Athearn offers a DCC ready RS3 which to the best of my knowledge is a new release. I plan to have a small fleet of them on my layout and until I saw this offering, had planned to go with Atlas. Based on past experiences, my preference is for Atlas as I believe they are superior runners. Both are comparably priced but the advantage of the Athearn is that it is DCC ready where as the Atlas has to be retrofitted with a decoder. I have an older Atlas RS3 that I bought some time ago when DCC was in its infancy. It is a smooth runner but there isn’t a whole lot of room under the long hood for a decoder but I have heard that the newer Atlas RS3s are more DCC friendly in that they have room to fit a decoder. If anyone has tried the Athearn RS3s, I would like to hear their opinion of them both from a running standpoint as well as level of detail.
I have 2.
Great detail, ok drive.
Old Roundhouse mold…new drive,electronics ,yada, yada, yada.
Patrick
My opinion? BOOO! because they did not make a Reading one. Single most numerous class of diesel on the Reading. I’m stll stuck with buying undec and painting them myself. Paint is plentiful, decal sets are harder to find. But if they DID make a Reading one, I’d definitely buy it. Better detailed than the old Atlas models.
–Randy
Any of the Atlas RS3, from the very earliest are very easy to install a basic decoder in, usiong one of the many board replacement decoders offered such as the NCE DASR. Digitrax and TCS and possibly others, have similar decoders.
Thus no advantage/disadvantage either way.
Per Jim Six, the Athearn/Roundhouse model is more accurate.
I’d go for an early Atlas with a Kato chassis.
The quote that its the old Roundhouse mold is mostly bogus.
Yes, it is, but it has been very much re-tooled and has all new details. Sep grabs irons, see through cab, all new stuff.
There is no comparison - and at least the dimensions are correct as opposed to the Atlas model.
I have an RS3 in the GN road. It caught my eye awhile back in the LHS. It runs really good and is a better drive than the old MDC release. The body of the loco’ from looking at the old and the new, it is retooled and allot better looking. I like mine!
It is just as sharp looking as my two Kato RS-2’s. Not quite as heavy but it runs very nicely on DCC. It currently is sitting on my workbench waiting a sound decoder. I plan on putting in two speakers. One in the little box meant for the decoder and one in the cab. I too would like a fleet of these. I think the RS-2/3’s are sleek and look really great in a consist.
Terry[8D]