May 13, 2025 - M.T.H. Electric Trains will be releasing the ALL-NEW 2025 Premier O Scale RS-11 Low Hood Diesel Locomotive in SIX unique liveries next Fall. Each item will be limited in production and expected to begin shipping to M.T.H. Authorized Retailers in October 2025.
Check out each of the offerings in the scrolling list at the bottom of the page.
PROTOTYPE HISTORY
The RS-11 was Alco’s answer to the hugely popular Electro-Motive Geep. Alco had, after all, invented the road switcher: a multipurpose engine with great visibility fore and aft, capable of anything from slow-speed switching to full-throttle mainline hauling. And in the late 1940s and early ‘50s, Alco’s pioneering RS-1 and RS-3 had sold well. But Alco’s 1600 hp model 244 motor had acquired a reputation for unreliability, and the Electro-Motive GP7 and GP9, copying the road switcher concept, became the runaway best-sellers of first-generation diesels.
One wonders today if Alco’s problem was really its motor or EMD’s commanding sales lead. Back in World War II, EMD had been the only company permitted to manufacture road diesels, and shop crews nationwide had learned to service the EMD 567 prime mover. Perhaps a lack of familiarity led to lesser-quality maintenance of Alco motors; as evidence, Alco fans today point to the New Haven, an all-Alco railroad that got great service from its Alco fleet while others complained.
This RS-11 can offer stiff competition for the Geeps and F-units on your railroad - or, like the prototype, you can mix them together in lashups, thanks to Proto-Sound 3.0 technology. Our RS-11 features the distinctive notched-nose look of its prototype, separately added grab irons and windshield wipers, illuminated number boards, etched metal safety tread on the frame walkways, legible builders plates, remote Proto-Couplers front and rear, the authentic chant of an Alco prime mover, four pickup rollers for stall-free running on virtually any track work, and Proto-Speed Control for tremendous pulling power at any speed from a crawl to full throttle.
Check out each of the offerings in the scrolling list at the bottom of the page.
