I just found a few EMD FP45’s and have been having a good time running them around my little test track. It seems these 6 axle jewels can pull about anything I throw at em. Made by Athearn, and in all of the road names I can find, they run just about as good as any I have. Double fly wheels do help.
Anyone else running something like this? Just curious.[:D]
John
Real or model? I have also 3 Athearn AT&SF FP45 - 2 in the original red/silver scheme and one in the SUPERFLEET red/silver!
It´s powerful and looks good!
In real the FP45 was ordered only by Milwaukee Road (5 units) and AT&SF (9 units).
In the early 1970 the AT&SF got the blue yellow freight warbonnet paint scheme and pull freight trains.
Rebuilt into SDFP45´s (optical in the first line nose modifications).
Exept one they were also painted as KODACHROMES.
The FP45´s were also the first older engines that became the new SUPERPOWER warbonnet paintscheme.
2 were scrapped, one (original #101) sold to Wisconsin Central, and the rest was donated in different museums
Two of the Milwaukee units were scrapped in 1981 The rest #2-4 ? Good question, I think they were also scrapped!
Nice to know you guys like my overall favorite diesel! [;)][:D]
I have one currently and am about to purchase a 2nd Santa Fe Warbonnet unit (Athearn). Brand new, out of the box it has the “infamous Growl”.
I’ve cut out the side radiator grills and the fans on the top. Am installing “see thru” grills and fans. Plans are to re-engine with Mashima motor, precision flywheels, Soundtraxx decoder, speaker, gyra light, and “warm white” LED headlights. Along with the “Pearl Drops” treatment it should run much quieter. Only noise I want to hear is that of a turbocharged 645 series diesel, a bell, and a multi-chimed horn. Planning on purchasing a 2nd unit and performing the same.
My primary road that I’m modeling is the SCL in the late 60s in the black bumblebee scheme, but I’ve always liked the Santa Fe FP45s so much as well as their history that I will always find some type of reason to have them make appearances "here and there on my upcoming layout. I’m very glad that the wide cabs of modern EMDs resemble these units.
BTW: Accoriding to info on the TRAINS thread, the Wisconsin unit has been sold to a man that deals in reconditioning and leasing out units. MIlwaukee units were scrapped (why?? They weren’t that old at the time! ).
I mentioned before that the Athearn units do look decent but I’ve been hoping that Proto, BLI, or Kato would produce one. I’ve always felt that since the SF FP45s were “special” they would sell
These were the first units repainted back into the red “Warbonnet” scheme for “SUPER FLEET” service, equipped with high speed gearing, used to pull the hotshot freight “SUPER C”,and they were also the last units to pull the Santa Fe “SUPER CHIEF”,) Stories of these units hitting 90mph speeds were common and in one instance the speeds were mentioned in either a TRAINS or MRR article. [:D][8D][;)][8)]
In the mid 1990s, however, more locomotive engineers repor
I have one of the Life-Like “Delux Series” FP45s in B&O. My grandma bought it for me whan I was 7 or so. From this model I assume the “Delux Series” was a trial run for the “Proto 2000” Line that was started a few years later. It has a Can Motor. Fly Wheels Die Cast Frame. and an Early PC Board LED headlight system. Right now I am in the process of looking for the parts to rebuild it from the sufferings of my childhod antics. (All the steps and the front and rear pilots are missing. Interestingly though I kept the original box.) But when I get it fixed I wil have it head up a String of Life-Like Streamlined passenger cars for B&O.
Anyone else have the Life-Like FP45?
James
I have two FP45’s that I reworked into SDP40F’s and painted them in Amtrak schemes for my North Coast Hiawatha. They pull like everything. You can even weight the heck out of the shell if you like. I also have two F45’s, one in BN and the other in GN Sky Blue. I love the look of the front ends on these locomotives. Just gives you a sense of power!
Gentlemen,
Please consider and do the following:
Go to the websites of: Broadway Limited, Kato, LifeLike(Proto), and Atlas. Once on the individual websites, E-Mail each company and tell them that you would like an FP45 produced. You can tell them why, and how the history of this unit is significant.
These companies actually consider customer input in addition to marketing sales statistics, so you would not be wasting your time.
MichaelFarley,
Good job on being able to convert your unit into one of the SDPs! Some modelers might not realize that there are very significant differences between these two cowl units. BTW: www.ASModels.com produces the SDP40f resin shell in HO scale.
Enjoy your cowl units!
Peace out, Amigos!
An Athearn FP45 was my first “real” locomotive when I made the leap from Tyco and Life Like. I loved that thing. Todat I run one SDF40-2 (SDP40F) made from an FP45, 1 FP45 and have have another on the bench that I’m going to do something with. I love the big cowls.
Did B&O ever run one of these engines? I have a box from Athearn and the shell that is decorated in B&O. Sure looks like a FP45.
Could be something I’m not familiar with, but sure looks like one.
I believe that the only original owners of the FP45s were ATSF and Milwaukee Road and ATSF, BN and GN for the F45s,
Montana Rail Link, WC, WSOR and Utah has F45/FP45s as second hand users. B&O may have considered it at one time…I don’t know, but as far as I can tell, the B&O paint in a Athearnism.
I have an Athearn FP45, MIlwaukee # 1. that I didn’t know what to do with (must have bought it cheap at a swap meet). I also had a monster of a canmotor that didn’t fit any hood unit but the wide body FP45 took it without problem, so now I have a FP45 that weighs a ton and will pull anything put behind it and I still don’t know what to do with it. Any ideas?
Send it to me…[:)]
BigBoy 4515, I have a great big ole FP45 in the OLD MILWAUKEE road name in UP colors. Gota bout 3 of 'm. I really like the size of this brute and will have no problem keeping them and running them. Pulls like a mad beast.
Only thing I don’t care for about it is the changing of the coupler.
dharmon, try not to be as greedy as me, OK?? HeHeHE
I am in the midst of shortening a DD40 frame to fit under an FP45 shell. I have seen pictures of an SD45 with the DD trucks under it that EMD had built for a South American line at www.northeastrailfan.net . I figured why not do the same with the “wide 45”? I need to get another F or FP45 shell, as I would like to add a fourth fan and radiator grille to make it an FP45X. I have shots of the SD45X, which was basically an SD45 on steroids. 4250 h.p., and 4 radiator fans, but otherwise a regular SD45. Unfortunately, my LHS has no more F or FP45 shells, and strangely enough, he doesn’t expect any more! Any suggestions on who still has shells in stock would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Antonio
Dont forget to re-wheel the thing too! NWSL make great nickel-silver replacement wheels that run much quieter and much cleaner than the stock Athearn wheels. I’ve used them for years in my favorite Athearn “big cowls”, PA-1’s![:D][:D][:D]
Kbfcsme
Thanks for the tip on the wheels. Will do it. Since I’m going through all the effort of upgrading these units for optimum performance, might as well go for the best!
I want an FP45 really bad! Anyone know were I can get one at a fair price?
I would be running a crunked up Athearn SF blue F45, if I could find one. But it seems hopeless. These cowls are very appealling. They remind me of a cross between E units and later Geeps.
Yeah, it looks like a DDA40X cab on a GP60M body with cowling and 6 axles.
I saw some FP45s on eBay last week, really really cheap too. Also if you’re ever in the Milwaukee area, I found a shop there last week near Southridge Mall that had 4 of em. I haven’t found any stores in Toronto with em, but I’ll keep an eye out.
I actually chose to run P42s and rebuilds of first gen Alcos on my freelance commuter line instead of FP45s. It was nothing against the big units but was more of a nod to Metro North and Long Island which are two of my favorite commuter lines.
I would also bet that Athern would be the most likely to do another production run of FP45s as they still probably have the shell tooling. They’d probably run it in their RTR line and double the price though.