Hello all,
This is one locomotive I’ve been after for awhile.
Brass is not an option ,however a brass frame with the trucks would be great. Didn’t AHM or Model power make this locomotive in HO years ago ? Can’t remember who made it, pretty sure some company made one, but who ?
Do you have any info on this locomotive ?
Patrick
DRSC
Ummm I have seen some on ebay. AHM made some. There some on ebay right now.
There was a discussion on the ACL-SAL-SCL Yahoo forum about this.
There are no current models available, so those of us that want this U-Boat will have to find an AHM U25C. Considering that it was built using 1970s technology, the AHM unit is decent looking. The drive, however, is not great.
Compounding the problem is that for modelers that are thinking about slapping the AHM body onto an Atlas or Athearn “C” drive, there is a difference in length. The Prototype U25C was 64 feet 6 inches long between coupler faces, while the other 6 axle U-Boats (U23, U28, U33, U36) are 67 feet 3 inches long. Plus, the fuel tank is an oddball, rectangular shaped 2,900 gallon unit. The truck sideframes would also have to be used from the AHM unit.
So a bit of “surgery” would be required. One modeler on the forum stated that he added weight to his unit and it improved performance a bit. If I had an AHM U25C, I would go to a hobby shop, ask the store owner to pull out an Atlas or Athearn C drive and do a “bottom to bottom” chassis comparison and check the possibilities.
So unless a manufacturer makes an announcement, your best route for now is Ebay as these units do show up quite a bit.
Dragonriversteel: These models do turn up on E-bay and at train shows. Our own local LS&I modeler bought a pair of these for something like $20 and reworked one to running condition and dummied the other. He went on to a year tour at Club Gitmo and now is at Fort Lost in the Woods in Missouri. Scott we miss ya!
There might be a couple at a local shop now that could be had for $25 or so. Let me know if you want the dealer’s phone #.
The truck sideframes are no longer a problem, as Bachmann has the very trucks that one needs for the U25C’s under their E33. The U25C was imported by AHM back in the 70’s and was made for them by Rivarossi. It is a model of a “phase 2” unit and it would only be accurate for the Oro Dam, NP, LS&I and ACL. All of the other “phases” could be made with this by just a little body work.
Dan
Thanks for the info Dan. One additional note, the ACL units were inherited by the formation of SCL. They lasted through the late 70s.
I had an AHM/Riv. U25C. I repowered it with a nice can motor and cobbled together a driveline with athearn parts. It ran pretty well, but the traction tires and big flanges caused a few troubles. I sold it on ebay for about $35.
JPM,
Could you have replaced the wheels with NWSL wheels?
| I know Stewart Hobbies made a U-25 because I have one!Stock no7100.But it is a u-25b not sure what the differences are between the B and C models. |
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Possibly. I remember it having wierd gearing on the axles. Like the teeth ran diagonally or something, cant remember for sure. I dont know if NWSL makes anything like that.
-Philo, A loco with a B has 4 wheel trucks and a C has 6 wheel trucks. So the U25B has 8 wheels while the U25C has twelve. Im sure there are other differences but I’m no prototype expert.
A “B” trucked unit (U25B, U30B, etc) have 4 axles, 8 wheels. “C” trucked units have 6 axels, 12 wheels. And of course, the frames/bodies are generally longer to accomidate the larger trucks.
Rick
Patrick, while not exactly what you are looking for, check out the Yahoo group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/u25cproject/ . Part of the group’s description is:
This group is dedicated to a team effort to produce, from the Rivarossi shell and truck sideframes, a highly detailed, excellent performing, DCC capable, RPM-type model of the U25C (Phases I, II, and III) and the early U28C (Phase I) for modelers of the Northern Pacific; Pennsylvania; Lake Superior and Ishpeming; Atlantic Coast Line; Louisville and Nashville; Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy; and the Oro Dam Constructors (the FIRST U25C buyer) - as well as all the roads they merged in to.
They are well under way and have mfrs working with them on this. It sounds like there should be something soon. Ken
Patrick,
There are some for sale on eBay, so do a search.
Ken beat me to it, as I was going to recommend the U25C Project as well. Until they come out with something, it is possible to make these engines fairly decent runners. I have two remotoring examples. First, with a CD spindle motor.
Better performance, though still too speedy.
I remotored the second with a Mabuchi can and flywheel under the hood, and used salvaged CD and tape drive parts for the belt and pulleys.
The pulleys give it additional reduction (about 16:1 now), and top speed is around 80 MPH. The belt doesn’t slip at all, even with those traction tires. The flywheel actually gives it some momentum. I’ve since built a styrene cradle for the motor, and switched to a larger A Line flywheel that just clears the old motor mount.
The flanges and traction tires are the biggest problem. NWSL doesn’t make drop-in replacements, and the fine helical axle gears are part of the axle, making it a difficult retrofit. Rivarossi’s truck gearing was beautifully milled, but it’s a shame they didn’t make it a lower ratio. Does anyone know if there are wheels that can be substituted without machining them? I think the axles are a larger diameter than NWSL wheelsets.
It’s good of Nelson to provide photos and information for upgrading the Rivarossi U25C’s. Thanks to Nelson!
My U25C’s (photo) have their original mechanisms and don’t spend much time on the layout. The Burlington unit was from Ebay a year or two ago. The seller said it did not run in his listing and that he did not know why. I bought it for less than $5.00. When it arrived, I simply placed one of the brush springs back where it belonged. (It had dislodged itself from the motor brush.) The engine ran fine after i did that. I just love bargains!
Installing kadees was not too hard to do. I used a 30 series coupler with a long underset shank. First, I removed and dicaded the stamped metal footboards.
NP 2506 is a repainted model.
Kaslo shops will be the producer of an epoxy frame and running gear for the U25C project. you can join the group as it is a Yahoo group open to all. The more interest there is means that more will get sold reducing the cost for everyone. It is currently anticipated to be available in about one month.
SteamFreak,
Amazing work and likely the first time a number of us here have read of using your method. Great approach! Sounds like it would make a great “step-by-step” article for MRR magazine. The staff’s always looking for new ideas.
Heartland,
That is a sharp looking NP unit. Did you repaint it?
Thanks for the flowers Antonio! [:I] It’s not an original idea, though. The first time I saw it done was by a guy named Nigel Nichols in New Zealand who modeled the Oro Dam Project: http://www.wave.co.nz/~lakewood/OroDam/OroDam.htm
He used a Roco motor and turned some pulleys, but didn’t have room for the flywheel. A few days ago I found a photo in the Yahoo group of someone who remotored one with a Sagami, flywheel, and a small plastic chain drive (I wish I knew where he got those parts!). It’s in the photo section, so I think you need to join to view it.
It’s just dumb luck that I came up with the right combination of parts for the job, but I strip every old VCR or CD drive for the parts. That belt is the shortest I’ve found, but you can splice belts with CA to make any size you need. The motor is a Mabuchi FK-130-SH. The spindle motor is a Mabuchi RF-310T-11400, and is much better than the stock motor, and a much easier installation. It’s available from All Electronics, and I’ve seen the FK-130’s on eBay.
I also remotored my U25C with a Mabuchi FK-130SH and a belt drive. It works very smoothly and quietly, and has pretty good low speed control.[:D] If I had a flywheel to put on it like SteamFreak did, I bet it would work even better.
These are the motors Bachmann uses in their Spectrum 2-8-0, and I think in their 2-10-0 and 4-6-0, and my 2-8-0 runs more silently than most of my high quality diesels.[:D]