Yeah, and now I'm seeing complaints that they are TOO bright.... Let's just be grateful we have some excellent new locos to play with.
I've got a BLI gold warbonnet PA1 reserved too, they'll make an interesting display parked together. I'll go along with that sentiment, we'd be holding our breath for a long time if we had to wait for Walthers to do them even though they already have a standard cab GP60.
Oh I agree. I think that's what drove me nuts though. Anyone that's ever seen a consist of BNSF engines roll by knows that every one of them will be a different shade of orange, red, silver, green, etc.... Only time you'll see consistency is when it rolls out of the paint booth at GE or EMD....after that, mother nature takes over. Brian
Mine showed up today. MISSING the left number board. Not installed in the engine and not in the box loose. Sent a note out to FVM, hopefully they can send replacements quickly. Frustrating for the price to say the least. Otherwise they look awesome and run great! Just looks stupid when running down the main winking at you, if you catch my meaning!!
Matt had an A-B-A set at the Naperville RPM meet this past weekend. They were sharp looking, and ran really nicely. Noisier than Kato, but quieter than Atlas. He also said that the bushings needed to be oiled on these particular units. He was pulling a 50 car double stack with them, and it was sharp! Ditch lights were a little dim, but nothing that would get my undies in a bunch.
Not wanting to get off topic, but figured someone here knows. I don't recall seeing many of the BNSF GP60M or B units around here in Texas. I remember the red/silver ATSF units, but not the green and orange. Are they still around today? What years did BNSF run them? Did they stay mainly out west? I model modern era and love the look of these, but don't know if they fit my scheme. Maybe I'll get one anyway and "patch it" for my short line.
Just recieved my BNSF units today. Beautiful models!! Yah the orange seems a tad bright but I never saw what a new 1:1 looked like when it left the paint booth so in my mind it's just fine. Also, there's just a lot more orange paint compared to the B unit which may be fooling my eye into thinking its brighter. Just a thought.... Out of the box my A unit squealed like a pig if I went over 1/2 throttle but after a bit of labells applied to the worm gears she now purrs just like the B. http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/attachment.php?attachmentid=58544&d=1382400250 Brian
As far as the ditch light brightness goes I'm surprised FVM can get as much light as they do from such a tiny light tube opening. Wasn't too long ago operating ditch lights were strictly the domain of "micro" bashers. Not my cup-o-tea as my eyes remind me daily I aint no spring chicken any more. SMDs would surely be brighter but it would add to the cost substantially. This loco has already busted my train bank for the month. Thank goodness I only ordered 2. Wifeal units gonna freak when she sees the visa bill. :startled: http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/attachment.php?attachmentid=58545&d=1382402114 Brian
Tried calling FVM today and no answer, frustrating! Hopefully they answer email, it would be nice to know if the replacement parts are on hand or months away. Would be nice to know if I can get the part I need quickly or send it back for an exchange and have to pay for shipping out of pocket, lovely!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I took a snip from your picture showing just the orange stripe from the B unit, and an equal amount from the A unit.
Very scientific. I like it. To be fair, the original pic was taken on a bit of an angle so I retook another from 90 degrees so each unit was at the same focal point and cropped just as you did. If you ask me it is the identical color but like I said I've got ancient pelican eyes. Only way I can tell the A from the B is the color on the hand rails. :teeth: Brian
And even then, sometimes they don't get the same formula from run to run. As modelers we tend to think everything comes out perfectly in one batch, but the more you start investigating, the more you realize there's a lot of color variations from loco to loco. Even before mother nature takes over. Mismatched warbonnets, etc, never bother me anymore. It's more realistic.
Brian, ya gotta remember FVM is a one-man band. He may be enroute to China at the moment, or unavailable for whatever reason. He (Matt) will respond to an email. I have corresponded with him on more than one occasion, the latest being because I wrecked a light board on a 60. I had a replacement within days. To my limited knowledge he doesn't maintain a parts stock like Kato, nothing nearly that formal. But he IS a modeler and knows your concerns. You WILL be taken care of.
I have a GP60M that is pretty much a paper weight, unless I want to run it wide open. I sent Matt an email last week and got a nice note back late last night. He was sorry of the delay, but asked me to send it back with a note of the issues and he'll take care of it. He stated he was at a show and now just catching up, hopefully it is just a matter of time.
I got an email response late last night saying he should be able to round one up and would try to drop it in the mail today. If he did should have Thursday or Friday. I am hopeful it will all work out fine!! I knew FVM was small, but did not know it was that small.
Ron, near as I can tell most all of them are still on the roster - #s 325-346. The B units are all painted in the Heritage 1 scheme with the exception of 332 which is in Heritage 3 (swoosh, power bar, Nike, whatever.
Wasn't BNSF adding cabs to the B units? I seem to recall one was done, and then they were going to decide whether to do the rest or not.
Yep only one has been done so far, #170. It really stands out with its nose light mounted about halfway up the nose. I haven't heard of them adding cabs to rest yet.
