AWESOME BUDGET LOCO! Athearn RTR SD40-2 (2019 Release - With a comparison)
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- Опубликовано: 17 сен 2024
- I give you a showing of what I consider one of the BEST budget DCC and Sound HO scale locomotive available at the time of making this video!
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Gregg - Fishplate Films
• Review : Athearn SD39 ...
Performance Locomotive Inc.
• Athearn Ready to Roll ...
The largest majority of my locomotive fleet are Athearn RTR locomotives !! I love the newest SD40's they came out with. They actually upgraded the sound features on the newest run. Previously I bought all the SD45's they made on the 1st run and added a bunch more with different road numbers. That's my favorite loco !!
I like my Genesis without a doubt but these babies really pack a punch for the price you pay. Like YOU said "You can't beat it" Excellent review.
These things blew me away. I was not expecting them to be so good for the price!
I just bought a new UP SD40-2 yesterday. Fanstantic locomotives !!!!! I put up a short video this morning.
When I was in HO scale, I remember how we turned flips when the Athearn SD40-2 first came out. If only we could've seen the future and had a glimpse at what Athearn would evolve into 35 years later.
i have a railroad model craftsman mag from june 1984, on the inside cover is the advertisement for athearns SD40-2 the FIRST ever production run of that loco for those who don't know ($32.50... the dummy kit $12.00)... another side note, eric brooman of the famous UTAH BELT kitbashed SD40-2s from SD45 shells long before athearn made them available... amazing how resourceful the "old head" modelers were
Hi Deryk, aren't they great !! I have 3 now and just love running them ! I have moved the wires in the cab and it would be easy to add a interior if you wanted. As i show on my review, they do draw a little more current than others , but what you have is a bullet proof motor that will see the other out for sure. I'm glad you like them and thank you for the shout out! On a side note, I have 3 IM Gevo's , and none of them run well ...and I have spent hours screwing around with them ...give me a Athearn RTR any day..LOL.
Cheers Gregg.
Wow! You are up to 3 now? HAHA These things blew me away. I saw your video and knew they packed a lot of punch, but I guess it's something you have to experience in person. To say that I'm impressed, is an understatement! I will certainly be giving the RTR line another look. It's been quite awhile since I had a locomotive impress me the way these do. The last one to do that was the newest run of Walthers Proto 2000 SD9. Also, thanks for the added info about the cab interior and the wires. I'm not concerned about the interior, but it would be nice to hide the wires. I may have to do that! Thanks again!
@@DGModelworks You're welcome Sir! Also just a small correction regarding the lighting outputs , the Econami does have 6 outputs , so you could have the rear ditch lights flashing . Athearn have just wired all the rear lights to the one output , so you could rewire it to have flashing rear ditch lights. You would need to use all the 6 outputs for this. On my BNSF units I have the really cool flashing beacon , so that uses up another output but luckily I don't need flashing ditch lights!
Damn this, I'm gonna' go and run mine now..LOL
Cheers Gregg.
@@FishplateFilms Dang it! Now I'm gonna have to rewire the rear ditch lights, and make a correction video. HAHAHA
@@DGModelworks LOL...BUT...hang on ...before you do , check the board because I can only find 5 outputs on my video?? Athearn may have a slightly different set up on the boards they have made for them ?? . I used a "generic" Econami in one of my SD39-2's and it had six lighting tabs, but Athearn use a slightly different board due to the motor pickups? SO there may only be 5 outputs?
Gregg :-)
@@FishplateFilms Ok, I will pump the brakes till I check it out first. Something tells me these are a stripped down version of the Econami. Seems like all the manufacturers do that with their "lower end" locomotives.
Finally a value product!!!
My favorite locomotives right now.
I got 6 so far. I can’t wait for the next round.
An impressive locomotive review/ comparison- glad to see that Athearn is finally making improvements to their locomotives.
Sweet I need some in Conrail Quality.....
I have #3500 OLS scheme. I absolutely love it. Especailly the LEDs. Wish Athearn started a long time ago
I agree!
Just got one of these because of your review and am not disappointed, in fact I'm thoroughly impressed.
These things are awesome!
I purchased the Bnsf sd39-2s, they are awesome. They are even equipped with working rco beacons and markings! I'm really impressed by these locomotives.
That's awesome! I'm really impressed with these too!
I have 3 of the BNSF units and like you , I love them ! They run as good as any of my Kato's or Atlas units and leave my Intermountains for dead!
Gregg :-)
I own 2 southern high hoods, which were re named for Virginia Eastern. They really upped their game. These are e better than the ones old genesis with more detail. I also own 4 SD50s for Chessie System. They're just as amazing. I dont much like ditch lights. Athearns paint jobs are better too.
Great Review. Now.... just have to get Janek Bringle and Athearn to do a run of these Ready-to-Roll SD40-2 with Economi Sound and DCC in MISSOURI PACIFIC Jenks Blue with the Screaming Eagle and no dynamic brakes for us Mopac Fans.
Thanks for the heads up on these locomotives! For an operating layout having these units will be Very cool!
Honestly I'm stoked that someone finally included ditch lights on a budget loco. Such a big detail that so many manufacturers leave out, most of the time that's a deal breaker for me lol
I just got one for Christmas only it was in Illinois central
Thank you for the review. Definitely have to get a couple of these. Thank you sir
This was a great video, for running a little realism these would work on the SBK layout. Thanks for the heads up Derek, Oh Yeah Happy and a Healthy New Year Brother
Certainly would! Thanks Big Bill, and Happy New Year!
Excellent workmanship on the layout.
Great review Derek. I have quite a few of these RTR versions and think there great. One key CV adjustment to getting them to run even better is 215. Looking forward to more releases of this caliber from Athearn. Have a good new year.
Awesome, Thanks for the info!
For the price point the detail and operation of the motor is amazing. Thanks for the review, and comparisons.
These things are amazing!
I got my 3500 of 95$ on ebay and honestly I really think it's a amazing locomotive for the price. It looks really good and sounds really good too. It runs quietly without the sound on Athearn really hit it out of the park with this on the speakers are really impressive. One thing i did notice is the paint is a little thick in some places but that doesnt really bother me too much because of the price. course the first thing i did is replaced the couplers with kaydee semi scale couplers. In the future I will be buying more of them in different liveries such as UP BNSF. Another great video DG
This is still one of my most favorite models of one of my favorite locos!
WOW! I really want one of these for my Birthday!
Same here man
Hey DG Modeworks, new subscriber here and I gotta tell you, these new Athearn rtr locomotives are really impressive! The last rtr locomotive I bought was way back in 2012 and it was a CSX Dash 9 (the Dash 9s are now part of the company's Roundhouse line) and I also have SD40-2s from about that same era (2008-12 time frame) and it's night and day when compared to the current offerings! From what I read, with these new Athearn rtrs, you can upgrade them with a full on Genesis driveline! From what I've seen, both Athearn and Scaletrains have the budget locomotive market almost all to themselves! One more thing, if you look up Athearn's website and read the description of those NS locomotives it says that they are ex Santa Fe/BNSF units.
Right on man! I agree with you completely! Absolutely amazing, from both companies. I'm very impressed!
@@DGModelworks yeah Athearn's ready to roll line has really come a long way in the past few years with the introduction of LED lights and the near Genesis level of details! With Scaletrains.com and Athearn duking it out for the top spot and Atlas, Intermountain, and Kato hot on there heels, this may just be the tip of the iceberg in terms of quality, performance, and pricing! Its going to be fun to watch it all unfold!
Athearn has really stepped up their game. One great thing about having competition from other competitors is that it forces each other to listen to their customers in order to survive. How long have people been asking Athearn for LED lighting? These units look great for anyone who wants a quality budget friendly locomotive. One note about the numberboard lighting, whenever I go through my consist on the prototype, I will always turn off all the number board lights if they are on. The only one I want lit is the lead locomotive and that is only when it is at night. So numberboard lights are not really that big of a deal. Great update man. They will look great on your road switchers. Tim
Thanks Tim! I agree with you on the competition thing. It seems every manufacturer is constantly upping their game. It's nice to go back and revisit something and find out it's so much better. This is the first RTR that I've bought in awhile, and it packs quite a punch! Personally I'm not concerned about lit number boards. That doesn't bother me at all. I just like good quality headlights and ditch lights. Anyways, this gets my vote for the best budget locomotive on the market right now.
I have one in Conrail #6378. I plan to put a Tsunami2 decoder into it. But the detail is good. Only needs windshield wipers and the truck airlines.
Yes! These are really nice locos!
Nice video man, thanks for posting. Aside from the old, old Athearn motors, the engine's never been the problem. 99.99% of the time it's either inappropriate/inadequate oiling, burs in the gears, or too many loose contact points on the electrical path between the trucks and motor. Thanks again for posting, enjoyed it immensely.
Great review! Picked up a NS one when they came out, and got a BNSF one for Christmas, they’re just fantastic models.
That's awesome!
i just bought one of those and man you aint kidding those locomotives are outstanding there great they sound awesome lights are great great video derek great review
Yes they are! Glad you enjoy them too!
Couldn’t agree more! Athearn has knocked these RTR SD40-2’s out of the park; honestly best bang for your buck locomotive I have encountered thus far
I couldn't agree with you more. These things are a home run!
Wow, you are right, very impressive for the price. Yes, detail is nice to have, but running ability and price is also a factor for most of us. Thanks, Happy New Year...
I absolutely agree! Happy New Year to you too!
Superbe bravo j'adore ces locomotives.
J'ai acheté une SD60E que j'attends avec impatience.
A bientôt bravo et merci.
😉👌Bonne fête de fin d'année.
Wow this will be my first purchase from this company. I have never been into this company with all the broken parts I have seen from past reviews on All products, but I am impressed.The bar has been set. Sorry not sorry Iam a #scaletrains guy but operator version from #scaletrains or #walthersmainline can't compete with this. I must say if this is the budget 🤔 then some of the other companies take note....... THIS IS BETTER THAN YOUR BEST OVERPRICED CRAP #writethatdown 😂😂😂😂😂
I think these things really are the best value locomotives out there right now. Not as much detail as a scaletrains rivet counter, but half the price. And way more detail than other units in this price range (scaletrains operator, kato, bachmann). They’re really comparable to how Genesis models were 10 years ago.
Out of every locomotive I bought this year, these easily get my vote for the best one, when comparing all variables! I will certainly be looking at getting more RTR locos. I used to consider Bachmann a budget loco, but they have raised their price so much without upgrading a thing!
Beautiful pairing
Nice review Deryk! I have several of the "old" RTR locos prior to the new box design and installed basic Digitrax decoders in them and they run great! Hard to beat an Athearn... Happy New Year!
These things are amazing for the price! I will be looking at adding some more to layout for sure! Happy New Year Brian
Man those are incredible!!!!! I'd be perfectly happy with them the way they are.
I'm perfectly happy with the way they are too!
@@DGModelworks I was shocked at the sound!!! I'm a Tsunami guy but those sound incredible!!!
@@DGModelworks I meant to say that I'm NOT a Tsunami guy but prefer ESU and those Econami's sounded great
@@218422100 Agreed! I also prefer ESU, but I can live with the Econami in these. I think the econami in these also have the equalizer too. I should have looked at that when I had them in JMRI
@@DGModelworks I really need to learn JMRI. If they have the EQ then you can really make those sound even better!!!
Athearn Defines Quality, never had a bad athearn motor, they have had the same motor since the blue box era. INTERMOUNTAIN, EAT YOUR HEART OUT!!!😁😁😁👍👍👍
These new batches of RTR locos are amazing!
@@DGModelworks I had several RTR UP Tunnel Motors tested on a workbench for a train club some months ago, I found that the model itself had never exceeded 69.5 Scale MPH, I guess it is geared for max torque rather than speed, if you want speed you probably should check out the RTR F59PHi's and P42's with sound.
Hey buddy you had me at startup... and the price is right up my track.. thanks for sharing and keep up the great work.. Lance
To be honest, they had me at startup too! HAHA
Athearn and Scale Trains pretty much make the best engines. the problem is intermountain often provides a lot of power others don't. but if they don't run or need work, then i guess we'd have to decided if the shell is worth it
Wow man. I’ll have to give these a look. Great looking and sounding locos. I like that price too
I had a really old blue box Athearn Burlington Northern SD9 I called sparky. It would shoot small sparks in the lead axle area on the front of the locomotive. That little locomotive could run and it was a good puller. I loved all of the old blue box Athearns I had. I never had one of them fail.
I think Athearn has kept up the tradition and improved on it!
Awesome review of an RTR athearn locomotives
Thank you very much!
I'll be honest and say I haven't bought any Athearn locos in a long time. I'm talking BB days... These days mostly Atlas with a few Kato & one Intermountain (there is a reason it's only been one!) make up my fleet. These RTR locos look and sound amazing for the price point. Thanks for sharing these. Looks like Athearn will be getting some business from me soon!
These things completely took me by surprise! Amazing locos! I would take one of these over Intermountain any day now. I've had issues with every one of my Intermountain SD40-2's. One of them I still can't get right, as I said in my video. Athearn hit a home run with these new Ready To Roll locos. I will be looking at them more often going forward.
Great review! I'm glad Athearn RTR locos have gotten better in recent years.
Same here!
They are very nice Locos. I ended up buying 4. Can’t beat the price/quality. Compares to older Genesis. All the best, John
I will be buying more of these. Like you said, you can't beat it!
I think better than older Genesis John! I have 3 of these and love them!
Gregg.
I actually like the driveline in these over the Genesis SD60E's I recently purchased. These are actually smoother and quieter.
Even the headlights are prototypical.
Athearn gonna kick Walthers out with the budget friendly term lol
My favorite Locomotive SD40-2, they sound great for HO. Bob
SD40-2's are my 2nd fav loco! The F40PH is my favorite. I might even call it a tie. HAHAHA
Yeah they’re sweet. I love my BNSF RCL SD39-2’s!
Yes they are!
Excellent review. Nice!!!
Thanks!
I have an intermountain sd40-2
Had to send it back to the factory for decoder work but it came back and runs great!
Looks like it’s true irl counterpart NS 3398 just does not have a k5la or k5la horn sound, it has an rs3l instead
Wow fantastic locos for the price indeed. Another great review.
Woohoo, running trains. Right on! :)
Thank you!! :)
Awesome review, I still want the athearn SD40 CSX ex C&O. With your review I may get one now
Thanks buddy! These new run of RTR are awesome! I'm buying more! Just look for the ones with LED lighting and rubber mu hoses.
Nice work and I have to agree with you!
Awesome loco thanks will look for one at our local hobby shop.
You won't be disappointed.
The Bachmann stuff seems to be a reworking of their old trainset quality locomotives on a DCC chassis. Having said that, even the old blue box era SD40--2l looks nicer than the Bachmann equivalent.
I love the new RTR stuff from Athearn....they really provide an awesome product for the price. Blue Box still holds a special place for many of us modelers. Still desirable to this day.
Beautiful.
Seen a high hood NS SD40-2 yesterday and liked it one thing that i liked the ditch lights works front and back the Scale Trains don't.
Thank You for sharing! Because purchasing on eBay is killing me financially to support my hobby. Will check out your links.
Man I gotta get me one of em!!!!
Thanks to your review, I just bought a DCC/sound ns 3515 I don’t really need for 123 shipped!
That is awesome!
Awesome locomotives
You got me sold! When they originally came out I wasn't really sure? But they sound great minus a few details I agree 100% they should be marketing more for the value.🤔 Unfortunately they are trying to sell more of the higher end value in which they don't realize they may be a failure of their own product! "Hence" the original, "Lionel segment". keep pushing the cost and nobody's going to buy.
very nice
Thanks! These are very nice!
I am very surprised that Athearn located the headlight in the right position per the road number. On scale trains Dash 9's you need to go to RIvet Counter to get the correct headlight.
I thought the exact same thing. Athearn hit a home run with these.
@@DGModelworks I have two of them, both RJ Corman engines. I paid $180 each for them from a local train shop. One long nose and another with a short noes. They both have the correct head light and rear light orientation. Only wrong thing i can pick on is one of them has a grey horn when it should be red but both have there horns are in the correct position. Really great detail for a short line limited run model.
Very nice for price, excellent review.
Very!
Great review
Take me to your leader!!!
I have two of them and I like . A SD40-2 & SD39-2 Illinois Terminal, but I Installed ESU Loksound V4 & V5
I would definitely love to have Loksound in these things. But for someone looking to buy a sound equipped loco on a budget, these things are amazing!
@@DGModelworks yes, for sure
Very nice review DG, thinking about getting the Norfolk Southern/Maersk Sealand unit. All my diesel’s are 4 axle locos up to now and a six axle would be sweet. Can’t never have too many locomotives
Thanks for a great review
👍👍👍😎😎😎 Cary
These things are great!
I got 9 in RTR with sound 3 MRL numbers 256 259 and 260 and I got CN 5931 5934 and 5935 and last the C&NW 6898 6913 and 6922 all with sound
Hello! I ave sd 40 Athearn in dc, very good model smoth runing and very nice color scheme bnsf. Greetings from France.
Very nice! They are good models! Greetings!
Very informative video--thank you. May I ask, how do you clean the bearings on these locomotives? Do you remove the wheels and axles to remove and clean the bearings? Thanks for your assistance.
New to your channel see you are ho scaler to and a fellow mustang owner to
Yes sir! You got it buddy!
Very nice!
Thank you for sharing. Just my opinion, but the Economi sound is better and more accurate than the Intermountain SD40-2 with ESU.
Thank you!
Very cool👍
If you program a nathan P3 on it itl sound judt like 3500 really does
Do all those features (working and alternating ditch lights, sounds) exist on an N scale version of this?
I have no idea. I don't have any experience with the N scale version.
Great Review.
Athearn's really trying to catch up! In most cases, their built like tanks!
trying to catch up to what?
Just checked , out of stock , price now is 180.00
G'day from Australia...I'm a big fan of Athearn but mine are the Genesis ones...I have four SD 70 ACe's in swoosh BNSF livery and they run beaut ...I also have a bunch of analog Bachmanns... While they don't run as good they are tough and rugged . Most are GP40's and SD40-2's and they all run without a hint of failure ...all were under $100 . Then I bought a sound value Sound Value Bachmann SD 70 in Virginian livery and that runs beautifully ...very close in running function to a Genesis .. Cost me about $130 (Australian dollars) which would be a little over U.S. $100.... Thanks for your great review ...Will look to buy one or two of these RTR Athearns if the opportunity presents itself ...Cheers
Sorry, I didn't catch what kind of railings were on this very nice replica.
Which brand has the correct prototypicol dimensions?
Thank you for the review. They look very plug N play user friendly. I was wondering if their SD38 EJ&E models are similar 🤔.
Hey, have a good one.
Happy Trails.
I did not measure the railings for protypical dimensions. These are plastic railings. The SD38 that you inquired about is an older model. It does not have the same awesome stuff the newer releases have, such as this.
@DG Modelworks I'm sorry I just realized your side by side comparison was one with shell only.
Again, Thanks for your videos and channel.
hello what european hitch i can install on athearn models thank you very much likes 👍
I have no experience with European stuff. Sorry I can't help with that.
Do you know where you can get one of these now ?
These things are pretty much sold out everywhere. Even my channel sponser www.midwestmodelrr.com is sold out. I guess just keep trying ebay. I missed out on the RJ Corman's before they sold out, so I know your pain.
P.S. Love your picture! I'm a Mustang fan as well.
Hey I have a question Happy New year by the way I am a fan of your videos I also wanted to say that I put my fathers O trains up this past XMAS and i did not run them all month of December because they were too loud i live in a small 2 bed room apartment in PA and i want to start my own collection of HO trains for this coming Christmas i have 2 Athearn trains on layaway and i would like to set up run 2 trains on 2 separate tracks I bought a bunch of used flex track 2 months ago because i wanted to buy the EZ track but it was going to be expensive for my layout so that's when i bought the flex track then this past Friday i saw at my hobby shop that someone traded in a bunch of EZ track that's the track i wanted to buy when i first wanted to do trains I also am going to buy the NCE powercab but is there a way you can tell me how you would wire EZ track and the flex track so i can run it on my powercab thank you sorry about the paragraph I also been looking up on You tube to find my answers but i run into dead ends thanks again
That's cool! You just follow the wiring instructions included with the Powercab. Run the track power wires to the track and attach it.
would have loved to get one but they all sold out so fast
Yes they did. very quickly
making ditch lights flash is just a cv setting is it not?
they are nice for sure. get them all broke in and I bet they run even better.
Not with the the decoder installed in this loco. It's a limited function decoder with only 4 function outputs. So the rear ditch lights are tied in with the rear head light.
The reason 3515 doesn’t have rear ditch lights is that it was an ex BN unit
Yes, you are correct.
What other names and numbers that came out with these "NS SD40-2s ?" These do look SICK!
www.athearn.com/Search/Default.aspx?SearchTerm=sd40-2loco+RTR&CatID=THLD
Athearn does not market as heavily as Walthers. Walthers seems to have an in with Model Railroader magazine. Ever since Horizon Hobies took over Athearn, they seem to have lost a lot of advertising and customer support.
You mentioned Bachmann a few times. I still have a couple of them. They seem like relatively "decent" running locomotives. What are your thoughts on them though?
Overall they are a good budget loco. They even run pretty decent now. My only complaint about Bachmann is they keep raising the prices without changing anything or making improvements.
Well that’s true that’s a very good point
I'll take Athearn RTR any day over Intermountain. Every Intermountain locomotive I've seen has some bad assembly workmanship. Intermountain is overpriced for their terrible assembly.
With these new RTR locos, I agree with you 100%
Hey just asking you are these train ho or o gauge
These are HO. thanks!
You want warning labels, go get the UP United Way. I think 10 labels each side. LOL.
HAHAHA
This is HO scale correct?
Yes Sir!
Do these make trough radius 18 ?
Yes they do.
Nice models. But, I am going to refrain from purchasing these models. They're too delicate like an egg shell. I have the ScaleTrains (rivet counter) version of the Norfolk Southern SD40-2 like the ones you've demonstrated here months ago. Sadly, they get damaged too easily. 😥 I tried handling both models very lightly and still managed to damage the railings. Seeing how easy it is to damage these models, I've decided never to buy them again. I have three other ScaleTrains SD40-2 locos (two UP models and one Chessie model). I'm too afraid to remove them from their boxes because I may damage them, too. 😨 I am thinking about selling them. 😥 I won't be looking to buy the Athearn SD40-2 locos. They're beautiful, though. By the way, excellent review. 😉
Thanks, and I understand your issue with all the detail parts. The more detailed they are, the more delicate they are. These Athearn Ready To Roll loco's do have a few detail parts, but they are far from all the details you would find on Scaletrains or the Athearn Genesis line. A little bit easier to handle.