was completely hollow!! Where did they put the diesel engine? This model by Athearn partially recreates that fascination for me. I can see the drive shaft and the top of the truck in this model though. If maybe 4 of the 6 wheels in the rear truck were driven or even a dummy truck in the rear, they could probably pull this see-through illusion off.
I also have the SP version of the EMD SD40T-2 (88" nose), which I think is a slightly more detailed work of art by Athearn. The SD40T-2 model happens to have the detailed hoses front and rear hanging out of the snow plow. The SD45T-2 model does not. The SD40T-2 length is a little shorter, but that is okay with me. Heck, the DRGW guys figured that you could not really use the top 600 HP out of the 3600 HP SD45T-2 going 25 MPH up the grade anyhow. That is probably why they stuck with the 3000 HP SD40T-2. It simply was less maintenance, consumed less fuel, and was cheaper to begin with. This also happened to be the case with the Athearn SD40T-2 being less expensive than the Athearn SD45T-2. This just might be due to popularity of the SD45T-2 from a railfan perspective.
Where do I find one cause there’s no hobby shop in Martinsville.
No Doubt Raymond, I remember those days too! I would go to the Colorado River near Park Moabi which is on the CA- AZ border outside of Kingman AZ. Anyway, I have always enjoyed watching these locomotives as a kid and wondered too about the “empty” area at the rear of the hood.