Walthers N scale Alco RS-2 has accurate details

Fans of first-generation diesel power can now have a detailed, solid performing N scale model of an RS-2, the American Locomotive Co.’s first road switcher produced after World War II. The Walthers model is prototypically accurate and has provisions for easy conversion to Digital Command Control (DCC).

Postwar road switcher. With wartime production restrictions lifted, the American Locomotive Co. (Alco) introduced the RS-2 in 1946. The road switcher featured Alco’s new 244-series 1,500-hp diesel engine. Alco sold 381 RS-2s to railroads in the United States and Canada. Production lasted until 1950 when Alco introduced the 1,600-hp RS-3, which has the same dimensions as an RS-2. The two main spotting features that distinguish an RS-2 are fuel fillers on its cab sides and battery boxes mounted on its frame.

The Walthers model is within scale inches of prototype drawings published in the 1947 Simmons-Boardman Locomotive Cyclopedia.

Appearance. Our sample came decorated in the Southern Ry.’s pre-1958 green livery. Paint coverage is smooth with sharp separation lines between the yellow stripes and green paint on the body. All lettering and striping is straight and matches prototype photos of no. 2119. The yellow stripes even wrap around the cab as on real Southern RS-2s.

The model’s molded-in details are crisply defined, including the safety-tread pattern on top of the walkways. Details also match prototype photos, except that the real no. 2119 had a bell mounted atop its long hood.

The trucks also have well-defined molded-in detail, including journal covers, leaf springs, and brake cylinders.

Under the hood. I removed the locomotive body by gently wiggling it off the chassis. The die-cast metal split-frame chassis encases the motor and two brass flywheels. The motor turns two worm gear shafts that transfer power to gearboxes above each truck.

The printed circuit (PC) board is mounted on top of the split frame. To remove the PC board, pull off the fuel tank, loosen two screws on each end of the frame, and pull the PC board free. You can then easily covert the model to DCC by replacing the board with a Digitrax DN163K2 drop-in decoder, retightening the screws, and reinstalling the body.

Performance. The Walthers RS-2 has an extremely low starting speed of .66 scale miles per hour at 1 volt. The model’s top speed of 109 mph at 12 volts is a lot higher than the top speed of the prototype, which was either 65 or 75 mph, depending upon its gearing.

The N scale RS-2 accelerated smoothly, but its motor was a bit noisy. There was a steady buzzing sound when I ran the locomotive.

The model’s drawbar pull of .48 ounces is equivalent to 12 free-rolling freight cars on straight and level track.

The RS-2 ran smoothly through a Kato Unitrack no. 4 turnout. And the model looked at home pulling a short freight train through the 93/4″ curves of our Carolina Central N scale project railroad.

The Walthers Proto N RS-2 is a great-looking as well as a great-performing model that accurately depicts the Alco prototype.

N scale RS-2 diesel
Price: $99.98
Manufacturer
Life-Like Products Division of Wm. K. Walthers, Inc.
P.O. Box 3039
Milwaukee, WI 53201
www.walthers.com
Description: Plastic and metal ready-to-run locomotive
Road names: (Each road name available in two numbers) Erie; Gulf, Mobile & Ohio; Great Northern; Lehigh Valley; New York, New Haven & Hartford; New York Central; Seaboard Air Line; Southern; St. Louis & San Francisco; Union Pacific; undecorated

N scale RS-2 features
Accumate knuckle couplers (mounted at correct height)
All-wheel drive and electrical pickup
Constant-intensity directional headlights
Die-cast metal split-frame chassis
Drawbar pull: .48 ounces
Five-pole skew-wound motor with dual brass flywheels
RP-25 contour metal wheels (mounted in gauge)
Weight: 21/2 ounces