Hi all, I haven't been on the forum for a few weeks (holiday season etc), so perhaps still a belated Happy New Year to all of you!

Anyway, started a new project to super detail two Athearn UP C44-9W locomotives. I got these recently via E-Bay, and are NOT Genesis versions, but rather the older style ' bluebox'. They therefore have the fairly crude and simple (but strong) metal handrails. I'd like to replace them with some better looking types (especially the stancions etc should be improved) but I haven't found a set of parts that fit this so far. A lot is available for EMD types locomotives, and I found a set for a Rail Power Product shell, but not yet Athearn. Does anyone have any suggestions, have done it themselves perhaps ? Cheers!

Koos

Since Athearn bought RPP before being "assimilated" into Horizon, I assuming(You know the saying) that the Blue Box version is more than likely the RPP shell. The handrails for the RPP should work nicely.

I didn't know Athearn bought RPP? I did find info on the A-line/Proto power west site, it does say RPP went out of business and sold their tooling.

Ed,the Athearn bluebox dash 9 predates the RPP unit by at least a year.

Koos,I reccomend you check the Horizons site,I know they usually have the metal handrails in stock in the parts department.It is possible that they may have the newer plastic railings too.

Smokey Valley makes handrail kits for a number of types of locomotives. The GE Dash-8 40CW (Walthers #676-200) might work. There are a couple of other Dash-8/AC-4400 kits that might work as well.

Catt Wrote:Ed,the Athearn bluebox dash 9 predates the RPP unit by at least a year.

Thanks Catt. I knew someone was more knowlegdeable then me. I knew it was right around the same time.