The FL9 was a critical locomotive for operations out of Grand Central Terminal in New York City. Originally operated on the former New Haven lines the fleet’s operating area spread under Penn Central and Conrail/MTA to include the former New York Central lines north along the Hudson River. 

With no direct replacements on the horizon, in the 1980s the decision was made to rebuild and upgrade many of the original FL9s. Rebuilding typically included the addition of HEP (Head End Power) to replace the older steam heat boilers, as well as upgraded braking systems and electronics. These rebuilds were done in several batches for Metro North and Amtrak. 

Notable among these rebuilt units were those which were sold to the Connecticut Department of Transportation and were rebuilt by Morrison-Knudsen in 1984-85. Owned by ConnDot, they were operated by Metro North. The units re-entered service wearing their original “New Haven” black, white and red livery. These feature a different HEP fan arrangement and nearly flat rear-end.

The Rapido Trains HO scale FL9 locomotive features:

•  All of the amazing detail found on our original FL9
• Morrison-Knudsen or Chrome Crankshaft body details
• HEP rooftop details: large 36” fan or dual fans
• Modernized underbody components
• Nose and rear HEP plugs*
• Optional operating ditch lights*
• Correct horn casting per road number
• Steam Generator versions feature as-built details
• Separately applied wire grabs
• Mo-Power capacitor
• DC/Silent (21-pin DCC Ready) or DC/DCC/Sound - ESU LokSound V5 Decoder

                             * Order Deadline May 15th, 2024