Trackside  “Tid-Bits”  Product Review

Buy Athearn Genesis Locomotives

The Athearn Genesis MP15AC is the latest addition to its’ stable of EMD diesel models.  This is a locomotive that was supposed to make its arrival about a year and a half ago, however judging by its demand and incredible good looks, it has been apparently worth the wait. The EMD MP15AC was introduced into the Electro-Motive Catalog circa 1975.  The “MP” designation stands for “Multi-Purpose”, “15” for 1500 Horsepower and “AC” for its solid-state electrical system.  It was the answer for heavy duty yard switching and branch-line road power.

The longer frame of this unit made it possible to carry a longer fuel tank and larger road switcher trucks for use in occasional mainline duty.  Over 250 units were produced up to 1984.  Milwaukee Road and Southern Pacific were the largest purchasers of this loco.  Many are still in service on Class 1 and smaller regional railroads.  These units are very “Spartan” in appearance and are easily recognizable by their large see through air intakes up front.  This is EMD’s “Tunnel Motor” technology, taking cool air from the ground up directly to the car body, rather than from overhead.

The Athearn representation of this model is very well done.  All of the major spotting features of this loco are accurately represented.  The truck sideframes are accurate reproductions of the classic Blomberg “B” truck. They feature brake hangers and air cylinders correctly attached.  Blackened wheels add to the trucks realism.  Air hoses and MU cables are another example of Athearn’s attempt are achieving prototypical realism. 

The MP15AC comes in several road names on the first run - Canadian Pacific, CSX, Milwaukee Road, Soo Line, Union Pacific, and Southern Pacific.  Depending on the railroad the fuel tank can vary between 1200 to 1600 gallons.  The Cab area of the unit shows off the detailed interior, right down to the safety stickers on board. 

The unit weighs in at roughly 11 ounces and can negotiate an 18” radius with ease.  Being a little on the light side as far as engine weight is concerned, these units will not pull as many cars as the heavier road diesels can.  However 12 to 20 cars would be a realistic train for this unit to handle.  McHenry scale couplers are standard equipment on the units. 

Athearn is offering these units as a non-sound DCC Ready version, and also as a DCC and sound version.  We sampled a pair of the Milwaukee Road units in the sound and non sound versions.  The non-sound version is DCC ready and has both a 9-Pin decoder plug and an 8-Pin NMRA socket, giving the modeler the ability to install the decoder of his/her choice. 

The DCC and Sound version comes complete with a small hand held transmitter which is battery powered.  It allows those with a DC layout to be able to access some of the sound features that would ordinarily only be available to the DCC operators.  With the handheld unit you can get 6 distinct sound functions. From bell and horn, right up to air release.  The sound decoder in the unit is made for Athearn by MRC and has a good reproduction of sound made by a prototype MP15AC.  The speed of the units tested is roughly comparable to 70-80 scale miles per hour, which is a little on high side.  But they can be adjusted for a more realistic speed range. 

The Athearn MP15AC is a perfect example of the old term “good things come in small packages”.

Buy Athearn Genesis Locomotives