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Conrail Cyclopedia G52X: Athearn HO Modeling In early 2004, Athearn announced their pre-painted version of Conrail G52X Coalporter. So far as of December 2005, they have produced three runs of the cars. Each run is sold in 5-packs, with each car having a different reporting number, giving us fifteen different numbers. The models come with loads. Because modelers quickly snatched up each print run, these models have become scarce. Some lcoal hobby shops still have them, as well as some online retailers. HO Scale Conrail Bethgon Coalporter Announced: April 4, 2004 ATH93028 CR#1: MSRP $99.99 ATH93029 CR#2: MSRP $99.99 ATH93030 CR#3: MSRP $99.99 MANUFACTURER: Athearn Trains 1550 Glenn Curtiss St. Carson, CA 90746 Phone: (310) 763-7140 Fax: (310) 763-7449 Website: www.athearn.com Athearn's CR Coalporter page. KEY FEATURES: -Fully assembled & ready to operate -Factory installed metal grabirons -Removable cast coal load in each car -Five different road numbers per set -Machined RP25 profile metal wheels -Magnetically operated knuckle couplers -Accurate Conrail markings If you are looking for an exact replica of the G52X then this is not the model for you. For example, the Athearn model has seven grab irons, whereas the Conrail prototype has six. The upper sill is thicker on the Athearn model than on the prototype. The same can be said for the side ribs. In short, the Athearn model is the aluminum version found on Western roads, whereas the Conrail prototype is made from steel. Having said all of this, the Athearn Conrail G52X does look very close to the Conrail prototype. The major spotting features match up enough that the Athearn model will fool just about anyone except the avid Conrail rolling stock modeler. The paint on my samples was applied well and nicely matches Conrail's oxide red. The lettering is crisp, and even the smallest print can be read. Even the Cromweld sticker in the center of the car is present. The only missing detail is the Bethlehem Steel sticker found near the lower sill. Here is where I have a confession to make. I scanned and submitted the detail photos that Athearn used when painting their Conrail Coalporter kits. I had high-quality photos of every part of the car, except one small part. Yes, you guessed it. I never took a shot of the Bethlehem Steel logo! Even my good buddy Rob Russell never took a photo of the logo. For some reason, we kept overlooking it. You can see Rob's photos on the Details page. I posted his photos there because I felt his were better than mine. So there you go. The Conrail Cyclopedia is to blame for the missing printing on the Athearn model! All in all, I can recommend these models for anyone other than the diehard rolling stock modeler. This is probably as close as we'll get to a true G52X model, since they are unique to Conrail. Athearn HO Bethgon Coalporter: Conrail Below are photos of Athearn's HO Coalporter as described above. CR 507484 John Martin (143K) Dec 20, 2005 CR 507699 John Martin (137K) Dec 20, 2005 CR 507699 John Martin (155K) Dec 20, 2005 CR 507699 John Martin (192K) Dec 20, 2005 Copyright (c) 1998-2009 Robert S. Waller. All rights reserved. Photos for personal use only. All rights reserved by original owner of image. Reproduction or redistribution in any form without express written permission is prohibited.