Atlas HO 10005038  - Master - Silver - SD-24 High Hood Diesel Locomotive "Illinois Central Gulf" #6304  (ex-SOU)

• Road Name: Illinois Central Gulf
• Road Number: 6304 
• Product Line: Master - Silver
• Scale: HO Scale
• Catalog: Atlas Winter 2025 Catalog

Features:

• Separately-applied roof piping detail
• Golden-white LEDs • Realistic die-cast underframe
• Five-pole skewed armature motor with dual flywheels for optimum performance at all speeds
• Directional lighting
• Factory-equipped with AccuMate® knuckle couplers
• Painted crew figures
• Separately-installed scale windshield wipers, metal grab irons and fine scale handrails
• Highly detailed coupler cut bars
• Multiple unit hoses and trainline hoses
• Piping on trucks
• metal couplers

Atlas Master® Silver Series Additional Features:
• NMRA 21-pin plug for DCC (Decoder-ready)

***Silver Sound Ready™
Atlas Silver Sound Ready models are equipped with a speaker for easy conversion to
sound with the addition of a decoder.

Overview:

In 1958, EMD released its first locomotive equipped with a turbocharger, the 6-axle SD24. Realizing 2400 horsepower from the venerable 16-cylinder 567D3, the SD24 produced 33 percent higher power than the Roots-blower equipped SD18, and was able to maintain this power output at all altitudes, which a standard blower-equipped locomotive could not do. This factor appealed greatly to the mountainous western railroads, with Santa Fe and Union Pacific purchasing the majority of units produced. The SD24 was also one of the first locomotives to feature a “low nose” short hood, which
greatly improved visibility for freight and general road operations, although the high hood variants were still produced and purchased by the Southern and Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy railroads as original owners.

In 1973, the Santa Fe began a program to rebuild its fleet of 80 SD24s by replacing the aging 567 prime mover with the more modern EMD 645 (thus increasing the horsepower rating from 2400 to 2625) and upgrading the entire electrical system, along with other improvements. These locomotives were in service through 1986 on the Santa Fe, when the majority were sold to Guilford Rail Systems. The last was scrapped in 2012.

The Atlas SD24/26 features accurate body and lighting configurations for the major high- and low-hood variations, as well as roadname-specific details and paint schemes.