Santa Fe on my mind


 

The most recent project off the workbench is something I never thought I would build: Santa Fe SD45-2B #5512.  Kaslo Shops recently brought out this kit and requested a built up version to use for their box art.  I thought it would be an interesting project to try and tackle, being the first ATSF locomotive I have done.

In the 1980's Santa Fe rebuilt 8 SD45-2 units into B units for road service.  There was a phase in the late 1980's and early 1990's where many railways rebuilt locomotives into B units to decrease their maintenance costs.  CN rebuilt F7Au, CP rebuilt SD40-2, BN had a few SD units rebuilt and Santa Fe had the SD45-2 and a few other types rebuilt.  This seems to have fallen out of favour more recently due to the lack of flexibility offered by B units.  You can read more on the ATSF B unit fleet here:  Santa Fe SD45-2 fleet information

The kit went together well with everything fitting as it should. Not having to worry about window glass was a nice bonus to doing a B unit.  


The radiator and dynamic brake fans are great, with the grills beautifully rendered in stainless steel.  The radiator side grills were a bit finicky to attach but I got it sorted out with canopy glue and a few spots of thin CA.  

I used TruColor ATSF blue and yellow for the paint: one thing I wish I would have done is painted the side sills instead of using decals.  While more work is required for masking, the decals were a pain to apply and keep straight without breaking or cracking.  Next time (if there is one) I'll be painting instead.  I also painted the radiators (separate part) with Vallejo dirt to give a subtle tonal difference behind the grills.  

The handrails were a bit challenging as they are loooooong.  I had to butt and solder two pieces of 0.015" wire at one of the stanchions as the Tichy phosphor bronze wire I was using wasn't long enough.  I used a diagram to locate and solder the stanchions.  The hand rails were prepped with Tamiya metal primer followed by Santa Fe yellow.  

I used a Kato SD40-2 as the drivetrain.  In order to have the frame seat properly with the shell I had to remove a small ridge along one side of the frame.  My Dremel tool made short work of this.  I also painted the sideframes silver and the fuel tank a warm black. I also used my black paint and dry rust method on the wheels and couplers (more <here>). 




I used a set of Microscale ATSF diesel decals for the lettering which is fairly minimal on this unit. Everything was given a coat of Vallejo Ultra Matt varnish to finish and seal things off.  I'll have to come up with an excuse to have this locomotive run up to Churchill on occasion.  It was a fun build and would be a nice addition to an ATSF focused layout.

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