WalthersProto EMD Phase II GP9s on the Arrival Track

Like many other Class Is in the early 1970s, Southern Pacific chose to upgrade its tired fleet of EMD GP9s to “GP9Es” by stripping them down to the frame, and replacing all the electrical and mechanical components with new or remanufactured parts, thus extending their service lives by at least another fifteen years.  Available for the first time from WalthersProto are Southern Pacific’s upgraded GP9E locomotives for HO scale.

WalthersProto EMD Phase II GP9s on the Arrival Track

Now available from Walthers as part of its premium WalthersProto product line is its latest release of Phase II EMD GP9s in a variety of new liveries, each with road-specific details for HO scale. Regardless of the railroad, Phase II EMD GP9 production is identified by four 36” radiator fans in combination with a set of six louvers on the engine room doors, amongst other changes.

Available for the first time from WalthersProto are HO scale Southern Pacific GP9Es based on EMD Phase II production in four different road numbers.  Additional road names include Chicago & North Western, Chesapeake & Ohio and Penn Central. Details across all road names include fine wire grab irons, etched metal lift rings, see-through rooftop cooling fans, positionable drop steps, cab mirrors, and more.

DC/DCC-ready silent WalthersProto GP9s retail for $249.98 MSRP.

DC+DCC+Sound WalthersProto GP9s equipped with ESU Loksound 5 decoders are $354.98 MSRP. Available now while supplies last at your favorite dealer or direct.

Wm. K. Walthers, Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218; 800-487-2467; www.walthers.com

Beneath the bodyshell of every WalthersProto GP9 is a heavy die cast metal chassis surrounding a precision motor with dual flywheels. Extending out from each flywheel is a driveshaft to the gear tower on each power truck.  All wheels are driven and provide electrical contact. Atop the chassis is a motherboard with a 21-pin interface to either a factory-installed ESU Loksound 5 DCC+sound decoder on sound-equipped models or to a dummy plug enabling analog DC operation for DC/DCC-ready versions.

Espee’s upgraded GP9Es exhibited only the most subtle of external changes beyond the new road number. These minute differences include battery box doors with angled “lift-off” bottom hinges ahead of the cab and a bolted rectangular plate on the subbase just behind the cab – all now replicated precisely with new tooling on these WalthersProto models. No Southern Pacific unit prior to 1986 would be complete without a full complement of oscillating lights up front. These Walthers GP9Es have that addressed, along with blanked numberboards and a blanked light bracket on the rear end of the hood, and numberboard access doors at both ends – all correct for Espee’s GP9 fleet as most appeared from the mid-1960s onward.

This article was posted on: September 26, 2026

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