Great review! I think Athearn Genesis is the best option when looking for an H0 scale F7. But I prefer ZIMO decoders over the ones the DCC-versions come with.
Very cool Dan! I had seen Frisco versions floating around on some online hobby store sites, but never picked one up! Hopefully Athearn releases them again in the future at some point!
Hey Dan. Nice review again. Those engines are very nice...for Athearn ! I'm joking here but only in half. Most of Athearn Genesis engines are a real pain in the a*** for me. There is always something to fix or modify on them. But I have to admit that both of these A and B units are we'll done. The only bad thing I saw are the front lift rings. In close shot, it's noticeable that they're not completely pushed in. The fuzzy paint doesn't bother me at all. I do admit that it should be done more properly but it's easy to hide with lite weathering. Too much oil is something I only see on Athearn's engines. Overall, engines look very nice and you did a great job showing all interesting features on them.
I'm glad you liked the review. I think these are pretty nice overall. I noticed that the lift rings on the nose didn't quite touch the body when I was editing the video. It's another thing that shows up more on camera than it does in person. I may try to see if I can push them in a little when I get around to putting DCC in these. I've seen oil on other Athearn engines, too. They could probably use a little less oil. It can make a mess if the engines are stored on their sides. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi Hi again Dan. I was just letting you know about the lift rings. It was not really an issue for me here. I got to admit that I'm not a F unit guy at ALL. But those are like the basic of trains. Especially model trains. When I was young, most of Bachmann kits had F units and GP35 or GP40 diesel engines. They were so cheap made... nothing to do with today's HO models. Keep on your good work.
Good looking models! I've always liked the look of SP's units, Especially freight units with their crazy lighting packages. These will look excellent on your Donner Pass layout and looked right at home pulling the holiday train!
I agree that they're nice looking. These are my only SP F units. I've always wanted a couple but never got any, so I was happy when I saw these were available. Thanks for watching!
I'm also more of a 1990s modeler for SP but those are some really sharp looking F units for Southern Pacific! During the video, you'd said that the oscillating light and class lights don't work. John with Garden State Modelworks has been a Godsend for some of my SP equipment with getting the all the lighting to work properly or making non-functional lighting functional. He would probably be able to help with the A-unit if you wanted the oscillating light and class lights to work. Great video! I always enjoy your reviews.
These are pretty cool. I have a couple Athearn Genesis WP F units that I redid the lighting on, including making the number boards light-able and making the class lights work. I usually do that kind of thing myself, but I appreciate the reference nonetheless. I'll probably do that to these when I get around to putting DCC in them. Thanks for watching!
I got 2x normal F7 A/B sets from Athearn in this SP paint scheme and they are real beauties, super detailed. I like them a lot. With the sound from ESU they sound perfectly... 😊
I was really happy with these. I have a lot of trains, but these were my first HO Black Widow F units. I plan to add ESU sound to mine, too. Thanks for watching!
I think I would have waited to grade the couplers until after I changed them out, as I’ve had problems with plastic couplers on locomotives before. I always change mine out for metal-shank couplers before use on the layout. If they’re a bit high (say, no more than a millimeter), then they’ll couple just fine. If they’re a bit low, then I just make sure the coupler trip-pin passes over the Kadee coupler height gauge. Tension will pull them level once you start pulling a rake of freight or passenger cars. If they’re more than a millimeter or so off, then you can shim them, or use Kadee’s under- or over-shank couplers (also sold in packs.)
For reviews I always test the coupler height, wheel gauge, and the rest before I do anything to the model. That way I know that nothing I'm doing is affecting the result. I don't like plastic couplers, either. I've also had problems with them. Thanks for watching!
I have a lot of other SP engines in scarlet and gray. Even though it's out of my era, I could see maybe getting an F unit in that scheme, too. I really wanted the Black Widow F's, though. I've always wanted to have one but wasn't able to get one until now. Thanks for watching!
Not a school teacher, no. I've done a lot of things but that isn't one of them. Good teachers are awesome though, and I admire people who do that. I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
Oooh I love the fact that the paint scheme where the silver and black comes together isn’t laser sharp!! I think that is a feature extremely prototypical for that time! I do remembers in seeing anomalies like this ever so often on rolling stock while visiting my local yard in the mid 70’s. In fact I saw some where you can see the bleed of the template from the airbrush. I like anomalies like these and I dare HO manufacturers to do these more often in some of their cars. Thanks for the video Dan! I’m scarlet and grey type of guy, but feel this extreme pressure of getting some B/widow locos!! Aaargh, hate to have to refinance to get an HO scale loco!!
I'm glad you liked the review. I think the paint on these looks good overall, and as I mentioned in the review, the fuzzy separation isn't as noticeable in person. I really like this scheme, and I was happy to get them as I didn't have any SP F units before this. I will probably be tempted if they release them in scarlet and gray, though. Thanks for watching!
I've always liked this scheme, too, which is a big part of the reason why I got these. Even though I model a later era, I wanted to have a couple examples of these to run once in a while. Thanks for watching!
I'll keep that in mind. We still had the temporary layout set up when I was making this video so I was able to take some shots of the trains running somewhere besides the workbench. I hope to do more of that in the future when I start getting my permanent layout built. Thanks for watching!
Great review, Daniel. Did they only come in SP Black Widow or did they make other road names, as well? Usually if a manufacturer does Sp, they Do UP and Santa Fe too.
I'm glad you liked the review. I checked at Lombard where I bought these and I also see CNW, Rock Island, Frisco, Southern, and Cotton Belt (daylight). Maybe that's what they did this time around. Athearn will probably do more runs of these eventually and might do some different railroads at that time. I have a Western Pacific Genesis FP7A from an older run that I got years ago. Thanks for watching!
Isn't working number lights the norm these days? Not having these and the non working class lights at this price seems like a major flaw to the model. Or did SP not use them?
I'm pretty sure SP used them, and yes, the model would be better with those features. For whatever reason, Athearn has shied away from lit number boards until the more recent Genesis 2.0 models. At least these models have separate glazing, which makes it a little easier to light up the number boards. The class lights have lenses, and could be lit from behind. It's a fairly involved job to do all of that. I've done it before and I like the results but it would be nice not to have to. Thanks for watching!
I only have Reading FP7’s from AthGen. All have no coupler issues with Kadee’s and have been outfitted with the Athearn led friendly 21pin board, tsunami2 21PNEM8, LED kit from Scale Sound systems, and a speaker from Scale Sound systems. I fully endorse the FP7’s from Athearn older or newer run. The haul plenty! Just be careful if there’s a speaker installed in the proper spot as you will need to slightly pull up on the nose first until you get to the speaker then lift nose further and back.
I will be adding sound and DCC to mine eventually. I can see having to watch the speaker when opening them up if they have them. Once I figured it out, I like it that these newer units have screws. It makes it easier to remove the shell than on some of the older ones. Thanks for watching!
Excellent review as always, Dan. Regarding locomotive body wobble, have you shown how to fix this? I have an Athearn RTR SD40-2 and SD60 (white box) that wobble significantly.
That sounds like a good subject for a Model Building Tips video. I haven't had too many locomotives with wobble issues, but I have seen it happen. If I run across one in my collection that does that, I could use it as the subject for a video. Thanks for the suggestion and for watching!
I'm not a fan of the black widow scheme but the overall detail is typical for Genesis. If they become available in the scarlet and grey with the icicle breakers I would opt to get at least the A unit. Hopefully with tsunami 2 and sound. Good review.
The icicle breakers would be a bit of a challenge. I didn't see a detail part available that matched the type on the prototype units. Custom Finishing has a part but it's different. It would be cool if Athearn made those. Thanks for watching!
I probably won't be reviewing those. Aside from a certain reluctance to buy from Rapido, those engines are a little too far out of my area of interest. They look cool though. Thanks for watching!
I will be adding DCC and sound to these at some point. I've had in mind to do a DCC Shop video eventually with an F unit, so these would work well for that. Thanks for the suggestion and for watching!
Wow! I love F units in general due to growing up watching videos about the ATSF. So much in fact, I'm close to having an F unit built by every model railroad manufacturer that offered or currently offers them. - 3 Bachmann ATSF F units (1 FTA in an early Warbonnet scheme, and 2 F7As, one in the Warbonnet scheme, and the other in the Blue & Yellow Freight Bonnet) - 1 Broadway Limited Imports ATSF F3A Blackbonnet scheme - 1 WalthersProto SP FP7A in the Scarlett & Gray scheme with Ice Breakers - 1 Athearn Genesis WP FP7A in the Orange & Silver CZ scheme I might get the Intermountain ATSF F9 in the Yellow & Blue freight bonnet, a WalthersMainline D&RGW F7A, and a Rapido Trains Inc. VIA Rail FP9A to be able to say that I have a lot of F units.. lol
That's a lot of F units! I have a few older Genesis F unit models in Santa Fe, Rio Grande, and Western Pacific. The two in this review are my first SP units. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi it doesn't work at all now, but as a kid, Dad got me a DC Bachmann Santa Fe Warbonnet F7 was my very first F unit and my first ho scale locomotive. In the other words, the engine that started my journey into HO Scale model railroading.
Funny to think the A unit scored a B and the B unit scored an A guess they wanted to trade places.
Haha... I noticed that, too. Ironic maybe? Thanks for watching!
Great review! I think Athearn Genesis is the best option when looking for an H0 scale F7. But I prefer ZIMO decoders over the ones the DCC-versions come with.
I'm glad you liked the review. I will be putting LokSound decoders in mine eventually. Thanks for watching!
Very cool Dan! I had seen Frisco versions floating around on some online hobby store sites, but never picked one up! Hopefully Athearn releases them again in the future at some point!
They do seem to re-run these periodically, so hopefully you'll be able to find some eventually. Thanks for watching!
Hey Dan. Nice review again. Those engines are very nice...for Athearn ! I'm joking here but only in half. Most of Athearn Genesis engines are a real pain in the a*** for me. There is always something to fix or modify on them. But I have to admit that both of these A and B units are we'll done. The only bad thing I saw are the front lift rings. In close shot, it's noticeable that they're not completely pushed in. The fuzzy paint doesn't bother me at all. I do admit that it should be done more properly but it's easy to hide with lite weathering. Too much oil is something I only see on Athearn's engines. Overall, engines look very nice and you did a great job showing all interesting features on them.
I'm glad you liked the review. I think these are pretty nice overall. I noticed that the lift rings on the nose didn't quite touch the body when I was editing the video. It's another thing that shows up more on camera than it does in person. I may try to see if I can push them in a little when I get around to putting DCC in these. I've seen oil on other Athearn engines, too. They could probably use a little less oil. It can make a mess if the engines are stored on their sides. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi Hi again Dan. I was just letting you know about the lift rings. It was not really an issue for me here.
I got to admit that I'm not a F unit guy at ALL. But those are like the basic of trains. Especially model trains. When I was young, most of Bachmann kits had F units and GP35 or GP40 diesel engines. They were so cheap made... nothing to do with today's HO models. Keep on your good work.
Good looking models! I've always liked the look of SP's units, Especially freight units with their crazy lighting packages. These will look excellent on your Donner Pass layout and looked right at home pulling the holiday train!
I agree that they're nice looking. These are my only SP F units. I've always wanted a couple but never got any, so I was happy when I saw these were available. Thanks for watching!
I'm also more of a 1990s modeler for SP but those are some really sharp looking F units for Southern Pacific!
During the video, you'd said that the oscillating light and class lights don't work.
John with Garden State Modelworks has been a Godsend for some of my SP equipment with getting the all the lighting to work properly or making non-functional lighting functional. He would probably be able to help with the A-unit if you wanted the oscillating light and class lights to work.
Great video!
I always enjoy your reviews.
These are pretty cool. I have a couple Athearn Genesis WP F units that I redid the lighting on, including making the number boards light-able and making the class lights work. I usually do that kind of thing myself, but I appreciate the reference nonetheless. I'll probably do that to these when I get around to putting DCC in them. Thanks for watching!
I got 2x normal F7 A/B sets from Athearn in this SP paint scheme and they are real beauties, super detailed. I like them a lot. With the sound from ESU they sound perfectly... 😊
I was really happy with these. I have a lot of trains, but these were my first HO Black Widow F units. I plan to add ESU sound to mine, too. Thanks for watching!
"HO scale holiday layout", what holiday did you celebrate? Just curious 😁
Christmas, which for us is mostly about spending time with family and friends. Thanks for watching!
My consensus is This: The Southern Pacific Black Widow and Bloody Nose paint schemes were Great.
Also, Amtrak’s Phase 1 was great as well.
I agree! Thanks for watching!
I think I would have waited to grade the couplers until after I changed them out, as I’ve had problems with plastic couplers on locomotives before. I always change mine out for metal-shank couplers before use on the layout. If they’re a bit high (say, no more than a millimeter), then they’ll couple just fine. If they’re a bit low, then I just make sure the coupler trip-pin passes over the Kadee coupler height gauge. Tension will pull them level once you start pulling a rake of freight or passenger cars. If they’re more than a millimeter or so off, then you can shim them, or use Kadee’s under- or over-shank couplers (also sold in packs.)
For reviews I always test the coupler height, wheel gauge, and the rest before I do anything to the model. That way I know that nothing I'm doing is affecting the result. I don't like plastic couplers, either. I've also had problems with them. Thanks for watching!
I would have figured you'd go for the bloody nose version of the FP7s. I went for the bloody nose and have 5 of them. I couldn't resist.
I have a lot of other SP engines in scarlet and gray. Even though it's out of my era, I could see maybe getting an F unit in that scheme, too. I really wanted the Black Widow F's, though. I've always wanted to have one but wasn't able to get one until now. Thanks for watching!
You are a tough grader.i hope you're not a school teacher.😀
I love your reviews
Not a school teacher, no. I've done a lot of things but that isn't one of them. Good teachers are awesome though, and I admire people who do that. I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
Oooh I love the fact that the paint scheme where the silver and black comes together isn’t laser sharp!! I think that is a feature extremely prototypical for that time! I do remembers in seeing anomalies like this ever so often on rolling stock while visiting my local yard in the mid 70’s. In fact I saw some where you can see the bleed of the template from the airbrush. I like anomalies like these and I dare HO manufacturers to do these more often in some of their cars. Thanks for the video Dan! I’m scarlet and grey type of guy, but feel this extreme pressure of getting some B/widow locos!! Aaargh, hate to have to refinance to get an HO scale loco!!
I'm glad you liked the review. I think the paint on these looks good overall, and as I mentioned in the review, the fuzzy separation isn't as noticeable in person. I really like this scheme, and I was happy to get them as I didn't have any SP F units before this. I will probably be tempted if they release them in scarlet and gray, though. Thanks for watching!
Nice review! Keep em coming.
I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
Athearn sure has gotten expensive.
I've noticed that Athearn's prices have gone up in the past couple years, too. Thanks for watching!
one of my favorite schemes, beautiful
I've always liked this scheme, too, which is a big part of the reason why I got these. Even though I model a later era, I wanted to have a couple examples of these to run once in a while. Thanks for watching!
Another great review, Dan!
You could add some shots of running reviewed models (6:40) while making conclusion, it will be a nice touch :)
I'll keep that in mind. We still had the temporary layout set up when I was making this video so I was able to take some shots of the trains running somewhere besides the workbench. I hope to do more of that in the future when I start getting my permanent layout built. Thanks for watching!
Great review, Daniel. Did they only come in SP Black Widow or did they make other road names, as well? Usually if a manufacturer does Sp, they Do UP and Santa Fe too.
I'm glad you liked the review. I checked at Lombard where I bought these and I also see CNW, Rock Island, Frisco, Southern, and Cotton Belt (daylight). Maybe that's what they did this time around. Athearn will probably do more runs of these eventually and might do some different railroads at that time. I have a Western Pacific Genesis FP7A from an older run that I got years ago. Thanks for watching!
Isn't working number lights the norm these days? Not having these and the non working class lights at this price seems like a major flaw to the model. Or did SP not use them?
I'm pretty sure SP used them, and yes, the model would be better with those features. For whatever reason, Athearn has shied away from lit number boards until the more recent Genesis 2.0 models. At least these models have separate glazing, which makes it a little easier to light up the number boards. The class lights have lenses, and could be lit from behind. It's a fairly involved job to do all of that. I've done it before and I like the results but it would be nice not to have to. Thanks for watching!
Great review. Are you planning on adding loksound to these?
Yes, eventually. I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
I only have Reading FP7’s from AthGen. All have no coupler issues with Kadee’s and have been outfitted with the Athearn led friendly 21pin board, tsunami2 21PNEM8, LED kit from Scale Sound systems, and a speaker from Scale Sound systems.
I fully endorse the FP7’s from Athearn older or newer run. The haul plenty! Just be careful if there’s a speaker installed in the proper spot as you will need to slightly pull up on the nose first until you get to the speaker then lift nose further and back.
I will be adding sound and DCC to mine eventually. I can see having to watch the speaker when opening them up if they have them. Once I figured it out, I like it that these newer units have screws. It makes it easier to remove the shell than on some of the older ones. Thanks for watching!
Excellent review as always, Dan. Regarding locomotive body wobble, have you shown how to fix this? I have an Athearn RTR SD40-2 and SD60 (white box) that wobble significantly.
That sounds like a good subject for a Model Building Tips video. I haven't had too many locomotives with wobble issues, but I have seen it happen. If I run across one in my collection that does that, I could use it as the subject for a video. Thanks for the suggestion and for watching!
I'm not a fan of the black widow scheme but the overall detail is typical for Genesis. If they become available in the scarlet and grey with the icicle breakers I would opt to get at least the A unit. Hopefully with tsunami 2 and sound. Good review.
The icicle breakers would be a bit of a challenge. I didn't see a detail part available that matched the type on the prototype units. Custom Finishing has a part but it's different. It would be cool if Athearn made those. Thanks for watching!
Rapido rsc14s next ?
After the last episode, I'm not sure we'll be seeing much more Rapido stuff lol
@@seymoarsalvage bulkheads were that bad huh
I probably won't be reviewing those. Aside from a certain reluctance to buy from Rapido, those engines are a little too far out of my area of interest. They look cool though. Thanks for watching!
I used to have a Genesis Black Widow back in the early 2010's however I sold the drive after the shell had an accident 5 years ago.
I'm sorry to hear that your engine had a mishap. I have a few older Genesis F7s, but these are my first SP units. Thanks for watching!
Nice review. Will you add DDS and sound to both units ? That would make a good video.
I will be adding DCC and sound to these at some point. I've had in mind to do a DCC Shop video eventually with an F unit, so these would work well for that. Thanks for the suggestion and for watching!
Wow! I love F units in general due to growing up watching videos about the ATSF.
So much in fact, I'm close to having an F unit built by every model railroad manufacturer that offered or currently offers them.
- 3 Bachmann ATSF F units (1 FTA in an early Warbonnet scheme, and 2 F7As, one in the Warbonnet scheme, and the other in the Blue & Yellow Freight Bonnet)
- 1 Broadway Limited Imports ATSF F3A Blackbonnet scheme
- 1 WalthersProto SP FP7A in the Scarlett & Gray scheme with Ice Breakers
- 1 Athearn Genesis WP FP7A in the Orange & Silver CZ scheme
I might get the Intermountain ATSF F9 in the Yellow & Blue freight bonnet, a WalthersMainline D&RGW F7A, and a Rapido Trains Inc. VIA Rail FP9A to be able to say that I have a lot of F units.. lol
That's a lot of F units! I have a few older Genesis F unit models in Santa Fe, Rio Grande, and Western Pacific. The two in this review are my first SP units. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi it doesn't work at all now, but as a kid, Dad got me a DC Bachmann Santa Fe Warbonnet F7 was my very first F unit and my first ho scale locomotive. In the other words, the engine that started my journey into HO Scale model railroading.
Beautiful set and great review! Nice to see a model with no broken parts upon opening too.
I'm glad you liked the review. I was so happy when I took these out of the boxes and nothing was broken. It was very refreshing. Thanks for watching!
At least some F units are still around in real life
Yes, there are. A lot of them still run, too! Thanks for watching!
Very nice!
I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!