Watch as four powered Kato N scale E9 diesels lead the 11-car Union Pacific City of Los Angeles. We ran the N scale passenger train on our Salt Lake Route model railroad.
Video: Kato N scale Union Pacific City of Los Angeles
By Angela Cotey | May 18, 2011
| Last updated on November 3, 2020
A anther great n Scale Video
I bought a E9 Union Pacific 944 from Kato. I had KOBO install a TCS decoder in it before they sent it to me. I have an MRC Prodigy Express Controller. I was impressed that in it's default mode that it would move very slowly in the 1 speed setting. I have very few other locomotives that start out that slowly or you have to use highter speed settings to get the loco to start. I was really impressed with it. I think it was well worth the extra money. I have some loco's from other companies that were cheaper. I think you get what you pay for.
The best!
Looks nice on the modern layout. It would look nicer if the E unit numbers would be the numbers of the Union Pacific's heritage fleet E units. The consist would also look good behind 4-6-6-4 3985 or 4-8-4 844 or DDA40X 6936.
Ditto on Jack's comment. It's a beautiful layout BUT the price is out of my league sadly to say.
Another great N Train Set from Kato. I'll have to get at least one. All of my Kato motors have are still running great. Kato got me into N Scale to start with and spoiled me.
Well, here's one for everybody. I am not rich by no means, retired with social security and a small pension, I still found a way to buy 3 of Kato's new "City of Los Angeles" . My layout is part of the Donner Crossing and my main trains are the "City of San Francisco" and the "Overland Ltd." I have some of Intermountains cars in U.P. colors lettered for U.P., S.P., Wabash, Pennsey, C&NW, since some of the equipment was owned by other railroads and I also have equipment in the 2-tone Gray colors lettered for S.P. and U.P. and since the "City of St. Louis" contributed coachs and sleepers to and from the "Overland" in Ogden, Utah for the thru passenger trade on the San Francisco-St. Louis Route, it creates the need for many different cars in many different colors for all the railroads involved in these trains. I also have other Kato U.P. passenger cars, a few custom-built brass car sides for U.P. as well as S.P., but with the different types of equipment that is provided in the 3 train sets, I now have all of the cars I needed to represent the trains I will be running on my layout and yes guy's, there is a small difference in the hues of all this U.P. yellow, but think of it this way——-put a freshly washed and polished U.P. coach on a track by itself, now take another U.P. coach that has just finished a run from Los Angeles to Chicago and park it next to the clean coach and then back aways from the 2 cars——if you try to tell me that the hue of the yellow on the dirty car looks exactly the same as the hue of yellow on the clean car, then your an idiot and you need to have your eyes checked. I do not care what color you have, the minute you start to weather your equipment, the color hue will begin to change therefore if the yellow hue looks different on your cars from different manufacturers, then your train will already begin to look more like it would if it was passing by you out on the mainline!
katos new train set is the best you can get
Yes, I like the train, too…and the music is awesome!
I too am a member of the "too expensive for young people or retirees" chorus. Yet, the young people have (or get) the money for smart phones, video games, and designer clothes. Who among us children of the fifties and sixties can even imagine paying $100 for sneakers? As for retirees, the greens fee on many golf courses would buy a very detailed piece of rolling stock. Some courses' fees would buy a DCC and sound equipped locomotive.
So, maybe it is time we faced up to the reality that our beloved hobby does not engage today's young people as it did us when we were their age.
lovely
I bought this train to run on my own version of the Salt Lake Project Layout. Pulled by the DCC KATO E units (one with sound) you would think this is HO scale. Must now add lighting kits for night running. This is N scale at its peak!
Did anyone notice the the "F" is missing from the A units?
I just bought the set (minus the B units). It is beautiful and runs great, but I'm glad I have not yet retired. As noted earlier, it is a bit pricey. However, this type of UP passenger train ran through my home town in the 1960's and I just had to have it. My only complaint is that more manufacturers don't include the DCC decoders as part of the package. Now it will be another couple of weeks before I have the two decoders I need.
Beautiful consist,BUT as other replys have ststed,too expensive for retirees or beginners
This was a great presentation of "The City of Los Angeles". I must agree with others that have commented on the increasing price of model railroad equipment, especially locomotives and detailed rolling stock. Something or someone should take this serious concern into consideration, or our hobby is headed down a dead end siding at high speed. Ex: Proto 2000, Kato, and Athearn should take note!
Now if something similar were available in N scale, I MIGHT be interested. Meantime I try to collect VIA Rail Canada equipment and make up a credible Canadian using CLC-Alco FA/B 1's and 2's. Jason, are you listening??
MR, or nobody here, mentioned here that the new Kato cars and E-8/9's are a new darker yellow vs. previous Kato UP cars and loco's, preventing mix-and-match (much discussed on other sites.) I've created a special business/railfan train by adding Kato's business car on the end of my old cars, and an Athearm Challenger to the front so they don't go to waste. Also the review is wrong as the grills and steps are part on the one piece body casting, and not added-on.
Structurally, it's a great train, loaded with detail. It runs, natch, like a Kato. I take issue, though with what Kato has done with the train's color scheme. Like many avid N scalers who eagerly await what's next in famous name passenger trains from Kato, I anticipated running the City of Los Angeles with a four-unit set of Kato UP E units that I bought years ago, along with UP passenger cars bought back then, as well.
Imagine my dismay when I discovered that the Armour Yellow on the new train doesn't match the older Kato equipment. It's decidedly more orange in tint. I have lined up older Kato equipment with that of other manufacturers (Atlas, Intermountain, Centralia Car Shops and Broadway Limited) and they all match each other in their yellow paint. Some have a slightly lighter or darker Harbor Mist Gray, but they all have matching yellow paint. Does anyone else notice this discrepancy in the new Kato UP yellow? The MR video doesn't point it up that much, but in person It's hard to miss. One can argue color all day long (just read Tony Koester's article in the latest MR) but when a manufacturer's new UP equipment doesn't match its own previous offerings' colors, what is to be made of that? I have a huge collection of color photos of UP equipment, some of it taken by me when I was face to face with the real thing. Even taking into account the differing lighting conditions or weather, I have never seen such a color on UP equipment.
Very nice would like to add to my colection.
I am amazed at how accurate and detailed the new offerings are! I am also amazed at how expensive the hobby is becoming. At thirty dollars plus for freight cars, sixty-five plus for passengers, and three hundred something for locos, how are young people going to get started? I am starting retirement in the face I'm wondering. Do we need museam quality? How about just fun?
Great train and great layout. I recently purchased the Kato N scale 11 car set and locos and the train looks awesome on my 6 x 10 layout. I agree with many of the comments regarding the price of model railroad equipment. In order to feed my model railroad addiction….I mean hobby, I've had to turn to online retailer and auction sites such as Ebay to purchase locomotives and rolling stock. I never pay more than $75 for a locomotive and when buying on Ebay, I never buy from a seller with a positive feedback score of less than 99%. So far, I've purchased 11 locomotives on Ebay and I have had no problems with any of them.
I've ran the City of LA Set along with a few Kato cars from previous UP Sets making 22 car trains at The Big Train Show in Ontario, California, and at the National Orange Show in San Bernardino, California, in the last 2 weeks. With over 11hrs continous running time on the train, the set ran perfect . JJ Hepburn Orange County Ngineers
very impressive
Beautiful, but those passengers are getting jerked around on those curves. Nice looking train.