Pictured above is TYCO's Canadiana Century 430 offered in the mid-1970s. In addition to this release, TYCO also produced a 50-foot boxcar, streamline cupola caboose and sharknose diesel in Canadiana paint.  Only the Candiana boxcar makes an appearance in a TYCO catalog.  This C430, sharknose, and caboose were produced for and sold in Canada. -Model from Tony Lucio collection

 

No. 235-03 -1975 Release

Grand Trunk
No. 235-65 -1981 Release

This Great Northern (GN) Alco 430 never appears in any TYCO catalogs.  The sample seen here was not found with its packaging, so there is no available confirmed stock number and the release date can only be estimated.  It is possible that it might be a Red Box Era release from the late 1960s or among the early Brown Box TYCO issues of the early 1970s.  Certainly an interesting TYCO piece.  The example shown here has had its handrail kit applied and painted to match the GN colors.  -Model from Tony Lucio collection  

 

Very similar in appearance to the Illinois Central Gulf Century 430, TYCO did originally offer an orange and white lettered Illinois Central Alco 430 in the early 1970s.  The Illinois Central  Alco 430 carries the same lettering style and 4301 roadnumber as that of the ICG example. This model does not receive any appearances in TYCO's catalogs.

No. 250-B Alco 430 with Matching Caboose

 

The Penn Central Alco 430 and also available in Red Box Era packaging.  The model is a light green color with white lettering and white and red Penn Central herald.  The box flap shown above appears to show 235-G for this model's stock number; have also had reference to the model as being 235-R.

Rock Island
No. 235-10 -1976 Release

Originally among Red Box Era TYCO C430 models of the 1960s, TYCO keeps a red and silver Century 430 in the line well into the 1970s.  Another TYCO C430 of sorts returns around 1990.  Carrying the roadnumber 8130 is a Yugoslovian made Century 430 supplied in late examples of TYCO train sets.  The Santa Fe 72 train set (No.7415) from the 1991 catalog has an example of this substitute C430 model.  The train set box shows the typical red and silver GP-20 for the set, but examples often contained this European C430 in place of the GP-20.  These late C430 models are not known to have TYCO Hong Kong on their fuel tank, rather they usually have RSO and Yugoslovia markings.

 

Santa Fe examples in the TYCO line are generally quite common models, though not always and this Alco 430 is one of the exceptions.  Similar to the Santa Fe Shark Nose Diesel of the early 1980s, this blue and yellow Century 430 wearing the Freight Warbonnet scheme is only cataloged for two years (1981-1982) and is among the more odd examples of a TYCO C430 offering.

 

Two paint variations for the Silver Streak Century 430 are known to exist. One features a chrome roof behind the cab area and appears to be the more common example. The other version features a solid red roof from cab to the tail end of the loco.  The Silver Streak C430 does feature a Union Pacific logo on its nose, so it could be vaguely considered to be a UP loco; though its paint scheme suggests the Santa Fe warbonnet.

Soo Line
No. 235-L -1974 Release
No. 235-11 -1975 Release

 

TYCO's Spirit of '76 Century 430 arrives with the 1973-74 product catalog.  There are at least two paint variations for the bicentennial dressed C430.  The original model's most notable feature may be the absence of the blue roof band running from behind the cab to the rear of the unit.

 

The second and more common example of the Spirit of '76 Century 430 model has a blue roofline behind the engine's cab and is without the blue band running around the nose and cab sides.  Both variations carried the same stock number of 244, which was odd in itself as the Century 430 models carried the 235 stock number. 

No. 235-36 -1979 Release

 

 

 

This second paint scheme for the Virginian receives numerous variations across the catalogs of the 1980s.  The 1985 catalog finds a Virginian C430 carrying the cab number 4301, typical of TYCO's C430 models, but no nose chevrons and no VGN circle herald.  This example may be seen powering TYCO's Super RailMaster (No.7426) train set in '85, though later in the catalog in the Diesel Locomotives section you'll find the model with the 1435 cab number.  For 1986 the Virginian C430 is doing the honors on the Long Hauler (No.7407) train set. The Long Hauler's Virginian C430 has both the 4301 cab number, plus the yellow nose chevrons and VGN circle herald.

The USA Express is thought to be the final roadname addition to TYCO's Century 430 model series.  Thie red, white and blue Alco is sometimes mistaken for a bicentennial item, but it is not and did not get introduced until the very late '80s.  The USA Express Alco 430 was the star attraction of its own train set in TYCO's line 1988 and 1989.  The model has also been found in IHC packaging, apparently part of the leftovers sold off by IHC in the 1990s.

 

 

 

Model Railroader magazine's September 1986 issue featured Andy Sperandeo's "The Alco Century 430: Few were built, but some still run" article.  This article includes S-scale plans for the C430.  Also found are prototype B&W pictures for the Alco Demonstrator, NYC, Reading, GBW, and Seaboard C430s; plus color shots of the Susquehanna and Morristown & Erie C430s.