F3 VS F7 DIESELS

quote:

Originally posted by Rusty Traque:
Unless the railroad shops changed the side panels and the numberboards from say, the results of a collision.

That is what I was getting at.....If you see the things I posted, then you can determine what type of unit it is. If those items aren't present, then it could be ANYTHING!

- FT number boards are unique to the F2
- Chicken-wire between the port holes is unique to the F3

Other than the carbodys, Blomberg trucks and the 567 prime mover, FTs share little with the rest of the F-units.
Early F3s are indistinguishable from F2s. F3s went through many design changes and the last ones are indistinguishable from F7s except for the dynamic brake cooling fan, if equipped. They had a squirrel cage blower housed inside the carbody while F7s had a 36 inch fan mounted on the roof, late F7s used a 48 inch dynamic brake fan, had vertical carbody louvers and stamped stainless steel grills. During F-unit production there are many running changes like the cab doors, sandbox fillers and number boards. Then there are the owning railroad options and modifications. The odd grills on Lionel’s F3s were designed from EMD plans before they were finalized. In 1948, fidelity to scale wasn’t the same as it is today. The only models I know of that are 100% accurate are the HO Atherns Genesis models.

MrZ:
Most of the last F3s were built with F7 traction motors and sometimes referred to as F5s.

quote:

The odd grills on Lionel’s F3s were designed from EMD plans before they were finalized.

Thanks for the information on why the Lionel F3 carbody did not match any production model. Wonder why the windshield opening wase smaller than scale - could it had been to make the body casting more durable? JLC was not confident that his first postwar diesel would sell so he got END, NYC, and SF to share in the cost. All in all when Lionel was primarily used to making toy like models of real locos the 1948 F3 was a good model.

I'm on the P&D website now, looking at detail parts...

What the difference between the "Fan Kit" and "Fan Guard"?

I assume that I need a "Fan Guard" kit for the 4 rooftop fans, and these are the most exterior parts of the fan, do I need a "fan kit"? Does the kit include the guards, blades and housings? Or, is the kit the rectangular rooftop fan hatch, with holes for the guards?

A picture would be great!

Thanks,
Mario.

quote:

Originally posted by CSXJOE:
P&D Hobbies has grille sets among other detail parts.

http://pdhobbyshop.com/show_pr...facturer=P%26amp%3BD

Joe, thanks for the headsup with PD Hobby, they have some great detailing parts, I was not aware of them previously.