MTH Amtrak F40PH 20-20682: Amtrak Blue Does Not Match Previous Amtrak Diesels, Cars, etc.

Pictures would be great, especially in this case!

I'm mainly looking for a response from MTH. They know how different the paint is on the new F40PH when compared against every MTH Premier or Railking diesel or passenger car manufactured since I started collecting MTH Amtrak stuff in 2006.

Anyone else who has bought this diesel can attest to how different the shade of blue is on this one compared to any other Amtrak item I've seen.

Could you post comparison pictures?

 I have always thought MTH's blue is a bit dark but within reasonable limits of correct.  I mix in Atlas and other manufacturers Amtrak equipment and there are variances.  In my opinion Atlas got it exactly right on the Horizon Phase 3 cars.  Amtrak equipment on the real railroad varies sometimes.  

 See my youtube video of a mix of MTH and Atlas cars pulled by an MTH Genesis, note the blue stripes.  In this case I think it works for an Amtrak consist.

https://youtu.be/3DHmZGWstUI

When you mention the light blue, are you comparing the different Amtrak phases or schemes?

Is "baby Blue" like it Conrail blue? Maybe Rock Island Bankruptcy Blue?

IS the Blue lighter than these Blue stripes?

In my opinion the shade of blue on my new F40PH is  close to the Rock Island blue in the photo above.

I have MTH Amtrak diesels in every Amtrak paint scheme from Phase I to the Walthers Phase V versions and they all match very closely.

The F40PH is closer to the Rock Island shade of blue.

I'm hoping someone else with the new F40PH like mine will chime in with their opinion. Maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me.

OOPS!! Sorry about that.

I'm referring to the Conrail blue engines in the above photo.

Once again, pictures would really help!

Without side by side photos to show us it is nearly impossible to respond in an intelligent and constructive way. 

I'll post pics when it arrives ( I guess). It must be the wrong shade by the description?

I'm starting to wonder if there's someone new at MTH handling these decisions? (wrong road numbers, paint choices, etc.) New factory issues?

OK, she was at the front door! Somethings rattling? I believe it's just the trucks. The blue stripe is the wrong color to me.

VistaDomeScott posted:

Could you post comparison pictures?

 I have always thought MTH's blue is a bit dark but within reasonable limits of correct.  I mix in Atlas and other manufacturers Amtrak equipment and there are variances.  In my opinion Atlas got it exactly right on the Horizon Phase 3 cars.  Amtrak equipment on the real railroad varies sometimes.  

 See my youtube video of a mix of MTH and Atlas cars pulled by an MTH Genesis, note the blue stripes.  In this case I think it works for an Amtrak consist.

https://youtu.be/3DHmZGWstUI

MTH's blue has been wrong since the beginning of time. Its not just you. They've used something close to Phase IV blue for everything. At some point a couple years ago, they finally figured it out and made a correction, now it seems as though they've overcorrected and taken all of the blue to the earlier shade  rather than having 2 distinct shades (plus the teal on the P42s). 

If a new Phase III engine doesnt match old production phase III cars I wont be surprised, but Phase IV should match within reasonable limits. 

I agree that Atlas' choice of blue is more correct in all phases. 

Well..... ??

It appears to me that the air line hoses maybe made of brass now? They appear more scale like and are very stiff to bend.

I also noticed after seeing the other models posted, that MTH made different details for each roads. The horns on mine are smaller and in the middle of the engine. The Metra posted, has them up front and larger models of them.

I think cab mounting the steps might be my only change.

MTH's blue was always incorrect for Phase I - Phase III locomotives.  It was as dark as the Phase IV paint.  I noticed though that on the heritage Phase III P42, the color blue appears to be much more accurate.  It appears that perhaps the Phase IV F40 PH had a color adjustment too?  Like others have mentioned, it would be good to see the current release model against a prior model in Phase III paint. 

Some comparisons of different manufacturers.  Most have similar lighting conditions except for the first one.

3rd Rail FL9:  I believe this to be the correct shade of blue and red.

WARNING!  Crappy cell phone pics follow.

MTH FP45:  blue is too dark.  It appears to be closer to Phase IV blue.  The red didn't render real well in the photo, but in person it looks good.

K-Line F40PH:  Colors appear correct

MTH F40PH:  Blue appears too dark.

Atlas AEM7:  Color appear correct.

Engineer-Joe posted:

Well..... ??

It appears to me that the air line hoses maybe made of brass now? They appear more scale like and are very stiff to bend.

I also noticed after seeing the other models posted, that MTH made different details for each roads. The horns on mine are smaller and in the middle of the engine. The Metra posted, has them up front and larger models of them.

I think cab mounting the steps might be my only change.

It's nice to see that MTH finally got the steps correct!

The arrow on the fill in for the SDP40F F45 seems small.  Then again, the F45 is a longer carbody.

Dominic Mazoch posted:

The arrow on the fill in for the SDP40F F45 seems small.  Then again, the F45 is a longer carbody.

There is little on this locomotive that is accurate to the SDP40F, but it serves it's role for now as the rear unit on my Amtrak Super Cheif / El Capitan to provide steam heat while the F40PH leads.  I just really posted it for the color of the blue.

I got one video loaded anyways!

Joe,

Yes, you can clearly see the difference between the locomotive and the Atlas Horizon cars.  I will simply say this; mistakes do happen from time to time.  MTH worked really hard to get the details correct on this run overall and they are to be commended for that.  It's a shame that this particular version has the wrong shade of blue.  I know from experience that the factory can and does change colors without letting anyone know.  Unfortunately it puts MTH in a very tough position because I'm sure in the factory Amtrak blue is Amtrak blue to them regardless of what instruction they may have received.  To anyone no familiar with the prototype, I can see  how this might happen.