Group - I saw this Lionel MPC-era CP Rail NW2 on eBay (see below), and am curious exactly what it is, because there are some rather significant differences between this one and the standard production:
1) The positioning of "8660" is towards the nose instead of just in front of the cab;
2) Under "CP Rail" on the body of the locomotive, there is a raised rectangular molding similar to the one on the postwar Santa Fe 633. At first I thought this was just a repainted 633's shell, but then there is no visible slot where the reverser lever should be on top;
3) Instead of having several raised lines on the black fuel tank as in the standard MPC version, the subject model has only one solid rectangular raised marking here, similar to a postwar unit;
4) No traction tires are present, suggesting this mystery shell is mounted on a postwar magnetraction-equipped body..
Now, if it is just a homemade / painted hybrid CP Rail NW2, why would the previous owner go to the trouble to replicate a rather generic, inexpensive and not particularly rare locomotive, if that was his intention? Or, is this some kind of a pre-production sample (highly doubtful)?? Thanks! Regards, -Scott
