O SD70ACe Diesel NYC #1066/3.0

The SD70ACe is Electro-Motive Diesel’s hope for the future.
While designed to meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier-2
emissions requirements that took effect on January 1, 2005, this
replacement for the SD70MAC also seems to have a higher purpose: to
recapture the lead in North American locomotive sales that EMD lost to
General Electric in 1987.

Under the hood beats a third-generation model 710 diesel with 4300
horsepower; only slight modifications were needed to make the model 710
meet new emission standards. With 5000 such motors in service worldwide
and a reputation for dependability, EMD reasoned that shop crews would
prefer familiar technology.

Other than the prime mover, however, virtually every element of the
SD70ACe has been rethought to create a 21st-century locomotive.
Ergonomics were a prime consideration. The engine’s angular nose offers
the crew far better visibility than most other locomotives, and the cab
is comfortable for engineers of almost any size. Digital screens
provide a range of information on what is happening both inside the
locomotive and out on the road. The cab easily accommodates a crew of
three – an important factor in a modern world without cabooses. And
there is, of course, a cup holder for the engineer.

In its heyday, the New York Central System, along with its rival the
Pennsylvania Railroad, dominated rail transportation in the Northeast
and the upper Midwest. While the Pennsy fought its way westward over
the Appalachian Mountains, the Central took an easier route, up the
Hudson River Valley and along the shores of the Great Lakes. Its
overnight Pullman services were advertised as “The Water
Level Route — You Can Sleep.”

For more than half a century, the New York Central was home to perhaps
the most famous passenger train in the world, the Twentieth
Century Limited. Every afternoon a red carpet was unfurled in
New York’s Grand Central Terminal, welcoming passengers
aboard the overnight service to Chicago — and giving rise to
the expression “red carpet treatment.” For
shippers, the Central’s Pacemaker freight service promised
the same level of attention to their needs.

While the New York Central is long gone — having disappeared
first into the Penn Central, then Conrail, and then Norfolk Southern
and CSX — one NYC locomotive remains in revenue service
today. Painted in the lightning stripe scheme worn by the diesels
pulling the Twentieth Century Limited, SD70ACe
diesel No. 1066 is part of Norfolk Southern’s Heritage fleet,
honoring 20 “fallen flag” railroads that are today
part of the NS system. Our RailKing Imperial model of No. 1066 is
offered with matching cars in a variety of historic NYC paint schmes.

The RailKing Imperial SD70ACe is accurately decorated in modern motive
power paint schemes. Our near-scale model is a full 17″ in length, yet
operates comfortably on O-31 curves. Under the hood of the Proto-Sound
3.0 version is the same sound and control system found in our more
expensive Premier model of this locomotive – complete with sounds
recorded from an actual Union Pacific SD70ACe. Additional Imperial
features include operating diesel exhaust smoke and flashing ditch
lights. If you’re looking for realism and a lot of fun at a RailKing
price, it doesn’t get any better than this!

Did you know?

IntelliTrain, an option on the SD70ACe, uses cellular and GPS
technology to allow a railroad’s maintenance department to monitor
operating conditions and problems as they occur out on the road –
making diagnosis and repair considerably easier.