Dear HO Scale Customers;

 

Athearn Genesis has announced the AC4400CW Diesel Locomotives

 

Union Pacific

The Union Pacific acquisition of the Southern Pacific in 1996 saw the transfer of SP newly acquired AC4400CWs to a new railroad. As they were essentially brand new, there was no push to repaint these units and they existed for several years without modification. Eventually the AC4400CWs were renumbered with simple patches over the SP paint, but as this was done on a unit-by-unit basis where they were, the patches all had a measure of uniqueness.

 

UP FEATURES:

• Primed for Grime

• Replaced AC unit in UP yellow

• Regular spare knuckle holder on rear pilot

• GPS pod

• Front ditch lights

 

ROAD NUMBER SPECIFIC FEATURES:

• #6193 Formerly SP 138; Wears two UP shields on the nose (sometimes referred to as cheek shields), UP shield on rear patched in yellow, reporting marks in grey, faded grey and red to represent the significant sun-bleaching these units received.

• #6289 Formerly SP 289; Infamous “Flaming Patch-Job” unit with a distinctive stylized flames on rear of locomotive, Single UP shield over faded SP logo on front, yellow sill stripe, modern PTC Antenna boxes.

 

 

 

CSX

CSX purchased more AC4400CWs than any other railroad, spanning almost the entire production period. This includes three of the first six produced which have distinctive spotting features compared to all other units. A lightning bolt graphic was applied under the road number making these easy to identify as AC traction motors. Unique to CSX, all these units are equipped with hooks to carry a length of chain under the walkway.

 

CSX FEATURES:

• Front ditch lights

• Low number boards

• Equipped with a CSX standard ‘tow-chain’

• Prime air dryer

 

ROAD NUMBER SPECIFIC FEATURES:

• #1 Named Spirit of West Virginia, One of the original six AC4400CWs built, Re-trucked and renumbered from the originally delivered 9100 series, Holden K5H Horn, early body with central air intake forwards, unique angled grab irons on top of the nose, radiator grills on right side are evenly sized (a feature that didn’t last with later models), unevenly spaced rear grab irons, vertical handrail behind invertor cabinet, extended range dynamic brakes, early no-notch fuel tank, bolted on fuel tank, PTC antenna array, GE Steerable trucks.

• #17 K5LAR24 horn, PTC antenna array, early body features, central air intake in forward position, early no-notch fuel tank, bolted on fuel tank, unevenly spaced rear grab irons, vertical handrail behind inverter cabinet, lipped Exhaust tub, extended dynamic brakes, GE Hi-Adhesion trucks, struts on all 4 corners of each truck, delivered with inside struts but modified to outside braced struts. This model represents the later modified version.

#420 K5LAR24 horn, late body features, central air intake moved rearward, late fuel tank with notch, fuel tank welded to frame, evenly spaced rear grab iron, handrail behind invertor cabinet jogged for capacitor box, two handrails above inverter cabinet, late antenna package, GE steerable trucks.

 

 

Chicago & Northwestern

An earlier purchaser of the AC4400CW, the units purchased by Chicago & Northwestern were dressed in the attractive “Lighting Stripe” paint scheme, but now with the addition of an Operation Lifesaver decoration on the long hood. The AC traction paired well with the long heavy coal trains CNW was pulling out of the Powder River Basin. Many of these units lasted well after the UP acquisition of CNW in their original paint or with minor patching. These early versions rode on the first iteration of the Hi-Adhesion trucks with struts on all four corners of each trucks that were both shorter and inboard of the brake cylinders compared to later variations.

CNW FEATURES:

• Holden K5H Horn

• Desk style control stand

• Unevenly spaced rear grab irons

• Fuel tank bolted to the frame

• Extended range dynamic brakes

• As delivered Antenna package

• Inside struts on all truck sides

• Central air intake in forward position

• Early body features

• Fuel tank without notch

• Front ditch lights

• Low number boards

• Lipped exhaust tub

• GE Hi-Adhesion trucks

 

 

Southern Pacific

Built between April and Nov of 1995, SP placed an order for 279 AC4400CW’s from General Electric. Not only was this SP’s first dive into AC technology but was their largest single locomotive order (and last) in history. GE set up a maintenance shop in Denver CO to support these units. They featured Harris Locotrol II equipment for use in DPU service; although they were used for dedicated power on Colorado coal trains, they could also be found roaming the system wherever they were needed.

SP FEATURES:

• Nathan P-3 Horn

• High number boards

• Early body features

• Unevenly spaced rear grab irons

• Central air intake in forward position

• Early no-notch bolted on fuel tank

• Extended radiator hatch on engineer’s side

• Prime Air Dryer

• Vertical handrail behind invertor cabinet

• GE Hi-Adhesion trucks

• Modified outside struts on opposite sides of trucks

• Alternating flash front ditch lights (Effect in DCC)

 

ROAD NUMBER SPECIFIC FEATURES:

• #114 Unique spare knuckle box on rear pilot.

• #239 Unique spare knuckle box on rear pilot.

• #336 Unique additional handrail above capacitor box.

 

 

 

SOUND-EQUIPPED MODELS ALSO FEATURE

• Onboard DCC decoder with SoundTraxx Tsunami2 sound

• Dual cube speakers for optimal sound quality

• Sound units operate in both DC and DCC

• Full DCC functions available when operated in DCC mode

• Engine, horn, and bell sounds work in DC

• All functions NMRA compatible in DCC mode

• Precision slow speed control

• Program a multiple unit (MU) lashup with lead unit only horn, bell, and lights

• Many functions can be altered via Configuration Value (CV) changes

• CV chart included in the box

 

PRIMED FOR GRIME MODELS FEATURE

• Duplicated look and feel of “In Service” equipment

• Faded base colors matched to the prototype

• Perfect starting point for adding grime and rust

 

 

Order Due Date: March 25, 2022

Anticipated Delivery Date: May 2023

Looking for more Athearn Genesis HO Scale Dash AC4400CW Diesel Locomotives? Click here!

 

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