Rivarossi's FEF locomotive

Strange identification for a "Northern" 4-8-4 type locomotive, but it stuck.

FEF = Four Eight Four, thankfully they are even numbers, Five Eight Fives would never do.

I have been lusting after a FEF in HO for weeks now, especially Rivarossi's edition. Then one came up on ebay with eight cars of all persuasions. It lingered for awhile so I made a low ball offer that was accepted.

Arrived yesterday, locomotive and cars all new in the box with the boxes having some sunlight discoloration. Not a problem.

No longer NIB. I removed all and ran them on my outside 22 r track. First time around the FEF tended to lift a driver on my only "S" curve but subsequent rotations showed no tendency to repeat.








After, I relegated all to a wall display to enjoy until the next time.