Loco ID help please

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Victorsmalls

New Member
Oct 8, 2005
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I am new to train modeling and have gathered up some used finds over the past month and I am having trouble getting information on some of them. Here is one in locomotive that I can't seem to figure out the ID on. Any help would be appreciated.



PS, layout is allmost complete, will be posting pics of that in the near future.


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It looks very like an Alco RS-2. Although it isn't the Kato 'current' release, as it's not got the one-piece light board. Atlas did an RS-2 ages ago but the handrails were awful -- is it a more recent one of those? Or is it an old Kato one? The underside should tell you... sorry I can't be more helpful...
 
As far as I can tell, the only markings on it are the number 17708 JAPAN on each truck. Other than that, when it comes to running the loco on my layout, it runs very smooth and more like my Katos rather than my Atlas locos.
 
Quite a few years ago Till.
When I was in N scale, I had an Atlas RS-1, with Kato drive. Like the RS-2, the handrail were way over size.
I found out later, that Kato made the shell and drive, Atlas sold it under their name.
 
That puppy is an Atlas RS3, Item# 4202, manufactured by Kato and released in late August of 1983 (I still have one).
this run of RS3's was the first of a new offering of N Scale locomotives and was offered as #4200 (Undec), 4201 (Pennsylvania), 4202 (Norfolk & Western), 4203 (Rock Island), 4204 (Louisville & Nashville) and 4205 (Conrail).
This run featured a new split frame drive that differed radicaly from previosly released offerings and is the basis of all good runing locomotives available today.
It is often considered to be the locomotive that pulled N Scale out of the "Dark Ages" and into the modern era.
The units performance is inferior to the models of today, however, when it was first released, it blew the socks off of all previously released locomotives and it inspired 2 HO modeling freinds to experiment in N Scale and, eventually, drop HO in favor of N.
 
Great information. I am planing on photographing all of my stock and locos and cataloging them online . This is the useful information I have come to expect from The Gauge. :)
 
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