MTH Electric Trains produced a Premier line Santa Fe 2900-class Northern 4-8-4 in 1995. A beautiful and imposing product that evoked the image of big steam at its zenith, the locomotive also had a hefty price tag.
Enter the RailKing Northern and the exclamation changes, to “I never thought I’d see that engine offered in the RailKing line!”
In 1927 the Santa Fe bought its first 4-8-4, no. 3751, which the railroad initially labeled a “heavy mountain-type.” This engine was only the 13th 4-8-4 built in North America and the first built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works. Compared with Santa Fe’s 2-8-4 Berkshires, the Northerns could pull 33 percent more weight while consuming 19 percent less fuel. The road was so pleased, it amassed a fleet of 65 4-8-4s.
The 2900-series engines, constructed in 1943 and 1944, were similar in design to the 3770-series Northerns. The engineers at Baldwin and the railroad encountered wartime restrictions on the use of light-weight material, so heavier metals were used and, as a result, the 2900s outweighed the earlier models by 14,000 lbs.
The 2900s delivered superb performance in both freight and passenger service. Though all of the 2900s were retired by 1959, six engines survived the cutter’s torch (see Addendum).
The 2900s were a notable presence on the Santa Fe during the late steam era and deserved an affordable O gauge model sooner, rather than later.
The majority of the RailKing steam engines thus far released have been examples of original tooling for a specific engine, and this Northern is no exception. Rather than simply rerunning another locomotive’s boiler, such as the Berkshire, and slapping some Santa Fe markings on it, MTH made the effort to create a unique product.
This engine looks great. Keep in mind that this Northern is not scale-sized. From pilot to tender coupler, it measures 99 O scale feet compared to the prototype’s 119 feet.
The nose is well balanced and is unmistakably Santa Fe in origin. It has a bell above the headlight and twin shields on the deck above the pilot. Marker lights are set in the front of the boiler face and the smokestack simulates a stack extension in the lowered position. The prototype Santa Fe used this device to funnel the locomotive’s smoke up and away from the train. Crewmen lowered the extension as the train approached low bridges or tight tunnel clearances.
MTH’s model has train number boards placed mid-boiler and piping, riveting, and other details have been incorporated into the body. Especially noteworthy are the pipes running for several inches along the top of the boiler near the cab.
The side rods and running gear look great and provide a terrific focal point as they rotate when the engine is under way. The drivers look good but there was a debate among the staff over which would be better: all-black driving wheels or the silver-rimmed wheels currently popular among manufacturers.
Some staff members also have the impression that the polished metal rims may cause more wheel slippage than “plain” drivers. This probably isn’t scientific, but more a matter of personal taste regarding the appearance the engine.
Although there are a few RailKing locomotives that share the same tender, MTH created a unique tender for this engine. In a hobby where you almost expect a typical two-axle tender truck to be substituted for a more prototypical three-axle tender truck, MTH continues to get it right, doing the unexpected and offering the correct four-axle trucks. Way to go!
The tender is a close match for the original. It curves in the right places, has sharp angles where the original had them, and duplicates the water and oil hatches of the prototype. The front of the tender, behind the cab, might have had more details, however few people would notice once the engine and tender are mated. The amount of rivet detail must be seen to be believed.
There isn’t much to say about the decoration other than the black paint has a fine satin finish and the subdued lettering (the letters AT&SF and the engine number) is clear and crisp (though silver, not white).
On a roll
Unbelievably, the engine is designed to operate on O-31 track and sure enough, it can take those curves, though the size and overhang make it look a bit awkward doing so. As with the Premier line Daylight we reviewed (CTT, Sept. 1999), we ran into a few problems with pilot overhang bumping into foam scenery, so you might want to take the first lap or two around the layout on the slow side.
We tested the whistle-only version and it sounded very good. A ProtoSound version is also available.
The smoke unit worked superbly and, at 18 volts, it generated about at much fog as the typical volcano makes for a Junior High School science fair.
Operationally, the only problem we encountered with the 4-8-4 was a coupler that tended to pop open.
Performance was superb. Acceleration and deceleration were smooth and even, no matter what load we had coupled behind the Northern. The engine pulled a 20-car freight train with ease and seemed to have plenty of power held in reserve.
At lower speeds there was neither lurching or hesitation. The average low speed was 26 scale mph while the high end average was 138.4 scale mph. The 9 lb. locomotive averaged a drawbar pull of 1.5 lbs., which is approximately 70 pieces of modern, free-rolling rolling stock on straight and level track.
Forget the RailKing articulateds, the RailKing J, or the covey of streamlined RailKing beauties that have come before. RailKing’s Santa Fe Northern sets the bar high for detail and operability.
I own the MTH RailKing Union Pacific 4-8-4 in Gray numbered 8444 and it too is a superb locomotive. Although it is clearly not scale it looks good on my layout with its 0-42 and 0-54 curves and most importantly I could afford it.