ALCO/MLW FA-2
(w/LokSound & DCC) (1956 Scheme)

Baltimore & Ohio  No. 4033

First Time In HO!

The FA-2 was Alco’s response to the ubiquitous EMD F7 that was swiftly becoming the locomotive of choice for many freight and passenger railroads.

The FA-2 was intended for freight service while the FPA-2 included a steam generator and obligatory large water tank for heating passenger cars.

Rapido's models have the correct details for each version.

Delivered between October 1950 (Erie 736A) and June 1956 (L&N 211), a total of 283 FA-2 and FPA-2 locomotives were built by Alco in Schenectady, New York for 12 different American railroads.

A further 51 FA-2 and FPA-2 locomotives were built under licence by Montreal Locomotives Works for CP, CN and NdeM.

Each 1600-HP locomotive had a 12-cylinder Alco 244 prime mover.

These proved unreliable, which accounts for why these locomotives rarely lasted past 1970 in their original condition.

However, many were repowered with reliable Alco 251 engines or even EMD prime movers and lasted much longer.

• Correct water/fuel tank combination for the FPA-2
• Dynamic brakes
• Vertical battery box louvers
• Prototype-specific details
• Underbody piping and conduit
• 5-pole, skew-wound motor with excellent slow-speed performance
• Operating number boards, headlights and two-color class lights
• Roadname-specific details
• Dynamic brakes
• Etched-metal grilles (Farr or chicken wire, as appropriate)
• Full underbody piping and conduit
• Correct, roadnames-specific FA-2 and FPA-2 fuel tanks
• Separate grab irons and handrails installed at the factory
• Heavy, die-cast chassis
• Full cab interior
• Accurate sounds recorded from a real Alco 244 prime mover
• Factory-installed Macdonald-Cartier couplers mounted at the correct height

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