Athearn HO SW1500 Southern Pacific

Description

Railroad Short Name: SP

SP Features:

• Flexicoil Trucks
• Whip antenna
• Large fuel tank
• MU hoses
• Frame-mounted handrails
• Nathan P-3 horn
• SP light package
• Footboards where appropriate

Between 1967 and 1973, Southern Pacific purchased one of the largest orders of SW1500’s with over 200 units to help replace their aging fleet of Alco, Baldwin, and FM switchers. Unique SP spotting features included a large cab-front mounted number board and SP’s full front and rear lighting package. In the mid 1980’s, two SW1500’s (2539 and 2575) were repainted in the red and yellow “Kodachrome” scheme in anticipation of a merger with Santa Fe. Both schemes were slightly different from another and only 2575 lasted in this scheme, retired just before the UP merger of 1996. As many were sold off for further use after the merger, UP retained some for use in areas with lighter track and local switch jobs that needed smaller motive power.

Features:

• Lit ground lights
• LED lighting for long life and reliable operation
• Detailed cab interior
• Drop steps unless noted
• MU stands
• Dual exhaust stacks
• Printed numberboards
• Fine scale handrails
• Signal hoses as appropriate to the prototype road (MU capability was a railroad specified option for these locos, and some railroads did not order it).
• Front and rear trainline hoses with silver glad hands
• Separately applied wire grab irons
• See-through radiator intake grille and cab windows
• Low or high mounted windshield wipers per prototype
• Rectangular or oval builder’s plate where appropriate
• Separately applied air tank
• McHenry® scale knuckle couplers – Kadee® compatible
• All-wheel drive with precision gears for smooth & quiet operation
• All-wheel electrical pickup provides reliable current flow
• DCC-ready features Quick Plug™ plug-and-play technology with 21-pin NEM connector
• Improved 5-pole skew wound can motor with flywheels and multi-link drivetrain
• Wheels with RP25 contours operate on all popular brands of track
• Highly-detailed, injection molded body
• Interior plastic blister safely holds the model for convenient storage
• Minimum radius: 18”