Introduction

Athearn 87234 HO Scale RTR EMD SD40 Burlington CB&Q/C&S 878

In 1966, EMD updated its locomotive catalog with entirely new models, all powered by the new 645 diesel engine. The SD40 had 3,000 hp from a turbocharged V16. 856 examples of this locomotive model were built for American railroads, 330 were built for Canadian railroads, and 72 were built for Mexican railroads.

At first glance these SD40s look like run-of-the-mill Chicago, Burlington & Quincy locomotives. But they were members of the Colorado & Southern Railways locomotive fleet. The tiny C&S letters just in front of the road numbers on the battery boxes are the only outward sign of different ownership. Long a subsidiary of parent CB&Q, in October 1967 C&S took delivery of their first 4 SD40s, #s 875-878 and added 9 more in April 1968, #s 879-887, for a total of 13 units. The C&S became part of the Burlington Northern system in in March 1970. It maintained its subsidiary status until the end of 1981 when it was formally absorbed into the BN system. Many of these SD40s retained the CB&Q red and white paint scheme into the early to-mid 1970s and they kept their 3-digit numbers until C&S became part of the BN.

FEATURES:

• Chicken wire radiator grills
• MU Hoses
• Rear pilot mounted handbrake
• Bi-directional LED lighting
• Coupler Cut Levers
• Rubber MU hoses
• Exhaust stack
• Curved radiator fan grab iron
• Fine scale handrails
• Photo-etched stainless steel windshield wipers
• Separately applied wire grab irons
• See-through dynamic brake, radiator fans and cab windows
• Frame mounted bell (unless noted)
• Detailed 4,000 gallon fuel tank (unless different capacity is noted)
• Flexicoil-C trucks with high or low brake cylinders (per prototype)
• Separately applied air tanks
• McHenry scale knuckle couplers – Kadee compatible
• All-wheel drive with precision gears for smooth & quiet operation
• All-wheel electrical pickup provides reliable current flow
• DCC-ready features Quick Plug plug-and-play technology
• Improved 5-pole skew wound can motor with flywheels and multi-link drivetrain for trouble-free operation
• Non-sound version features 21-pin NEM DCC plug
• Wheels with RP25 contours operate on all popular brands of track
• Highly-detailed, injection molded body
• Painted and printed for realistic decoration
• Fully assembled and ready-to-run
• Window packaging for easy viewing
• Interior plastic blister safely holds the model for convenient storage
• Minimum radius: 18 Recommended radius: 22
• Newly designed can motor is more powerful and quieter than before
• DCC & sound models feature Tsunami2 sound with dual cube speakers
• LED lighting for long life and reliable operation

SPECIFICATIONS:

• DCC: Ready/21-Pin NEM
• SOUND: Ready
• PROTOTYPE MANUFACTURER: EMD
• Axles: 6
• LIGHTED: LED Lighting
• Minimum Age Recommendation: 14 years
• Is Assembly Required: No