Facts & features
Price: $234.95 (DCC sound),
$124.95 (DC, no sound)
Manufacturer
Atlas Model Railroad Co.
378 Florence Ave.
Hillside, NJ 07205
http://www.atlasrr.com
Era: 1979 to mid 1980s (as decorated)
Road names: Low short hood: Conrail,
Chessie System (Western Maryland
reporting marks), Central of New Jersey,
Penn Central, and Southern Pacific. High
short hood: Central of Georgia and
Norfolk & Western. Undecorated versions
also produced.
Features- All-wheel drive and electrical pickup
- Accumate couplers, at correct height
- Atlas Scale Speed motor with dual brass
flywheels - Blackened metal wheels, in gauge
- Dual-mode ESU LokSound decoder (DCC
sound version) - Golden-white light-emitting-diode
headlights - Weight: 2.7 ounces
PERFORMANCE CHARTS
DRAWBAR
PULL1.25 ounces
30 N scale freight cars
SCALE SPEED (DC)
VOLTS SCALE MPH
7.5 (st ar t) 3
819
949
10 67
12 100
SCALE SPEED (DCC)
SPEED STEP SCALE MPH
1 1.5
726
14 71
21 117
28 121October 2019 59Emergency Fuel Cut Off, are legible
under magnification.
The mechanism. Removing the press-fit
plastic body shell reveals the locomo-
tive’s mechanism. A split die-cast metal
frame surrounds the dual-flywheel-
equipped motor. All 12 wheels pick up
track power. Wires connect the trucks to
the frame to transmit track power to the
decoder mounted atop the chassis.
Surface-mount light-emitting diodes
on each end of the decoder board illumi-
nate the headlights. The speaker for the
sound system is mounted in an enclo-
sure under the plastic fuel tank.
The frame and the motor give the
model a relatively hefty 2.7 ounce weight.
This, along with all-wheel drive gearbox,
gives the SD35 a 1.25 ounce drawbar
pull, equivalent to 30 N scale freight cars
on straight and level track.
Performance and sound. On our DCC
test track, the SD35 rolled smoothly at
1.5 scale mph in speed step 1 and accel-
erated smoothly to 121 scale mph. This is
quite a bit faster than the prototype’s top
speed, which was 71, 77, or 83 mph,
depending on the gear ratio.
The top speed and every other perfor-
mance, sound, and lighting aspect of the
decoder is easy to adjust via configura-
tion variables (CVs). Programming
LokSound decoders is made even easier
with the firm’s LokProgrammer software
(free download) and LokProgrammer
computer interface (sold separately). In
addition to lowering the top speed, I pro-
grammed the locomotive address to the
cab number and added deceleration and
acceleration momentum.
User-triggered effects include the
headlight, horn, bell, and coupler crash
sounds. I could easily “play” the horn for
both long or short blasts using the Horn
button on my NCE throttle.
The button-controlled brake and
Drive/Hold feature make operating the
locomotive more realistic. The latter fea-
ture maintains the locomotive’s speed
setting, allowing the throttle knob to be
used to manually notch the engine rpm
sounds up or down. Pressing function 4
on a downgrade triggered a dynamic
brake sequence.
On our DC test track, the sound
started at just under 7 volts. At 7.5V the
locomotive started moving at 3 scale
mph and accelerated to 100 scale mph at
12V. Sounds are limited to the diesel
engine and brakes. The engine rpm
increases or decreases with the throttle
setting. A quick decrease in speed
also triggers squealing brake sounds.
In DC mode, the headlights operate
according to the locomotive’s direction
of travel.
The Atlas Master Series SD35 should
fill a niche for those who model railroads
that used this second-generation work-
horse. – Dana Kawala, senior editorCUSTOM MODEL
RAILROADS
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