Big Hudson Loco to the Shop

My big O scale Hudson steam locomotive is headed to the shop for some nice upgrades. This old locomotive, by MTH, currently has only very rudimentary control and some generic sounds which, to be honest, aren't that great. This upgrade will be a significant upgrade and will be very welcomed!

My MTH O scale Hudson steam locomotive...

This old locomotive runs great but it operates unrealistically just like the old Lionel locomotives... press a button on the transformer and the locomotive jumps into forward... press it again and it jumps back to neutral while coasting to a stop... press it again and it jumps into reverse...  press again, back to neutral... forward, neutral, reverse, neutral, forward, neutral... 

So, what if I am going forward and I want to stop at a freight station or passenger station and I want to leave the station going forward again? The next time I press that "direction button", I'll be heading in reverse! I'd prefer to have complete control with a real throttle and this new upgrade will allow control with much more realism.

The sound and smoke will be upgraded while it is in the shop as well. It will come back home with far better bells and whistles... literally! There are many other sounds in this upgrade as well. This locomotive will sound like a real locomotive with all the clanks, steam pop-offs, valve noises, and various other sounds unique to steam locomotives. 

I carefully packaged my locomotive the other day. I had to actually make my own box for it but it fits like a glove and should transport safely. I will make the trek to the shipper tomorrow morning to start my locomotive on its journey. 

I should get my upgraded locomotive back around the time we go to our annual train show in Springfield, Massachusetts, which is fitting since that is where I originally bought it. I'm looking forward to it!

Until I have a video of my locomotive upgraded, here is the same locomotive owned by someone else with these same upgrades...