Atlas Model Railroad Co. N scale Alco C-420 diesel locomotive

Atlas is offering ready-to-run N scale models of the Alco C-420 in six body styles with and without factory-installed Digital Command Control (DCC). The models, part of the firm’s Master Line, feature a mix of molded and separately applied plastic parts, directional lighting, and prototype-specific details.

The C-420 was produced during the height of the diesel battle between Alco, Electro-Motive Division, and General Electric. At 2,000 hp, the C-420 was designed to compete with EMD’s 2,250-hp GP30 and GE’s 2,500-hp U25B.

Only 131 C-420s were built during the 1963 to 1968 production run. Nearly 80 percent of the locomotives were purchased by five railroads: Lehigh Valley, Long Island Rail Road, Louisville & Nashville, Monon, and Seaboard Air Line.

Atlas offers its N scale C-420 in phase 1, 2a, and 2b variants, all with high or low short hoods as appropriate; our sample is based on a phase 1 prototype.

The injection-molded plastic shell consists of three pieces: the long and short hood; cab and battery boxes; and sill, steps, and pilots. The pilots feature molded footboards and m.u. cables and separate uncoupling levers. Draft-gear boxes are screw-mounted to molded pins on the inboard side of the pilots.

Underneath the press-fit shell is a split-frame zinc-alloy chassis that encases a five-pole skew-wound motor with two brass flywheels. Power is transferred to the gearboxes above each truck via worm gear shafts. Phosphor bronze contact strips pick up power from all eight wheels.

Above the split frame is the printed-circuit (PC) board. Direct-current models feature an analog PC board, while the board on DCC models has an Atlas/NCE motor decoder. Both boards have golden-white light-emitting diodes on each end.

Our model is decorated as National Rys. of Mexico (NdeM) no. 220. The full-size engine started life on the Long Island Rail Road. The unit changed ownership four times (RKO Leasing, Morrison-Knudsen, Naporano Iron & Metal, and Montreal Locomotive Works) after being sold by the railroad in October 1976. The locomotive was rebuilt by MLW shop forces and, along with sister C-420 no. 201, was leased to the NdeM. It operated long-hood forward on the NdeM, as it did on the LIRR.

The model is painted in NdeM’s “almost black” green and dark orange scheme. The paint is evenly applied with crisp color separation. The silver numbers and letters are opaque and in register.

The Atlas model’s dimensions match prototype drawings published in the February 1985 issue of Model Railroader. The body shell is detailed to match an ex-Long Island unit, right down to the steam generator stack on the short hood. However, the fuel tank is incorrect for NdeM no. 220. The model should have a split tank (1,000 gallons for fuel, 1,900 gallons for water).

I tested the model on DC with a Model Rectifier Corp. Tech 4 power pack. The model started moving at less than 1 scale mph at 3 volts. The model’s top speed of 118 scale mph is more than 30 mph faster than the prototype’s highest speed.

The C-420 is also offered with an Atlas/NCE AN12A0 motor decoder. The decoder features NCE’s Silent Running motor drive; programmable start, mid, and maximum speed CVs; and four function outputs with 15 lighting effects (beacon, ditch lights, and Mars light, among others).

I tested the decoder-equipped model using NCE’s PowerCab. Out of the box, the locomotive started moving 27 scale mph at speed step 12, achieving a top speed of 87 scale mph at step 28.

After adjusting CV2 to 28, the model started moving a scale 3.8 mph at step 1, and achieved a top speed of 96.8 scale mph at step 28. To bring the top speed into the prototype’s range, I changed CV5 (Vmax) to 204. The C-420 now topped out at 86 scale mph, the same as the prototype.

With a drawbar pull of 1 ounce, the Atlas C-420 is capable of pulling 24 N scale freight cars on straight and
level track.

Though the Alco C-420 wasn’t a common prototype, full-size examples can still be found earning their keep on railroads in a few places in the United States and Mexico. Atlas has done an excellent job capturing the rugged look of this four-axle road switcher in N scale.

Price: Direct-current model, $129.95; with Atlas/NCE motor decoder, $164.95

Manufacturer
Atlas Model Railroad Co.
378 Florence Ave.
Hillside, NJ 07205
www.atlasrr.com

Era: 1963 to present

Road names: Low short hood (two road numbers each unless noted) – Delaware & Hudson, Delaware Lackawanna (one road number), and Lehigh Valley. High short hood (three road numbers each unless noted) – Buffalo Southern (limited edition, one number), Delaware & Hudson, Long Island (four numbers), National Ry. of Mexico (two numbers), Roberval & Saguenay, and Vermont Northern (limited edition, one number).

Features

• Accumate knuckle couplers mounted at correct height
• All-wheel drive and electrical pickup
• Blackened metal wheelsets, correctly gauged
• Die-cast metal split frame
• Five-pole skew-wound motor with brass flywheels
• Flat or step pilots
• as appropriate
• Four function DCC decoder
• Light-emitting diode headlights operate according to direction
• Weight: 2.6 ounces