Walthers/Proto came out with new runs of their SD7’s and GP7’s a while ago. These replace older runs that were offered back when Proto was owned by Life-Like. Are they mechanically different?
Specifically, I know the older GP7 drive was an athearn clone and they did not have LED’s. Have these two characteristics been updated?
The older SD7 had a better drive than the athearn cloned geeps, but no LED’s either. Has the drive been changed and do they now have LED’s?
Have they been updated in any other way, other than roadname?
I know the shells of both models were pretty good back when LifeLike owned them so I don’t suppose they’ve changed much.
I have a large number of GP7’s and GP9’s that are both old and new. They all have the same running gear and none have LED’s. The only thing that has been changed as far as I can tell is all the new stuff doesn’t have the cracked gear issue that the first run did back many years ago. I have a few old GP30’s and just bought a new one so once I get it and install a decoderr I’ll report back if they are the same as well. I bet they are though…
I’ve wondered this as well. I have 8 older GP-7’s and 3 older GP-9’s and I now see that they come with DCC and sound. I wonder if the shells are interchangable. I’d love to pick up a GP-7 / GP-9 with DCC and sound on sale and put my older shell on it.
The older GP7 and GP9 shells are interchangeable with the newer DCC and sound versions. I’ve done the same thing you want to do with two of my Ontario Northland GP9’s.
Wheel sets are probably the easiest thing to swap out on P2K loco’s. I swapped out all my FA2 sets because of the cracked gear issue for newer nickel silver wheels. Just be careful when your prying open the gear cover on the truck.
No. Good idea though. I thought I would try here since there are very knowledgeable people on this forum. Also, I’m not sure that I would get a completely straight answer from a manufacturer about whether or not they cloned another manufacturer’s drive system. Forum members don’t hold back direct info like that.
Reading the promotional material covering the locos, it doesn’t sound like Walthers is mentioning a new drive system or LED’s, but do mention constant/directional lighting, as they have done in the past. I think P2K’s are known to be power hogs because of the lighting circuit and was also wondering if they changed that to accomodate more dcc loco consist opportunities. Something I may add to my direct questioning of Walthers if Forum members are silent.
The very first Geep Life-Like came out with for their Proto 2000 line was the GP18. It came out in the early 1990s. I tried removing the headlight bulb from one of them and it turned out that the loco would not run without the bulb in the circuit. The plastic axles on the wheel sets also conduct electricity, so don’t even think of converting an early GP18 to a dummy loco. The wheel set will short out a power pack or DCC system.
Fortunately Life-Like corrected these problems with better wheel sets and a circuit board with easily removable headlight bulbs on the GP7 and GP9 locos that were introduced in the late 1990s.
What your looking for is their Tune Up Kit, its part number 584408. You may have to contact their customer service people. You can also try Northwest Short Line for replacement wheels, although they are expensive.