let me take a minute to welcome myself! glad to be a part of your team and already consider you all to be my friends...and respect you all as well. i have been doing alot of research over the years and i'm just getting ready to start my project. was wondering which locos you guys REALLY like in HO scale. i have been saving my pennies over the years...so i am looking for high end. thanks to all...
loco choices...
- Thread starter jcdurso
- Start date
I'm not yet serious into modeling, but just playing with the trains and my kids. We like to run them around the tracks and build model houses and cars.
So, my locomotive stall is not very full so to speak. I've got 2 BLI (Not the Blue-Line) diesel locos: an SW7 and an A-B set of F7's. I love them! They lack some of the detail elements that true modelers prefer though... but they run really well and sound great. The SW7 is slow, and it can't pull near as much as the F7 but it "feels" right anyway. Its volume is quieter than the F7 as well, which sounds fine at low speed but at full speed you can hardly hear it over the motor and rail noise.
We also have an MTH K4 in HO. This is MTH's first HO offering and I love it. It runs very well though it sometimes is picky about the crappy bachman eztrack turn-outs. Also, its DCC is unconventional so you have to learn how to operate it since its different from "NMRA suggested" operation. But it is absolutely beautiful, has outstanding sound and to top it off, smoke with chuffs and puffs synchronized with the movement and sound.
All 3 run smooth!
I also have a couple of junk non-dcc locos that I don't even use anymore.
So, my locomotive stall is not very full so to speak. I've got 2 BLI (Not the Blue-Line) diesel locos: an SW7 and an A-B set of F7's. I love them! They lack some of the detail elements that true modelers prefer though... but they run really well and sound great. The SW7 is slow, and it can't pull near as much as the F7 but it "feels" right anyway. Its volume is quieter than the F7 as well, which sounds fine at low speed but at full speed you can hardly hear it over the motor and rail noise.
We also have an MTH K4 in HO. This is MTH's first HO offering and I love it. It runs very well though it sometimes is picky about the crappy bachman eztrack turn-outs. Also, its DCC is unconventional so you have to learn how to operate it since its different from "NMRA suggested" operation. But it is absolutely beautiful, has outstanding sound and to top it off, smoke with chuffs and puffs synchronized with the movement and sound.
All 3 run smooth!
I also have a couple of junk non-dcc locos that I don't even use anymore.
JC, there are many manufacturers with as many variations in quality and price and where some may make good diesels they fail at steam. Some questions you may want to answer for yourself are:
1. Steam or diesel
2. Price range (you answered: "highend")
3. DC or DCC
4. Very detailed or good'nuff
5. Sound or no-sound
Give us some idea and it will help us to answer you better.
1. Steam or diesel
2. Price range (you answered: "highend")
3. DC or DCC
4. Very detailed or good'nuff
5. Sound or no-sound
Give us some idea and it will help us to answer you better.
Ditto to what Rex said. Steam or diesel is really important as is the era you expect to be modeling. A really expensive diesel with sound and DCC might run in the neighborhood of $400. Big steam in high end plastic with DCC and sound can easily reach $1000 and, if you want brass, the sky's the limit. The era is also really important. It won't do you much good to have all of use tell you our favorite 1990 and later units if you are interested in steam or transition era diesels like F-3's or GP-7's.
Ok, that's a start.
For factory installed sound:
Broadway Limited makes some fine diesels in most all eras and have some very good steam, all have QSI sound decoders. Also, Precision Craft Models with Loksound decoders are very good runners with equal or better detailing. Atlas "Gold" with QSI comes in many models and the same quality in performance and sound are here as well.
Many of these diesels are under $300 while the steamers run from around $225 to $700. Now, if you want to go first class, the PCM has some brass that go from $2500 to $4000 . The few locos that I have that retailed for around $700 were on sale when I bought them for fractions of the MSRP.
If you want to save 20-30%+, buy your locomotives on line. I know that you miss the hands-on shopping, but is it worth not having the savings. You can always get a review on a particular model before you buy right here on the forum. Or look at the model at a hobby shop or club and then buy on line .Always remember that a layout is very expensive beyond the cost of locomotives.
Now many others should be able to add to your thread with even more ideas and suggestions.
For factory installed sound:
Broadway Limited makes some fine diesels in most all eras and have some very good steam, all have QSI sound decoders. Also, Precision Craft Models with Loksound decoders are very good runners with equal or better detailing. Atlas "Gold" with QSI comes in many models and the same quality in performance and sound are here as well.
Many of these diesels are under $300 while the steamers run from around $225 to $700. Now, if you want to go first class, the PCM has some brass that go from $2500 to $4000
. The few locos that I have that retailed for around $700 were on sale when I bought them for fractions of the MSRP.If you want to save 20-30%+, buy your locomotives on line. I know that you miss the hands-on shopping, but is it worth not having the savings. You can always get a review on a particular model before you buy right here on the forum. Or look at the model at a hobby shop or club and then buy on line
.Always remember that a layout is very expensive beyond the cost of locomotives.Now many others should be able to add to your thread with even more ideas and suggestions.
Walthers/Life-Like has been coming out with some really nice DCC and sound equipped locomotives. I know they have a GP-7 and and SD-7 out now with plans for more. You can pick them up on-line for less than $170, which is a very good buy for a good running, well detailed unit with QSI sound.
Selector
Well-Known Member
I understand that Atlas, Stewart, and Kato are top drawer when it comes to running. Atlas has good shells with good detail, Kato you have to add some stuff that they include in the box...from what I read here and elsewhere. Steward rivals or exceeds Kato in detail, and they often use Kato drive....
Walthers P2K are superb in virtually all respects these days. Life Life, the former P2K owner began to suffer QA problems in the latter years, chiefly with split gears. Also, their engines are a bit lighter than the others and won't pull so much. Nowadays, that seems to have gone by the bye, their detailing is still superb, and they run very well.
It would be a bit like picking fly poop out of pepper between any of those four.
Walthers P2K are superb in virtually all respects these days. Life Life, the former P2K owner began to suffer QA problems in the latter years, chiefly with split gears. Also, their engines are a bit lighter than the others and won't pull so much. Nowadays, that seems to have gone by the bye, their detailing is still superb, and they run very well.
It would be a bit like picking fly poop out of pepper between any of those four.
jbaakko
Diesel Detail Freak
All of my P2K units, including the older (5+ year old) GP30 weigh in very hefty. The toy train ones were bad, but I never had a light P2K.
OldGettysk
Running the MC & Buffalo
Stewert makes some fine Locos also !
