Scored a factory painted Katsumi GS 4 on ebay yesterday and am just wondering if anyone on the forum has had any experience with them, good or bad ? Payed $149 USD for it, it’s got no backhead detailing (not that important on an oil burner with closed cab IMO), lights or window glazing. I’ts used and has been fitted with a can motor and also is supposed to have had some damage to the right hand front repaired (not visible in the pics seller posted).
I’m going to install a Tsunami in it so the lighting will be added then as will be glass. Mainly bought it to hedge my bets as I have a PCM GS 4 on order, but am no longer holding my breath waiting for it !
You had to post pics didn’t ya [censored] You STOLE that engine. I love that paint scheme. Very nice loco my friend. Two other fellow club members have Katsumi loco’s. Neither of them are GS4’S though. Actually they both run well and are heavy pullers.
I have two. One ‘Daylight’ and one ‘stripped’ (an after-War one that SP used on the Valley Line for their SJ Daylight between Oakland and Bakersfield). Both are fine locos–well weighted, well balanced and smooth runners (the Daylight has a can, the ‘stripped’ still has its original open frame). As far as detail–it’s well done, and it works for me. And they have ‘heft’. Like all brass, if it runs a little rough when you get it, it’s easy to work on. Three screws and the superstructure’s off, every thing mechanical exposed, and just tinker a little. Quite frankly, mine are just waiting for comparable cars to come out worthy of them.
You just might find that you won’t NEED to wait for the much-heralded, much-delayed PCM GS-4 to come out–whenever that happens.
What everyone else said, the latter Katsumi’s were very good runners and since yours looks like it has a Westside Box it should be one of the latter models. I have one and it runs like a Swiss watch.
I also am waiting for the proper cars, as all I have now are the old AHM cars and although they look good, they do not match the cars the SP used. I had no problem running a 10 car passenger train with this engine and no weight added on a 2% grade.
I am more than happy with the price I paid, as any other brass GS 4 I’ve seen lately is starting around the $500 USD mark. Even with shipping it will still only owe me just over $200 AUD, which allows me to play around with fitting a Tsunami and any other repairs/mods that may be needed and still end up with a good heavy puller to power the Daylight that hasn’t cost me an arm and a leg. [:D]
I too, am waiting for PCM to release the passenger equipment for it, I’ve got a nine cars ordered to run behind it, but with PCMs delays I’m wondering if the Athearn cars are worth a closer look. Hopefully the Athearn car set will be a high quality production, and if so I’ll probably cancel the PCMs. I mean , who knows if they’ll ever be released anyway ? [:(]
Having said that, I still think there’s more chance of the passenger equipment being released by PCM than there is of them making the GS 4 as they already have PAs in the Daylight scheme. One can only hope ! [sigh]
I would chance to say that the Genesis Daylight cars are going to beat the PCM’s to the market, and the production photos I’ve seen of them look really good. These are DEFINITELY not re-tooled standard Athearn ‘streamliners’ but a completely new run based on the 1937 Coast Daylight. I’m really interested to see them, and if I like them, I’ll get a set for my own Katsumi GS-4 (even if the original 1937 Coast Daylight was pulled by a GS-2, instead). I look at it this way, we HO Daylight fans have been patient enough for a good, affordable version of the train (Kato’s N-scale beauty is already on the market), and if Genesis is willing to release their version before the PCM version (which seems to be further and further away from release as time goes by), then I’ll take what I can get, by golly, LOL!
Enjoy your Katsumi. Like I said in my previous post, you got an absolute STEAL there!
It’s looking like I might eventually have to re-number the Katsumi, if the new blurb on the BLI site is to be believed !!! Not going to cancel my order for the BLI, especially if it’s coming with a free obs, but I still won’t hold my breath waiting for it though !