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Athearn's first Rio Grande SD45 (#4171) was a "blue box" kit featuring the large billboard lettering scheme. The
shell was Athearn's original "wide body" SD45 introduced in the mid 1960s.
Coming in 2008 for Athearn's Ready-To-Roll line is an SD45 based on the Rail Power shell. The first group's roadnames
include Rio Grande featuring the as-delivered "small flying" scheme. Three roadnumbers are being included #5317 (#ATH95407);
#5319 (#ATH95408); #5324 (#ATH95409). Road specific features for the Rio Grande model are stated to include the nose
headlight never before done in HO-scale plastic ready-to-run. Perry Lambert photo taken at the Athearn display at the
December 2007 Oklahoma City Train Show.
Above is KATO's Rio Grande SD45 #5336 (#37-1743). This SD45 was delivered with small lettering, but had its
paint modified within a year to the larger lettering as found on the KATO HO scale model. Unlike Proto 2000's dark orange
attempt at "Grande Gold," KATO's coloring is very much in the ballpark with respect to the prototype.
Life-Like Proto 2000
Prior to its acquisition by Walthers, Life-Like's Proto 2000 series offered a Rio Grande SD45. Sadly, the "Grande
Gold" color chosen was closer to "Kansas City Rail Car Orange" and the model doesn't match the prototype well. The nose
headlight is too low for Rio Grande, but does represent an EMD light package provided to the Burlington SD45s.
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