Athearn HO GP40X | ModelRailroader.com

Measuring 60′-2″ over the pulling faces, the GP40X is a foot longer than the GP40-2. But the easiest way to tell the two units apart without a tape measure is to look at the radiator section. The GP40X has flared radiators, similar to those found on SD45s.

So who owned the GP40Xs? Four railroads: Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (10); Southern Pacific (4); Southern Ry. (3, all high-nose units operated long nose forward); and Union Pacific (6).

Though only a handful of GP40Xs were produced, they can still be found in operation today on the BNSF Ry. and Canadian Pacific, among other railroads. The CP units are classified GP38-3s.

The SP model features numerous prototoype-specific details, including appropriate front and rear headlight and Mars light clusters, an SP-style rooftop bell, antenna stands, and an L-window cab. Though the model has a curved grab iron behind the rear radiator fan, it doesn’t have eyebolts.

The neatest features on the SP model are the injection-molded plastic “elephant ear” shrouds and the HT-B trucks. The shrouds, used to draw clean, cool air into the radiator to prevent the engine from overheating, were later removed.

The HT-B trucks are crisply molded with “HT-B” printed in the center and “70/17″ (the prototype’s gear ratio) on the upper right of the truck. Athearn used its regular four-axle truck mechanism on the GP40X, so the wheelbase is too short. It should be a scale 9′-91/2″ instead of 9′-3″. The 40″ diameter wheelsets should be 42”.

Our other sample, decorated for NS, closely matches prototype drawings published in the book Southern: A Motive Power Pictorial by Paul K. Withers and Tom L. Sink (P.K. Withers, 1987). The high-nose model is set up for long-hood forward operation and has a five-chime horn on each end and a bell mounted above the front headlights. The model has three 48″-diameter Q-fans over the radiator section and a single 48″-diameter flat-top dynamic brake fan. All of the fans are see-through with separate blades underneath.

The NS model has Blomberg-M trucks with 40″-diameter wheelsets. The smaller wheels are accurate for this style of truck.

Athearn used a 3,600-gallon injection-molded-plastic fuel tank on both models instead of the 3,500-gallon version found on the prototypes. In HO scale, the difference is hardly noticeable. The tank has well-executed fuel neck and sight- and fuel-gauge detail. Modeler-installed parts, such as an air box drain pipe, breather pipes, and sump drain, also are included.

The GP40X uses Athearn’s traditional five-pole skew-wound motor with dual brass flywheels and hex drive shafts. A Digital Command Control decoder Quick Plug is seated on top of the motor. Be careful when removing the shell, though, as the headlight wires are attached to the printed-circuit board, as shown below.

I tested our SP sample, which moved a scale 4.5 mph at 2.4V, and had a top speed of 91.3 scale mph. The starting speed will decrease once the model has been in service for a while. With a drawbar pull of 4.16 ounces, the model is capable of pulling 58 free-rolling freight cars on straight and level track.

Manufacturer
Athearn Trains
1550 Glenn Curtiss St.
Carson, CA 90746
www.athearn.com

Description:
Plastic and metal
Ready-to-Roll locomotive

Road names: BNSF Ry. (Heritage I), Norfolk Southern, Southern Pacific, St. Lawrence & Atlantic, Union Pacific, and undecorated (NS, SP, and UP versions)

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