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Larry

Larry

Long Winded Old Fart
What can you tell me about this manufacturer besides they are no longer in business.? Does Athearn running gear fit in all of their frames w/a little modifications? Does the shell attach to the frame thru the coupler box?
I have 2 of their SD90MAC shells w/frames & 1 GP60M Conrail shell w/a frame.
I'm sure w/a little bit of trimming here & there where the trucks are mounted I can make some 3 axle trucks work. Probably need a real long driveshaft from the motor. Probably the ball type.
Anyway, if I can make the Athearn stuff work on the RPP frames I'll have some nice engines.:rolleyes:
 
All RPP products were designed to accept Athearn mechanisms. Some shells, mostly their early efforts, were quite crude (e.g., B32-8, C39-8). Some of their later kits, in particular their 28' and 48' highway trailers, were very nice. I built several of the GP60M and GP60B kits, and they were great for their time.

I don't know what you'd use for the SD90MAC in terms of a donor drivetrain. I think you could adapt the blue box SD40-2 or SD40T-2 drives to the RPP frame, possibly with some A-line drive splines. The GP60 chassis accept any drive from the GP38-2/40-2/50 line.

The entire RPP line was purchased by Athearn, along with the Details West freightcar line, several years ago. Since RPP's kits were designed with Athearn drives in mind, it seemed like a natural fit to me. As Athearn has released each former RPP shell under the Athearn name, they have included many improvements. The Athearn CF7, for example, is so vastly superior to the original RPP effort it's ridiculous. I recommend looking at the Athearn RTR versions of the former RPP shells for ideas on how you can improve and detail the ones you have.
 
Thanks Ryan for your help & suggestions. I have some Athearn running gear & I will pursue the transformation of the 2. I figured since the SD90's are undecorated I would use the cabs off the shells & the Dynamic brake housings on some other engines.
 


i have 2 sd90macs and 4 ge 6 axles. All work fine with athearn trucks. You will need the more newer trucks from i believe the SD40-2 for the SD90macs. I have 1 pair and need 1 more for my twins. And I have 2 pair for the 4 ge's. once I paint the bodies i dont even care about motors, i just want them on trucks so I can bring them to the show in connecticut.
 
jbaakko said:
The SD90's will require a RPP frame, which can be bought from PPW/A-line:
http://www.ppw-aline.com/frrppsd90.htm

The drive shaft will have to be longer, and A-line offers some on that page too...
Click to expand...

Josh, I have the RPP frames. I've decided not to use these engines. The other engine, the SD60M also has a frame. I'm going to try to put my AC4400 trucks & motor in that frame. I've already set a set of trucks in that frame & I will have to do some trimming in the hole where there is some xtra metal sticking out. I might have to machine down the pivot where the top clip goes on the trucks. I'll worry about that later.
 
i had to dremel a bit of the opening to allow the trucks to swing better. Other then that they fit perfectly.
 
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