Illinois Central Gulf - SD45 #7000
by dcmkris
HO Scale - Custom Detailed & Painted - SD45
This unit started out as the very first SD45 built as EMD Demo #4351 in December of 1965. It tested on the IC and other roads and was purchased by the Illinois Central in Jan or Feb of 1971 and renumbered it #7000. Illinois Central painted the unit in its standard orange and white paint scheme May-71 at its Paducah, KY shops.
It remained this way until it was repainted at its Memphis, TN shops in April of 1975. It emerged in the same orange & white scheme but now lettered for Illinois Central Gulf with the same road number.
It would continue to operate like this until June of 1987 when it suffered a major electrical fire. The railroad evaluated the unit and determined it to be uneconomical to repair it was sold to Pillet Brothers and scrapped in July of 1987.
The unit can be quickly identified by its "L" shape front cab window and the enlarged radiator intake on the firemen's side of the locomotive.
This unit started out as a HO Scale Rail Power Products shell, which was heavily modified with Cannon & Co., cab, cab sub bases, nose, see thru fans, walkway tread, intake hatch, blower, fuel tank details and air tanks. Other items added included see thru steps, brass headlights, air horn, cab shades, lift rings, grab irons, coupler cut bars, hand rails & stanchions. Further detail added included snow ploe, semi-scale couplers, air hoses, bell, antenna, ratchet brake, windshield wipers, buffer plates and MU stands. It was all topped off with Plano Model Products etched radiator grilles.
Some light weathering finished off the model.
