Product Review HO ScaleTrains SD45Rs SP

[@hyperian_one]

Exceptionally well done review as usual.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Thanks so much!

[@rthack2]

Great review! I have same 7502 loco and Scaletrains did a great job with this. It's extra special to me because I have the 7502 number board from the actual prototype. Got it when they retired #7502 from SP/UP.

[@DanielCortopassi]

That's so cool you have the number board! I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!

[@floydbeard5073]

Nice review Daniel.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Thanks so much!

[@floydbeard5073]

You are very welcome

[@robingagnon9659]

always a great reviewfrom you! very nice xmas present lucky you ! :)

[@DanielCortopassi]

I do feel lucky to have gotten such an awesome present. I'm glad you enjoyed the review. Thanks for watching!

[@pretzelogic2689]

Nice review with great prototype info included. Your review gets an A+.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Thanks so much! I'm glad you liked it.

[@dtdiego9189]

Good job Daniel keep up the great work

[@DanielCortopassi]

Thanks so much!

[@trapdriver7006]

Excellent informative review 👍😁😁😁😁🚂🇬🇧

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for watching!

[@dave3156]

Nice Christmas present. I'm sure the scores will improve as you get them up to your standards! Thx Dan

[@DanielCortopassi]

It was an awesome present from my awesome wife and mother in law. I will be fixing the couplers for sure. Thanks for watching!

[@TrainQuest-Model-Railroad]

Great ….!!! Fair review …….🚂…….!!

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

I don't model SP, but they frequently ran thru on The Rock, which I do model.

[@DanielCortopassi]

That sounds cool. I like the variety of having run through power on a railroad. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

Where else but The Rock, could you see a number board with an upside down 2 serving as a 5.

[@buckyc.9069]

Feb.1979, Rock Island sent South, four big Espee units. 100 RI/---x grain loads, and an Espee caboose thru Wichita. They only slowed down when/where they had to. I assume it all got to Galveston. Under the circumstances that was pretty damn good.

[@Dawsonsrailfanadventures74]

My EL unit has no problems with the sand lines but im running 22 inch radius curves

[@DanielCortopassi]

That's good to know. Thanks for the info!

[@phillipsakalik4877]

Great Video! I’m not an SP modeler but it’s great to see ScaleTrains produce so many great models for SP fans! I have a large collection of ScaleTrains locos and love them all.

[@DanielCortopassi]

I have quite a few ScaleTrains SP diesels as well at this point, too, including these, a bunch of tunnel motors, and Dash-9s. I hope they keep doing SP stuff. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

Pretty good, but I'm a period modeler. I like my SP, SD45's in the 8800+ class.

[@DanielCortopassi]

If you haven't already seen it, I did a review of one of the ScaleTrains SP 8800 class SD45s in 2020 here on the channel. Mine is an unnumbered unit. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

What I like about modeling the Rock Island was, about five different paint schemes, plus some Silvis/El Reno hybrids. You could screw somthin up and nobody's gonna know.

[@hoscalerailfan]

The handrails being mishaped seems to be a factory issue. I got an Erie Lackawanna Bicentennial SD45 from Scaletrains and it too had mishaped handrails. Either A: The handrail stanchions weren't molded onto the handrail correctly or B: the stanchions mounting holes on the shell were drilled a few micrometers offset of where they should be. Not really the best first impression on me from Scaletrains.

[@DanielCortopassi]

This has been a common problem on many brands of HO locomotives that have plastic handrails. In addition to the possible causes you listed, I've often wondered if it has something to do with heat distorting the handrails somehow. Thanks for watching!

[@epacm50]

Awesome Video!!! It still beats Rapido brand locomotives. I will replace the Scaletrains OEM couplers with Kadee ones. I have decided to stay away from Rapido. Two of their locos failed our assessment. This Scaletrains locomotive deserves a "C-".

[@DanielCortopassi]

I like ScaleTrains, but I don't like their couplers at all. I would really rather see them just use Kadees. I'm glad that the Kadee whisker couplers seem to fit into the ScaleTrains draft gear boxes without issues. Now if they could just make the height come out right. I'm not in a rush to buy more Rapido stuff, either. Thanks for watching!

[@NicksCollectableCreations]

Thanks for the review! Couplers on the front are really off and I am surprised it wasn't caught in pre-production models. I look forward to seeing what you do with the undecorated models

[@DanielCortopassi]

I really don't know why coupler height is such an issue with so many models. It would be nice if it wasn't, though! I'm thinking at least one of the undecorated models will end up in speed lettering. Nothing's for sure yet, though. Thanks for watching!

[@keatonsparksvideoproductions]

I wish you could just take a locomotive out of the box every time you get a new one and it's not needing anything every time

[@DanielCortopassi]

I would like that, too. Thanks for watching!

[@thomasavensjr.2790]

Great product review as always, I am a big emd sd45 fan, especially when it comes down to the SP/ Cotton Belt. I would like to see Scaletrains produce the SP 9000-9151 class series model of sd45's in the future, these mid 1980's rebuild models are interesting as well, thank you for sharing the model details- Tom.

[@DanielCortopassi]

SD45s have always been a favorite of mine, especially the SP versions. Thanks so much for watching!

[@hobbeekid]

Awesome review Dan! I still have yet to pickup my sd45r’s, I preordered all the numbers plus two undecorated’s with sound from my LHS. Somehow Scaletrains thought undecorated mean’s unnumbered, go figure! After much griping, my LHS came through and got me two additional undec’s without sound but through in some loksound decoders & speakers for the same price! Who knows , you might have the unit’s I pre ordered!😉😂

[@DanielCortopassi]

That's unfortunate your order got messed up. Maybe I did get yours, who knows? Anyway, I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!

[@scale_model_apprentice]

I'm wondering if you happen to know what were the last SP units built with the full light package?

[@DanielCortopassi]

That's an interesting question. I had to do a little research. As best I can tell, it looks like the last new diesels delivered with full light packages were the 72xx numbered GP40-2s delivered in late 1984 and the B36-7s delivered around the same time. The delivery window for both overlapped and lasted for several months, but it looks like the last B36-7s were delivered after the last GP40-2s. These locomotives had oscitrol lights instead of the earlier mechanical oscillating lights, and they had the red emergency lights too. Thanks for watching!

[@scale_model_apprentice]

@@DanielCortopassi Thanks for the response! I tried to do some digging but came up short. There's a prototype for everything!

[@westernpacificrr]

Great Review Dan! I love my scaletrains sd45r! I also noticed crooked handrails and the broken fan grilles, but once replaced they looked fine! The only big problem is the coupler height and I am probably going to do something similar to you. Thanks again for the review!

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'll probably end up replacing the handrails on mine as well. I'm glad you're happy with yours. Thanks for watching!

[@dalejones3532]

Dan do you know were I can get an SD80 MAC ,Dam I have checked all over and I am have a very hard time finding one .Or do you have one for sell yourself .Great video's .

[@DanielCortopassi]

I would maybe keep an eye out on eBay and see if a used one comes up. I never had an SD80MAC in HO. I had a Kato N scale one that was undecorated but I sold it years ago. Thanks for watching!

[@sleepy8490]

Always love your videos! Thanks for the tip of using canopy glue, was having issue with reattaching visible parts on an sd45 elephant ear

[@DanielCortopassi]

Canopy glue is very useful stuff. I use it a lot. Thanks for watching!

[@gacj2010]

Hey , Daniel ..Loved this review .. Love that you are back .. I always loved your thorough knowledge of rolling stock of the real things ...Wondered if you have a layout currently . I know you moved to a new place the last few years and had your hands full .. just wondering.

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked the review. I've been working on this channel since 2018, so there's plenty more to look at if you haven't seen it already. I am planning a large HO layout. We're still working on the building where the layout will be housed, so I haven't been able to start the actual layout yet. Meanwhile I'm building a small N / Nn3 portable layout. I've been making videos about that which are here on the channel, too. Thanks for finding the channel and for watching!

[@gacj2010]

@@DanielCortopassi I cant wait to see the new HO layout.Also I loved it when you would give the background on various rolling stock and locos earlier in your youtube career. Your knowledge was priceless . OK so glad I did find you again.. BTW , dont rush that new layout . The fun is during the creation ..right?

[@shipbuilding1000]

Nice Christmas haul Dan! I had been begging ST for these ever since the first SD45 production so these were certainly a must buy. I had two detached screens on my 7490 copy as well, all the others arrived fine. I can’t tell if they used glue on these parts or if they were simply press-fit but I added tiny dabs to keep them hopefully held in. Very satisfied with the models, iconic 80-90s SP goodness:)

[@DanielCortopassi]

There is some kind of glue on the radiator grilles. I'm not sure what it is, but I had to peel off some bits of sticky residue. I didn't think to mention that in the review. Maybe I should have. Whatever it is, it's something that will peel off. Unfortunately it also seems not to be a super effective adhesive. I'm glad, though, that it's not something like CA which could have marred the surface of the model. Thanks for watchiiing!

[@riogrande5761]

Holy crap, very nice haul! Over a grand for those four!

[@BritanniaPacific]

I don’t know why, but seeing these had me thinking of the ill-fated 7551 that wore the sp Santa Fe merger livery and was destroyed in the 1989 San Bernardino disaster. It’d be something to see these in the sp Santa Fe livery, maybe the undecorated locomotive could suffice.

[@DanielCortopassi]

I was looking through my photos and of the units represented by these models, I only found one that was in Kodachrome for a while in the 80s. More research is in order. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the undecorated ones yet, though I'm leaning toward speed lettering for at least one of them. Thanks for watching!

[@mrmrb04]

Have you noticed a difference in quality between paint jobs that you’ve done with an airbrush vs factory paint? I’m thinking that I’m gonna eventually have to paint some models because of the railroad and type of loco I want.

[@DanielCortopassi]

A good quality airbrush job can be as good as or even better than factory paint, though a lot of it depends on skill. Using a good primer is key, especially when painting lighter colors. Sometimes my paint jobs end up thinner and show detail better than some factory jobs. It puzzles me but some factory paint puts on the dark colors first, which makes the lighter colors have to be relatively thick to achieve coverage. I always do light colors first. A good decal job is the other part of the puzzle. If you're new to painting you might want to try a couple simple projects first, like a boxcar or something that's all one color. Thanks for watching!

[@mrmrb04]

Thanks Dan!

[@conrailfan6277]

That is some nice SP power Dan!! I don't know what year your going to model, I'm sticking to around 86-87 because I have a sizeable collection of Cabooses for Conrail and I'm going to run the wheels off them LOL!!! Plus I have a large fleet of 89ft TOC and 48ft spine cars so I can run Conrails TV trains!!! Have you been able to work on the layout room any?????

[@DanielCortopassi]

I like cabooses too. My era is more or less 1990-1996. I think SP was still using a few cabooses on some work trains and locals in that era, I think. If not, I'll use some modelers license. We're still plugging away on the building. We need to move some things around and clean out the train room a little before I can really get back to working on it. Our game room is almost done, so I think things will get back on track once we get that wrapped up. Thanks for watching!

[@conrailfan6277]

@@DanielCortopassi Sweet!!!

[@matts2806]

Great review, as always. I want to ask -- how does the paint color look to your eye? The colors look like they might be very slightly different (slightly darker, in general) from some of the other SP units you've reviewed (the as-delivered SD45, for instance), not sure whether that's actually true or whether the lighting is different, etc. In any case, the color on these looks (to me) like a near-perfect match with pictures I've seen of this class when they were fresh out of the paint shop; I think it looks pretty good, but you're the SP guy... :)

[@DanielCortopassi]

The color looked good to me. The gray seems close to the Scalecoat SP dark gray that I use when I paint SP models myself. The red is maybe very slightly dull, probably because it looks like it's applied over the gray. If I paint a model I do it the other way around, red first. In any case, the models look like fresh out of the paint booth locomotives as you said. I haven't lined them up next to other SP models that I have to do a comparison. I think they're definitely in the ballpark. Thanks for watching!

[@russrockino-rr0864]

Hey Dan! I have not received notifications on your channel in quite awhile. How is your new layout going? SD45"s are one of my favorite Diesels. Great video! Thanks, Russ from Oregon.

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm not sure about notifications. I don't think I've changed any settings on the channel. You could maybe check and see if there's some option for that on your end. The layout is still in the planning stages. Work on the building is going slower than I'd like. I'm glad you liked the SD45 review. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

I'm not an idiot. My spellcheck changes what I typed when I send it.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Auto-correct can be annoying sometimes, right? Thanks for watching!

[@Hunter_Dawso]

I found a pic of 7532 that shows it with the beacon/ditchlight combo. Is there a way I can send you it? Also I’m guessing the undecs will be either speed lettered or Kodachrome?

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'd love another pic of 7532. You can email me at dac at dacort dot com. I'm thinking at least one of the undecorated models will be speed lettered. I'm not sure about Kodachrome. I checked my library of pictures, looking at the classes represented by these models, and I only found one, 7514, that was in that scheme, and as far as I can tell it was back in red and gray by the 1990s. Thanks for offering the picture and for watching!

[@Hunter_Dawso]

@@DanielCortopassi Just sent the email. Hopefully it’s helpful. Also you wouldn’t mind sharing your pics of 7490, would you? I picked up the unit and I’m also planning on updating it.

[@charlesmccune8795]

Price is to much

[@DanielCortopassi]

I like models with a lot of detail, so I tend to review the higher-end models. There are models with less detail that can be had for cheaper prices. Thanks for watching!

[@JellyImages]

It does seem ridiculous that manufacturers have so much trouble getting coupler height right. What's up with that?

[@DanielCortopassi]

I wish I knew. I have to believe that the models are designed to have the couplers at the correct height, so my guess is that it's some sloppiness in the assembly process, but that's only a guess. I don't have any insider industry knowledge. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

If you wanna model a specific number, you better do some research, cuz a lot of SP, SD45's didn't have the fact schmancy SP lite package on the rear.

[@DanielCortopassi]

From what I've been able to determine, SP's SD45s generally did not have a light package in the rear until they got rebuilt into SD45Rs. Then most of them lost them again in the late 80s and early 90s as SP started to remove and plate over the oscillating and emergency lights. Research is super important. One of the things I love about modeling SP in the 1990s is that no two of their older locomotives were exactly alike. Thanks for watching!

[@buckyc.9069]

If someone picks it up by the hood, they'll get what they deserve.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Yes, careful handling is important. Eventually I hope to be able to keep all my locomotives on the layout. Thanks for watching!

[@TheSantaFeGuy]

The sand lines do cause problems, I have a friend with several Southern SD45s and SD40-2s and the sand lines would get in the way of the truck side frames and even get caught between the wheels. The best solution he had was to trim them. Truck mounted sand lines are much better.

[@DanielCortopassi]

That's good to know. Sand lines are one of those things that I am on the fence about. They look cool, but I also don't like stuff that is a potential operating problem. I may end up trimming or removing mine eventually too. I think truck mounted lines would be better, like you said. Thanks for watching!