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Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
The A-Team
-1984 Release
TYCO does not catalog this example of the Shark Nose Diesel as a separately
available locomotive. Included in the 1984 A-Team train set, this Shark is black with a red stripe. The A-Team
name is a sticker included in the set, but not applied by TYCO.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Burlington Northern
No. 222-17
-1976 Release
Cataloged from 1976, when the Shark Nose is re-introduced in TYCO's line,
through 1979 is a Burlington Northern example. In addition to being sold as a separate offering, TYCO included
the BN model in train sets too.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Canadiana
No. 222-45
Manufacturered for the Canadian market and not thought to have been readily
available in the U.S., TYCO's Canadiana Shark Nose Diesel is one of two locomotive offerings to wear this decoration.
In addition to this shark, TYCO also offered a Canadiana Alco 430. There are no known catalog appearances for this model.
Of TYCO's Canadiana pieces which include two locos, a caboose and box car, only the 50' plug door box car makes a catalog
appearance.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Delaware & Hudson
No. 222-04 -1976 Release
TYCO's Delaware & Hudson Shark avoids the annual catalogs, but did
appear in a supplement that introduced the TYCOKITS line and the RF-16 Sharks.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Johnson Wax
No catalog appearances for this model, it was the power for an early 1980s promotional
train set made by TYCO. The Johnson Wax Shark Nose Diesel shares the same paint scheme as the Santa Fe shark.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Midnight Special
No. 222-19 -1976 Release
TYCO's Midnight Special Shark Nose Diesel is cataloged from 1976 through
1981. The model's decoration is similar to the tri-color early diesel paint scheme found on Wabash engines.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
New York Central
No. 222-06 -1976
Release
TYCO's New York Central Shark
Nose Diesel avoids being pictured or listed in any of the annual product catalogs. The only image I've found of the
New York Central Shark Nose is part of a TYCO supplemental catalog that introduced this diesel and the TYCOKITS line.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Northern Pacific
No. 222-72 -1982
Release
TYCO's 1982 catalog features a number of one time only appearances for
roadnames, among them is this Northern Pacific Shark Nose Diesel.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Rock Island
No. 222-10 -1980 Release
TYCO's Rock Island Shark Nose Diesel enjoys the longest run of any of the
sharks. The Rock Island is introduced in the 1980 catalog and continues to be found until near the end of TYCO's HO-scale
train offerings in the early 1990s. The Rock Island example is found on many train set packages of the early '90s that
themselves do not actually include a shark, but have a replacement F9A or Alco FA that substituted in TYCO's last train set
offerings.
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Santa Fe
No.
222-21 -1982 Release
Shark Nose Diesel Locomotive
Southern Pacific
No. 222-18 -1976 Release
The Southern Pacific Shark Nose was produced in both Powered and Non-Powered or Dummy versions.
The paint is the same for either Powered or Non-Powered loco. The SP Sharks were often found packaged together in a
twin pack from TYCO that contained both examples. TYCO catalogs the Southern Pacific Shark Nose from 1976 through
1979. See the Twin Diesels page for specifics on the SP offering.
Originally part of Mantua's line as a metal model
available in both A- and B-units. Mantua's metal Shark Nose is introduced in 1953. A plastic model of Baldwin's RF-16 Shark Nose diesel returned for
TYCO's 50th Anniversary in 1976. Though a B-unit does exist in the old metal version, TYCO's 1970s Shark Nose was offered
as an A-unit only. The Shark Nose remained among TYCO offerings to the end of production in 1993.
Among
the more unique and odd Sharks is a black A-Team loco. In its new-in-the-train-set-box form, the Shark in The A-Team
train set is only partly decorated. TYCO included a sticker sheet with this train set that was used to finish
the appearance of an A-Team Shark Nose diesel. TYCO also produced a Johnson Wax Shark Nose for a promotional set in
the 1980s. Check the Promotional Sets page on this site for details and images of the Johnson Wax Shark. There is at
least one Shark Nose made by TYCO for its non-U.S. product lines. A red-and-white Canadiana Shark was produced and sold
in Canada in the 1970s.
Non-Powered or Dummy examples for TYCO Shark Nose do exist. For a few years, TYCO
sold Sharks in a package providing one powered model and one non-powered. It is not clear how many roadnames
were available in sets for the Shark, but Southern Pacific examples appears with the most frequency in this two-unit
offering.
TYCO's RF-16 Shark Nose model is reviewed in the August 1976 issue
of Railroad Model Craftsman magazine. Basic information is provided about the construction of the model and reference
is made to prototypical dimensions. RMC notes that TYCO's placement of a numberboard just below the unit's headlight is not
known to be correct for any actual owners of the Baldwin diesel. Numberboards for Sharks typical reside on the sides of the
nose, similar to the style found on an EMD F-unit. RMC's review of blueprints found the TYCO model had a more generous wheel
base by 2-1/2 scale-feet when compared with a real Shark Nose diesel. RMC provides four roadnames(SP, BN, NYC and D&H)
as being available with a suggested retail price of $16 at the model's introduction. The review also quickly runs down the
prototypes production numbers and actual owners. Just over a hundred RF16-Shark Nose units were produced and sold to B&O,
NYC, and Pennsy.
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