I have yet to buy a bad 2-8-0 Consolidation from IHC. We are talking about the new IHC premium line and not anything used right? I currently have two that I am converting into Chattanooga locomotives. (A splice of the new IHC locomotive and old Tyco tender shell) They run decently, and the slight lack of detail makes them great platforms for custom building a particular locomotive. I would also recommend the IHC Mike, and Pacific. Just remember, detail is not the greatest. They are good runners for the price though. I can't say anything about their diesels, I have not bought any so far.
This was one of the first locos I purchased when I got back into the hobby a year ago. It was, and still is, a good value. Detail satisfactory, not anything special, runs smoothly, and the price was right. I'm talking about their Premier series, not used or other. Would definitely reccommend if extreme detail is not one of your requirements. George
I just won a 2-6-0 on ebay, but it has not arrived yet. Will let you know what I think after some test running
I dont have to have the most detail, just domething relatively decent thats a good runner and good puller and reliable. A Bachmann 2-8-0 is definately on the list. I havent tried super detailing yet but I have a Walthers GP-15 thats gonna get the whole works, great little locomotive.
Just received the 2-6-0 I won on ebay. I have to say that I was very pleasantly surprised by the level of detail when I opened the package. Did a test run with it this evening and it runs very well indeed Here are some pics
There are obviously things which need doing to it, like painting those shiny tender wheels! Also fitting kadee couplers. What should I do to change the tender from an oil-burner to a coal burner? Is it just a case of removing the "tank" and applying some coal
Also worthly for your consideration is the Spectrum 2-8-0 Consolidation for $75.00 at trainworld. If you have older copies of MR, see MR June 98 review. This Spectrum is a favorite among modelers.
They do a coal insert that clips in, if I can find the one from mine do you want to do a swap? Mine is coal but I wanted an oil burner!
I already have a Spectrum 2-8-0 and a "Russian" 2-10-0, both are excellent Still wondering about changing the tender on the 2-6-0 to coal?
In my book the IHC engines are one of the best deals around , I have 3, 2-8-0's, 3, 2-6-0's, 3, 4-6-2's, 2, 2-8-2's amd 3, 4-8-2's needless to say I'm a fan. they all run well and with a few tweeks are reliable. More than I can say for some of the more expensive steam I have. Tom
Welcome aboard Tom I am happy with my 2-6-0 and you appear to be happy with all yours, so I may keep an eye out for some more, as they are usually a good price
I agree with SteveB. I have several IHC steam locomotives of different vintages and I must admit that for the buck, they are pretty decent runners. As for the lack of details, I have superdetailed two of them and I am pretty satisfied with the results. Some came with Seuthe smoke units already installed, some didn't. In all cases, I did wire the pick-ups on the tender trucks (provided but not wired, almost like they want you to go ahead and wire them), installed home-made constant brightness reversing lighting systems and added some weight (this really improved the traction). Honestly, if I were in the market for a steam locomotive, it would certainly be another IHC. Now my question is: Does anybody know anything about RSO (Mehano)? Who are these guys? Regards, F.
I also have four IHC steamers that run great, probably will buy more when the need arises. One Question? Has anyone converted one to DCC? is it a big job or can it be done?
I bought some Mehano engines a few years ago on clearance from Train World (and it was a really good deal). My favorite is the B&O 4-8-2 Mountain. They actually run OK - like most, they needed some breaking in - running them up to half throttle, running them for a few minutes then reversing them and running them at half throttle for a while. I think they are located in Slovania (or something like that) in Europe. Could use some detailing and with some weathering would look much better. They have a web sight - sort of: http://www.mehano.si/en/index.php
Mehano is the same company as IHC. Just turn your 2-6-0 upside down and Mehano is written on the frame in strange letters. Both my 2-6-0 and 2-8-0 are ditalized and the 2-8-0 has sound too. Works great and are easy to locate when lost... just turn on the bell and look for a group of curious people... http://www.dmjk.org/images/DSCF0178_600.JPG
No layout to say about performance but I am very happy with the model detail itself... More HO IHC Models: http://www.trainweb.org/dhvm/models/ho_ihc.htm
