8183 Chesapeake & Ohio K-2 Mikado, #1168, 16-VC Tender, No-Sound / DCC-Ready, HO

The Chesapeake & Ohio Railway began operating Mikados in December 1911, when it took delivery of the class K-1 from Alco-Richmond. Ten years later, the C&O purchased another 150 technologically superior 2-8-2's - the K-2's, the K-3's, and the K-3a's. All the K-2s and K-3s were built by Alco-Richmond. The primary thing differentiating the K-2s and K-3s was the booster. The K-2s had a booster, and although considered a "light Mikado", they could extert 10% more tractive effort than the booster-less K-3s. The C&O used its Mikados for almost any job, and they were considered the mainstay of C&O power for twenty years. They could be found on manifest freights, local freights, coal trains, work trains, and occasionally passenger trains. They were the dominant power on C&O's James River Line and also the Chicago Line in Indiana.

Our model is of the K-2 locomotive as it appeared in the 1940's. They are quickly recognized by their large Elesco feedwater heaters and "flying air pumps" hanging from the smokebox door. All K-2's were delivered with 12,000 gallon / 15-ton capacity Vanderbilt tenders. The railway quickly realized they would need larger tenders, and most of the K-2s eventually ran with the 16,000 gallon / 20-ton capacity "16-VC" tender. We are offering models with both tenders, and have selected appropriate road numbers based on tender assignments.

All of the models have hand-crafted brass boilers, cabs, and tender bodies, and die cast locomotive and tender chassis. In addition to the Paragon4 version, each model is available in our Stealth Series. These are No-Sound / DCC-Ready models that operate on DC out of the box, or a modeler can easily install their DCC decoder of choice. Out of the box, Front and rear lights are directional, and other lights are always ON with track power. Additionally some lighting functions may be missing depending on selected aftermarket decoder the modeler installs.

Broadway Limited Imports is proud to re-introduce our Stealth Series. Our Stealth Series provides customers with the ability to purchase highly detailed steam and diesel locomotives at a lower price. Stealth Series models are DCC-Ready with a standard MTC21 pin on the DC Motherboard. For more information about Stealth Series models, please see our Products Page or click here.