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 Posted - July 23 2006 : 1:21:21 PM
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Hello,
Missing from the HO-Scale market since Lionel's 1970s try at 1/87th models, the General Electric U-18B is coming back in the future from Inter-Mountain. Wikipedia.com tells us that GE produced 163 examples between March '73 and October '76. The U-18B originally was sold to the following railroads:
105- Seaboard Coast Line
45- NdeM
10- Maine Central
2- Texas Utilities
1- Providence & Worchester
Inter-Mountain has announced and displayed four different body shells or phase prototypes for its HO-Scale U-18B at the NMRA Show...
The little U-18B was first available in plastic from Lionel-HO in 1976. Lionel skipped all prototype owners and produced their U-18 in Rio Grande, Soo Line, and CP Rail. The model was also done in Undecorated. The Lionel U-18B joined the company's GP-9, Alco FA, and GP-30 diesels in the second attempt at making a go at the HO-Scale market in the '70s. The Lionel U-18 suffered from having its long hood wider than prototype. Those familiar with Athearn's U-28B/U-30B/U-33B, which was itself wider than prototype, will remember the Lionel as being even wider than Athearn's boats. The Lionel U-18B did feature treadwalk, a rare thing for an R-T-R model of the time, and cast on cab shades another not often seen feature. The model road on the same drive that the Lionel GP-9 used. Early examples of the Lionel U-18B came with the company's G.E. Mount Clemens, Michigan drive and later featured Kader-Hong Kong made drives. Unlike Lionel's GP-30 which survives today as the basis for Bachmann's current offering, the Lionel U-18B never returned after the company departed HO-Scale in 1978.
Tony Cook
HO-Scale Trains Resource
http://ho-scaletrains.net
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Posted - October 16 2006 : 11:38:29 AM
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| Any clue as to when the U18B will be available? About how much do Inter-Mountain locos go for?
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Posted - October 17 2006 : 07:37:47 AM
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The Inter-Mountain U18B is hoped for sometime in 2007...but as you know in the hobby business release dates can slip and slide.
Here's Inter-Moutain's website...
http://www.imrcmodels.com/index.html
There products are at the high end of HO-Scale plastic offerings, in my opinion. I'd guess the U18B will retail for $125-$150 without DCC decoder.
And will likely NOT be offered in Rio Grande like the former Lionel-HO.[:(]
Tony Cook
HO-Scale Trains Resource
http://ho-scaletrains.net
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