sd38-2 frame help

[KevinKrey]

So I came across a custom sd38-2 shell this weekend in a DM&IR paint scheme. I need to get detail parts like hand rails and horns and whatnot still as well as the chassis and drive. It fits perfect on my athearn RTR SD38-2 frame but I can't sacrifice that loco. So I picked up a used blue box sd40-2 today at a hobby shop for cheap today thinking since its still a six axle unit it would work. Well it's too long. What are my options other than buying another athearn RTR SD38-2 model since those are hard to come by without seeing a high price? Hope my question makes sense. Thanks

[Catt]

SD38-2 and SD40-2 use the same frame so the shell should fit that blue box frame perfectly.Lay your 38-2 on its side and put the 40-2 below fuel tank to fuel tank and see how they compare.The trucks should line up perfectly.

[KevinKrey]

thats what I thought but the 40-2 is a touck longer. When I place the 38 shell on it the trucks hit the steps on the ends.

[Sumpter250]

"So I came across a custom sd38-2 shell this weekend in a DM&IR paint scheme."

Custom ?, or scratch built?, or bashed? ( the problem could be, the "custom" shell is too short )
It may come down to shortening the frame you already have, and where you shorten it will depend on "where it is too long".
The easiest place to shorten the frame is in the fuel tank ( gives you the greatest surface area, and strength for rejoining the two halves ), but I'll bet the fuel tank is the correct length. Hoping you do not have to shorten the frame in two places.
There is the option of contacting Athearn, and getting just the SD38-2 frame from them.
It's been a while since I last purchased an Athearn loco, but they all used to come with a parts list, so you should be able to get the part number for a "replacement" frame.

[KevinKrey]

Thanks again for the help guys. Its just the paint thats custom as far as I can tell. One of the first thoughts I had was to order a new frame, but I still need handrails, driveline, lights, all the goodies ya know. So Id rather get a whole model that I can salvage parts off of. I know know from trying like I said that the newer Athearn SD38 models are a direct fit with my shell, they are just not easy to find for a good deal.

[Green_Elite_Cab]

Have you considered Proto-Power West / A-line?

These are the older Athearn / Rail power frames and parts. These should match you unit. My guess is either your unit is a SD38 (not an SD38-2) or that the SD38-2 might actually run on an SD40 frame, which IS shorter than the SD40-2.

The link above will bring you to the page that sells the SD38/SD40/SD45 frames and the associated powering parts. They also offer some additional SD38 parts and details here. This should be enough to get your model mostly complete, though you may want to do your own prototype research for some of the smaller details.

I hope this helps!

ADDED NOTE****

I also use these drives in my E60s and my C32-8, and they are pretty good, so I have some experience with these.

[KevinKrey]

Well after some more googling, the rpp shell I have was made to fit on Athearn SD-45 units. I'll make another stop at the LHS by my house, one of them has boatloads of locos I can pick through. That way weather I decide to make it powered or unpowered, I should be able to get a model with all the parts I need.

[Sumpter250]

Well after some more googling, the rpp shell I have was made to fit on Athearn SD-45 units.

Yeah ! Right ! Everybody knows that !
( in a pig's " three letters, one is an A, but it isn't what you think it is! so there! " they do )
Happy to hear you got it figured out. Hope that's the only serious problem you have with your project.

[KevinKrey]

So the donor became a Southern highhood SD45. Good news, the shell went right on! still need to figure out headlights and pull off, paint and swap railings as well as some other detail parts. Bad news is the couplers have nowhere to screw into. Any advice here? thinking my best bet is to glue in a block of styrene on my shell where the coupler will go and drill a pilot hole. Any other ideas?

[Green_Elite_Cab]

So the donor became a Southern highhood SD45. Good news, the shell went right on! still need to figure out headlights and pull off, paint and swap railings as well as some other detail parts. Bad news is the couplers have nowhere to screw into. Any advice here? thinking my best bet is to glue in a block of styrene on my shell where the coupler will go and drill a pilot hole. Any other ideas?

Are the new SD45 frames the same as the old ones? I'm pretty sure the RPP shells were made for the old SD45 frame, which would have had mounting holes for a coupler pocket.

I thought the Southern Hihood SD45s were part of the new run. Might have been able to save money with an older unit if they are the same on the inside.

Also, if you glue a coupler mount pad to the shell, won't you block the frame from coming out?

[KevinKrey]

I think it was made for the new frames. The old frame and shells mounted with the little tabs with holes, the shell I bought has no tabs. As for frame being blocked no if you look at the model top to bottom it goes shell, frame, then coupler, the screw goes through the coupler box and into the shell tying them all together. My shell just has nowhere for the screw to go.

[Green_Elite_Cab]

I think it was made for the new frames. The old frame and shells mounted with the little tabs with holes, the shell I bought has no tabs. As for frame being blocked no if you look at the model top to bottom it goes shell, frame, then coupler, the screw goes through the coupler box and into the shell tying them all together. My shell just has nowhere for the screw to go.

Well, the old RPP frames have a nearly identical set up to that. This probably should not be surprising, since the "Current" SD45 is really a modernized RPP SD45, not the old one. Most RPP shells were originally intended to fit on the old Athearn mechanisms as replacements (you'll note the old GP7, GP35, SDP40 and SD45 all had "fat" hoods). The RPP were closer to scale than were some of the original Athearn.

RPP went away a while ago, but Athearn bought the tooling. You can still get the RPP parts through PPW/A-line (in the links I posted), but as long as the Athearn frame works, you're fine (probably could have saved a few bucks just buying the parts though).

My guess is that you need to drill your own hole into the shell for the screws, just be careful not to drill all the way through.

[Green_Elite_Cab]

Would you be able to post a clear photo of the frame, and the underside of the shell?

[KevinKrey]

I will post a picture yes, might be a few days though sorry lol. As for saving money, I went with the whole loco that I bought to avoid the hassle of getting multiple parts, and the new one is DCC ready and I have some spare decoders laying around already.

[Catt]

Kevin,
Are you sure it is a SD 38-2,and not a straight SD38 which would be shorter than the dash 2.