Walthers HO scale Union Pacific EMD E8 diesel locomotives

Over the last year we’ve collected all the cars in the Walthers HO scale Union Pacific Streamliner series, and we now have matching Electro-Motive Division E8A and B units to haul them. The Proto 2000 EMD E8 was first reviewed in the April 1994 Model Railroader. This latest UP version is available with a dual-mode QSI Quantum Digital Command Control (DCC) sound decoder.

The model. Between 1949 and 1953 General Motors Electro-Motive Division built 421 E8A units and 39 E8B units. The six-axle passenger locomotives each had two 12-cylinder 567B diesel engines that produced a total of 2,250 hp, 250 hp more than the predecessor E7.
 
The Walthers models match drawings of an E8A and B in the Model Railroader Cyclopedia Vol. 2: Diesel Locomotives (Kalmbach Publishing Co., out of print). Both E units are decorated in their post-1955 paint schemes.

The model has many separately applied detail parts, including all hand grabs and the etched-metal Farr air intake grills along the carbodies. The separately applied end diaphragms of the A and B unit prototypically touch when the units are coupled together. However, both diaphragms are molded in shiny yellow plastic that doesn’t match the color on the painted body shell.

Number board decals, included with the A unit, correspond to the train numbers of the Streamliner trains that can be modeled with the Walthers cars.

Performance. The model has the same mechanism as the upgraded Proto 2000 from Walthers E7A that I reviewed in the May 2009 Model Railroader. A five-pole skew-wound motor with two brass flywheels sits in the center of a die-cast metal frame. The QSI sound decoder is mounted on top of the motor. A downward facing speaker is located at each end of the frame.

The model ran well on DC and DCC layouts, but the top speed of 62 scale mph is below that of the prototype, which could be geared for speeds between 85 and 117 mph.

Lighting and sound effects operate in DC and DCC modes. It’s easier to operate the sounds in DC with a QSI Quantum Engineer analog DC sound controller (available for $59.95 at www.qsisolutions.com). The model’s horn sounds prototypical, although the engine effects don’t have the out-of-synch character of a dual-engine diesel.

The model supports many programmable configuration variables (CVs) that allow you to adjust speed performance as well as sound and lighting effects. I successfully changed the addresses, using the instruction sheet included with the model. I also advance-consisted the A-B set. A 257-page technical manual is available for free at www.walthers.com.

With its accurate sounds and detailed carbody, the Proto 2000 from Walthers E8A and E8B look great hauling a consist of Union Pacific streamlined passenger cars.