Model Railroading > What EMD, GE, and Alco export models have been made in HO?

I ordered a Frateschi (Brazil) EMD G22 and GE U20C without doing the proper research on the issues with these models. As this photo shows, they are way out of scale. The U23B is my roughed up test engine, and it should be much taller than both of those engines, which were made for metre gauge lines have shorter frames and height. Some comments I've seen online say these are really OO scale models. It is hard to figure out how they could be modified to look correct.

That prompted me to wonder what models there are of the wide range of EMD, GE, and Alco export locomotives. Frateschi makes quite a few, but now I'm wondering if they are all oversize.

Mabar, a seemingly lesser-known Spanish company, has made some nice looking models of Spanish prototypes that include the GE U11B and a 6-axle ALCO locomotive.

There are a lot of European models, and some European engines are EMD/GE/Alco, so I am wondering what else has been made by them. I know of an Indonesia company that may not be making models now that made some Indonesian GE models. Australia seems to have a few models as well.

Is there a list of this anywhere?

One engine I wonder about is the EMD GT26CW/GT26CW-2/etc, which had production of nearly 1,300 units. It possibly serves on more continents than any other locomotive, with this very broad listing of countries that purchased it: Algeria, Australia, Brazil, Iran, Israel, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, Yugoslavia and Zimbabwe. All I've found is a brass model.

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Could they be narrow gauge prototypes that run on HO gauge track, kind of like Sn3? Somewhere I have a Frateschi Alco FA1 squirrelled away. They only made the A unit, but for the time it was a pretty good model. Better proportioned than the Train Miniature unit and the Model Power.

We've seen the Brazilian company down here in Australia and I liken the caliber with that of Tyco when I was a teenager in the 70ies. I do agree that it is likely over scale for HO.

Very few are the number of locos exported from your part of the world to Australia. Excepting the Pilbara mining companies, most were built under license from EMD, Alco/GE. From the diesel era, the only loco I can think of which was fully imported was the NSW 40 class which was an MLW export based on an RSC-2 IIRC.

Assuming you are looking at your own history to the line that you're modeling, one thing which might be of interest to you, is the Flat top T class from Auscision models. It is very close to the G8 which operated in Canada (Prairie branchline and on Newfoundland Narrow Gauge). In fact the prototype was a G8 (built in Australia) but there are subtle differences to the Canadian version. I offer this as I recently saw where someone had bought a "Flattie" from Auscision and removed some of the lettering to represent a steel mill loco. They added the Canadian CN spark arrestors and it was weathered professionally for the owner. I liked the look of it.

I only mention these Australian prototypes as they are the most common and closest I know of to what you're asking about (export models). Another "export" is the Goodwin-Alco "world model" built down here under license. In NSW it is known as the 44 class and in South Australia, the 930 class. These were done by Trainorama in HO through Kader (IIRC). The prototype model was exported by Alco all over the world with the exception that the Aussie ones were home built. The Goodwin-Alco partnership even constructed some of the same for export to Pakistan. These 44/930 class were produced around 2000 and are freely available at "the Bay" or through couple of FB Australian selling groups. Note that these models suffer from the same problem as P2k locos did with cracked gears and, unfortunately, the gears differ from any Athearn replacements. However, there are options for fixing them.


Rick

Are they perhaps OO scale (4 mm/ft) as opposed to HO 3.5 mm / ft?

Will MacKenzie
Dundas, ON

thehighwayman Wrote:
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> Are they perhaps OO scale (4 mm/ft) as opposed to
> HO 3.5 mm / ft?

That is what I hear.

Frateschi also makes AC44's with better tooling that are probably totally to scale, so I think it would be odd that the would make the smaller engines oversized for use of HO track as narrow gauge track. That is, if you want to model Brazil, you would want to show how small a U20C or G22 is compared to an AC44. There are some excellent photos posted by pedrop on the international forum showing this.

Thanks for the information on Australian models and prototypes.

What I am trying to model are Middle Eastern railroads, which have power from the US, Europe, ex-USSR, China, and other locations. Iran has a lot of EMD exports like G26's, G12's, etc. They even have GE C30-7's with lower cabs and radiators. Syria has something like a U16C. I was hoping the Frateschi U20C could be my starting point for that, where maybe I could just shorter the model, but when the entire proportional of the model is way too large, it seems difficult to even figure out how to cut the shell down without cutting away essential components. The shell molding quality is ok by me, although the front doesn't look great. But I don't know how I would cut something like 4-6 scale feet off of the height.

Have you looked on Shapeways for shells? I'm thinking that is where most likely source for models of these oddball export units will be found....in the future if not now.

Ted Curphey
Ontario, OR

Plenty of OO gauge UK ones - EMD class 66 and GE class 70's. These are 1:76 scale but run on HO/1:87 track...

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What track gauge is the prototype?

Hartington Wrote:
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> What track gauge is the prototype?

The UK locos are standard gauge in real life just like the US - it's a historical quirk that when HO/OO gauge was invented in the UK, they made the track at HO/1:87 but due to size/detailing issues they made the locos at 1:76....it then became entrenched and so was established as the UK 'standard' for 4mm modeling. Ridiculous if you ask me - they should have made it proper HO like every other sensible country in the world...

UK trains are "standard gauge" because public railways, as such, were first invented in the UK and were later exported to the USA. Why 4' 8.25"? Because that was the standard for carriage makers who made the first railway carriages and goes back to Roman times. If I recall correctly, OO scale was chosen because of the size of small motors available in the UK at the time. HO scale had it beginnings I believe with Marklin about 1898. If UK models like those made under the Hornby brand were scaled correctly, a lot of UK modelers would have to get glasses sooner to see their models--I know! :)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/16/17 10:52 by railwaybaron.

ND5 a.k.a. Chinese C36-7

Hiroshi

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An update to this question - I have found Hobbytec Modelismo in Brazil, a small company that makes resin shells in 1:87 for Brazilian prototypes (which also are global prototypes.) I'm looking into a U20C and G22 shell from them. Galleries of modelers results with the shells look really good.

...and that ND5 is by Bachmann!!! ...

Shows what they are capable of if they set their mind to it....they are beautiful models and they run as well as ANY model in the US....I have a pair of them I am trying to find a way to use...

Most likely GE test units undergoing testing...on a US railroad...

Bob

Frateschi produced a GE U6B at one time. Not sure if it's still out there.

Cheers,
Harry

BLI did an AC6000CW for BHP & for it's successor BHP Billiton which is an Australian mining RR.