GP 9 or GP 18

[MikeGTW]

Question I have an engine not quite sure but I call it a GP18 it's a athearn frame with a Mashima motor The shell I believe is Cary it's all metal
So GP 9 or GP 18

 

[Espeefan]

The fans say 18 to me. The early Proto 2000 GP-18's had that three fan arrangement, and their chassis were Athearn clones. Note: I'm not a diesel expert.

 

[bnsf971]

I think it's a late-phase GP9. Most GP18s I've seen have had the newer, squared-off 48" radiator fans.

 

[MikeGTW]

I think I have to go with the GP9 I forgot about the radiator covers being different

And I do have three of the proto 2000 GP 18's duh

 

[kjd]

GP9 and GP18s are very closely related and the easiest way to tell is to look at the roster of the railroad you are interested in. There are some features that lean toward one or the other but the parts are interchangeable and over time it can be very hard to tell the difference. I agree with Terry though, this one with the diamond shaped wire pattern in the radiator intakes looks like a late GP9. As an aside, the original Norfolk Southern had low nose GP18s. When it was absorbed by the Southern Railway, they were rebuilt with high short hoods. Another aside, I think it was Train Station Products made radiator intakes to modify a Proto 2000 GP18 to resemble a late GP9.

 

[cv_acr]

Definitely a GP9 pattern of battery box & body louvers and radiator screens. The GP18 usually had a similar pattern of body louvers but different louvers on the battery boxes and different radiator intakes. Otherwise very similar units. And of course the earlier GP7 was also visually quite similar to early GP9s but with different body louver arrangements. (Athearn's old Blue Box "GP9" is actually a GP7 body).

The early GP9s had 4 36" radiator fans, the later phases had 2 48" fans.