Kato USA - 17717-1 - Locomotive, Diesel, Alco RSD-12 - Baltimore & Ohio - 2016

Model Information: This model was made by Kato for Atlas from 1987 through the mid 1990s when Atlas ceased farming out production of their locomotives to Kato. The model is a bit of a kluj re-using parts from the Atlas/Kato RS-3, RSD-4/5 and RS-11 models. It is a split-frame design with two lightboards, but no flywheels, making it a second generation locomotive. This model has never been run by Atlas since they ceased production with Kato. Likely it simply didn't sell as well as the other similar models and was never viewed as being worth a proper re-tooling into a 3rd generation model.

Atlas boxes were labeled 'Special Limited Edition'. Kato also sold this model under its brand name with reference 17717; it was packaged in Kato blue boxes.

All models are marked "Kato. 17717. Made in Japan" under the fuel tank.

DCC Information: Given the dual-lightboard design, it is possible to add DCC to these models. Perhaps the TCS decoders used for other Atlas dual-lightboard mechanisms will work....

Prototype History: The ALCO RSD-12 was a diesel-electric locomotive of the road switcher type rated at 1,800 horsepower (1.34 MW), that rode on three-axle trucks, having an C-C wheel arrangement.
Used in much the same manner as its four-axle counterpart, the ALCO RS-11, though the six-motor design allowed better tractive effort at lower speeds.
A total of 171 RSD-12 were built by Alco and MLW, with more than a hundred purchased by Mexican and Brazilian companies.

From Wikipedia
Read more on American-Rails.com.

Road Name History: The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (reporting marks B&O, BO) is one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal (which served New York City) and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which would have connected Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. At first this railroad was located entirely in the state of Maryland with an original line from the port of Baltimore west to Sandy Hook. At this point to continue westward, it had to cross into Virginia (now West Virginia) over the Potomac River, adjacent to the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers. From there it passed through Virginia from Harpers Ferry to a point just west of the junction of Patterson Creek and the North Branch Potomac River where it crossed back into Maryland to reach Cumberland. From there it was extended to the Ohio River at Wheeling and a few years later also to Parkersburg, West Virginia.

It is now part of the CSX Transportation (CSX) network, and includes the oldest operational railroad bridge in the USA. The B&O also included the Leiper Railroad, the first permanent horse-drawn railroad in the U.S. In later years, B&O advertising carried the motto: "Linking 13 Great States with the Nation." Part of the B&O Railroad's immortality has come from being one of the four featured railroads on the U.S. version of the board game Monopoly, but it is the only railroad on the board which did not serve Atlantic City, New Jersey, directly.

When CSX established the B&O Railroad Museum as a separate entity from the corporation, some of the former B&O Mount Clare Shops in Baltimore, including the Mt. Clare roundhouse, were donated to the museum while the rest of the property was sold. The B&O Warehouse at the Camden Yards rail junction in Baltimore now dominates the view over the right-field wall at the Baltimore Orioles' current home, Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

At the end of 1970 B&O operated 5552 miles of road and 10449 miles of track, not including the Staten Island Rapid Transit (SIRT) or the Reading and its subsidiaries.

Read more on Wikipedia.

Brand/Importer Information: KATO U.S.A. was established in 1986, with the first U.S. locomotive model (the GP38-2, in N-Scale) released in 1987. Since that time, KATO has come to be known as one of the leading manufacturers of precision railroad products for the modeling community. KATO's parent company, Sekisui Kinzoku Co., Ltd., is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

In addition to producing ready-to-run HO and N scale models that are universally hailed for their high level of detail, craftsmanship and operation, KATO also manufactures UNITRACK. UNITRACK is the finest rail & roadbed modular track system available to modelers today. With the track and roadbed integrated into a single piece, UNITRACK features a nickel-silver rail and a realistic-looking roadbed. Patented UNIJOINERS allow sections to be snapped together quickly and securely, time after time if necessary.

The Kato U.S.A. office and warehouse facility is located in Schaumburg, Illinois, approximately 30 miles northwest of Chicago. All research & development of new North American products is performed here, in addition to the sales and distribution of merchandise to a vast network of wholesale representatives and retail dealers. Models requiring service sent in by hobbyists are usually attended to at this location as well. The manufacturing of all KATO products is performed in Japan.

Supporters of KATO should note that there is currently no showroom or operating exhibit of models at the Schaumburg facility. Furthermore, model parts are the only merchandise sold directly to consumers. (Please view the Parts Catalog of this website for more specific information.)