Can we talk Brands


ctclibby said:
Geesh Tony! Maybe you should close one eye and stand on your left foot/leg before buying anything. I have multiple Bachmann, Rivarossi, Genesis and older Model Power steamers with zero issues that still run. Of course, maintenance along the way when needed. The only problem with the Model Power is the pizza cutter wheels. That did not come into play on the last layout as I used code 100 rail. This one is gonna be code 83 for the most part so we will see.

Later
Click to expand...
There seem to be a lot of model railroaders that subscribe to the Penn Central School of Maintenance: run it until it breaks, then act surprised.
 
Bruette said:
We may also be speaking German here in the USA.

Winston Churchill saved the world!
Click to expand...
Unfortunately although we hail Dunkirk as a great rescue, (338,000 French and British troops) no mention is made of the 20,000 British troops that were left behind south of Dunkirk, that were allowed to be sent into captivity as it was considered too dangerous for them to be evacuated, even though a similar evacuation plan to Dunkirk, had already been planned by the Royal Navy, and simply needed the go ahead from higher up. In total 70,000 troops were left behind.
 
LesterL said:
About the 4-8-4, who is the maker? I don't need smoke and does it run on straight dc?
His Servant and yours,
Lester
Click to expand...

Which 4-8-4, the one in my post? If so, that's Broadway Limited. I've only run it in DCC, but I believe it has a dual-mode decoder so it should run in DC too. Looks like it's still available from some online stores, including a couple road numbers on sale at Trainworld right now.
 
Hutch said:
I like BLI but they seem to be the only player for good steam engines with sound and smoke. That's where my interest lies. I'm surprised there's no competition other than Bachmann, which I suppose might make a good one in upper end models, I don't really know. I have a couple of their models one of them is from the Spectrum line with dcc and sound, no smoke. This seems like the only option for Bachmann these days.
Click to expand...
scaletrains will enter the fray with steam by the end of the year & it will get interesting
 
santafewillie said:
My understanding is that recent Bachmann, within the last 15 years, can be great operating engines. I cannot speak from experience since I don't run steam.
Click to expand...
I have a few recently made Bachmann HO diesels and one GG1. They work great. I have zero Bachmann HO steam locomotives.
 
In the interest of full discloser, I do have one Bachmann N scale set with a steam locomotive.

It is a $99 Christmas set. My grandson accidentally broke the linkage a week or so after I bought it. I called M.B Klein where I bought it to buy another. I explained what happened to the first one. They told me "No need to buy another". Return it and we will give you another one.

I used it for several Christmas seasons with no problems.
 
bnsf971 said:
There seem to be a lot of model railroaders that subscribe to the Penn Central School of Maintenance: run it until it breaks, then act surprised.
Click to expand...
I particularly like those who ask for advice, get the advice, ignore it and then moan and groan because what they chose (against informed advice) broke and cost them money. If people are not going to listen to advice, why ask for it?
 
wombat457 said:
I particularly like those who ask for advice, get the advice, ignore it and then moan and groan because what they chose (against informed advice) broke and cost them money. If people are not going to listen to advice, why ask for it?
Click to expand...
Yeah, but that's a bit liking advising your child not to do something, you can advise them, doesn't mean they'll take it.
 
This toy train business is some serious s#!t. Heck, I don't even follow my own advice when it comes to these shiny objects placed in front of me. But, I'll probably try to stick to BLI for steam with sound and smoke.

Diesels with sound only could be anything as I don't tend to hold them in high regard. I don't know why I bought the 2 I have. In hind sight, I should have bought steam but the price on diesels is so much better for some reason. I couldn't resist my 2 F units. I hope to learn to love them when I get everything running.

Anyway, BLI BLI BLI!
 
The Spectrum class of Bachmann steamers were very good except for one case, and it was widely established in the hobby back around 2006 or so. That one case was the Norfolk & Western Class J 4-8-4 that had running problems. I purchased one, having not done my homework, and attempted to break it in by letting it run in both directions for a few hours. Didn't help. It ran poorly in a jerky way. It had a bad gear. Also the pilot was too low by about 2 mm and scraped on the rails during elevation changes (mine were well laid and longish, so not abrupt). The 2-8-0, the Heavy Mountain, the 2-6-6-2, and the latest EM-1 enjoy an excellent reputation. Also, Bachmann's warranty used to be/still is the best in the business. I would expect their latest streamlined 4-6-2 and the various Pennsy K4 variants to be really solid. I am happy to see their GG1 works well.
 
I always find it amusing when Bachmann get bad press in the US, however here in the UK Bachmann's loco's are probably the best running on the market, certainly amongst my collection of both steam and diesel (and electric)

The only US outline Bachmann loco's I have are 2 F9's that are pretty old with a single truck drive, but I must say they run extremely well!!!
 
RIGuyUK said:
I always find it amusing when Bachmann get bad press in the US, however here in the UK Bachmann's loco's are probably the best running on the market, certainly amongst my collection of both steam and diesel (and electric)

The only US outline Bachmann loco's I have are 2 F9's that are pretty old with a single truck drive, but I must say they run extremely well!!!
Click to expand...
Would the F9's be the ones with the pancake style motor's in them ?
 
RIGuyUK said:
I always find it amusing when Bachmann get bad press in the US, however here in the UK Bachmann's loco's are probably the best running on the market, certainly amongst my collection of both steam and diesel (and electric)

The only US outline Bachmann loco's I have are 2 F9's that are pretty old with a single truck drive, but I must say they run extremely well!!!
Click to expand...
Perhaps the Graham Fairish versions are better made with higher standards of quality control? I will conceded that I did buy a Fairish engine a few years ago (not knowing it was really bachmann) and thought it was a decent little engine. Only stopped using it due to the scale difference :(
 
You must log in or register to reply here.



Back
Top