Broadway Limited N Scale UP Big Boy With Sound And SMOKE! YES SMOKE!

TrainWorld Nov 16, 2021

  1. TrainWorld

    TrainWorld Advertiser

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    BROADWAY LIMITED N SCALE ENGINE WITH SOUND & SMOKE! Just Announced!
    ETA: November 2022

    I'm curious what the N scalers think of a steam engine with smoke in N scale? This really has never been done before on the mass production North American market. Bob Grubba is really smart and crafty with his development of HO scale steam engines so Im sure this N scale Big Boy will be very nice. I personally think this might be a changing trend in N scale.


    Details on this engine are listed below
    Industry-leading Model Features:

    • Paragon4 Sound & Control System featuring ROLLING THUNDER

    • Integral Dual-Mode Decoder with Back EMF for Superb Slow Speed Operation in DC and DCC

    • Precision Drive Mechanism Engineered for Heavy Towing and Smooth Slow Speed Operation

    • Operating Smoke Unit with On/Off Switch

    • Six Drivers and All Tender Wheels Pick-up Electricity from Track

    • Die Cast Locomotive Body with Die Cast Chassis for Heavier Weight and Maximum Tractive Effort

    • Rubber Tires on Two Drivers for Additional Tractive Effort

    • Premium Caliber Painting

    • Prototypically Accurate Paint Schemes and Road Numbers

    • Many Separately Applied Details such as Handrails, Grab Irons, Piping, Tender Ladders, Whistle, and Bell

    • Prototypical Headlight and Rear Light Operation

    • Separately Controllable Cab Light and Lighted Numberboards

    • Prototypically Accurate Sounds for the Union Pacific Big Boy

    • Operating Microtrains-compatible Couplers

    • Will Operate on Code 55, Code 70, and Code 80 Rail
     
    BNSF FAN and papahnash like this.
  2. Point353

    Point353 TrainBoard Member

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    Years ago I had an Arnold Rapido steam loco with a Seuthe smoke unit built in.
    The smoke effect was poor unless the loco was running near top speed so that the track voltage was high.
    With DCC that may be less of an issue, unless you're trying to operate in dual-mode from variable DC.
    Regardless, the "smoke" left an oily mess across the top of the loco.

    I suppose it's hopeless to expect that BLI will ever release any of its locos in a DC-only version, and without all of the "bells and whistles".
     
    Hardcoaler likes this.
  3. John Moore

    John Moore TrainBoard Supporter

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    Years ago I might have considered it, but today I am very happy with my little engines. As far as smoke goes I had to stay away from the large scale layouts at shows because all the danged smoke was so bad it made me almost sick. And for one that grew up with real 1 to 1 working steam I have never seen anything model that could even reasonably look like real.
     
    freddy_fo likes this.
  4. Hardcoaler

    Hardcoaler TrainBoard Member

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    A perfect summary Point. I had one of those locomotives as well.
     
  5. Traindork

    Traindork TrainBoard Member

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    No smoke for me. I don't want oily residue all over my $500 locomotive or my layout.
     
    rpeck and Dave Kerr like this.
  6. JMaurer1

    JMaurer1 TrainBoard Member

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    Athearn has already released a very nice Big Boy and the rumors are that Kato is going to be releasing one very soon (and there was also the old Rivarossi/Concor version as well). Suddenly the market is now going to be flooded with a (probably very expensive) locomotive that only one road owned. While I can appreciate trying to add something that will set their locomotive apart from the others (smoke), I strongly doubt that the smoke will be so incredible that it sells the locomotive above the others. I don't see smoke as being anything other than the above mentioned stickly, oily mess.

    With all of the other choices out there that could have been chosen, I wish that they would have picked something else as I don't see a Big Boy from any of the manufacturers (other than the Athearn one I picked up at a garage sale for $50 w/ sound...score!) joining my fleet.
     
  7. Inkaneer

    Inkaneer TrainBoard Member

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    The O gauge guys will tell you that the 'smoke' is hypoallergenic. People with allergies will tell you that is a bunch of B.S. Once we set up next to the O scale guys at a 'locomotion weekend' at the local science center. We were both located on the ground floor and there was an open ramp that connected the four floors (as well as elevators). The science center was getting complaints from people on the fourth level about the smoke and repeatedly asked the O gauge guys to quit the smoke. They finally shut down their layout. That smoke residue goes everywhere and everything in your home will eventually be covered with it.
     
    MK likes this.
  8. Shortround

    Shortround TrainBoard Member

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    I got away from that 30+ years ago and don't like those new things. Yuk!! The only steam driven I've worked around burned only wood and was a lot cleaner.
     
  9. Doug Gosha

    Doug Gosha TrainBoard Member

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    I have a couple of Arnold steamers with smoke and it's neat and I don't mind the residue one bit (real railroads are oily/greasy) and I don't really even mind that it's not convincingly realistic. It even makes the train room smell good when you use the right scent like cedar.

    BUT, the loco has to be going full speed to make them smoke enough and that's the chief drawback. I'm sure that will probably be addressed with these new locomotives (DCC) and I have even been thinking of ways to get the full twelve volts to the smoke units and only about 6 to the motor.

    However, I will just stick with my 1988 Rivarossi Big Boy version. It's an excellent runner.

    Doug
     
    Hardcoaler likes this.
  10. CSX Robert

    CSX Robert TrainBoard Member

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    DCC has full voltage to the rails at all times, so not a problem.

    I would get one that smokes, as long as it's not too expensive. I wouldn't use the smoke all the time, so I don't think residue would be much of an issue, but I do think it would be fun to use every once in a while.
     
    Hardcoaler and Doug Gosha like this.
  11. Doug Gosha

    Doug Gosha TrainBoard Member

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    Yes, even though I am DC, I know the basics of DCC. Say, isn't that one of the "features" of DCC guys discover when a truck with metal wheels and plastic frames shorts between opposite polarity switch rails?

    :D

    Doug
     
  12. Carl Sowell

    Carl Sowell TrainBoard Supporter

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    IMHO, they have blown it with this announcement. 1st, why do we N scalers need another Big Boy after all KATO may, or may not, be threatening to build one, It would, no doubt outshine a BLI in performance. Also once the factory muffs are fixed the Athearn is pretty darn good. That comment comes from 1st hand experience. 2nd, I and all of you have seen comments from posters regarding " that looks like a toy, something Lionel would produce." what could be more toyish than smoke in an N scale or any scale steamer. Heck, we could afix a burning cigarette onto a flatcar and tow it around and get the same effect. More economical too. I do hope BLI is not starting a trend.

    Just my weird pondering for the morning. Be well,
    Carl
     
    BNSF FAN, freddy_fo and mtntrainman like this.
  13. CSX Robert

    CSX Robert TrainBoard Member

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    I don't have any Kato steam, but from what I've seen in diesels Katos do generally perform better, but BLIs look better and perform almost as well.


    And just how realistic is N-scale sound? Not very, and some consider it very toy-like, yet an awful lot of modelers really like it.

    From what I've seen of modern HO smoke, it is certainly a lot better than a burning cigarette.
     
    Carl Sowell likes this.
  14. John Moore

    John Moore TrainBoard Supporter

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    I just remembered that ConCor did a Big Boy with a Rivarrossi mechanism and there are some on EBay.
     
    Last edited: Nov 18, 2021
    Hardcoaler likes this.
  15. tehachapifan

    tehachapifan TrainBoard Member

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    For those that think it should sound like a 1:1 scale loco is in the train room with them, yes, N scale sound may sound toy-like to them.

    For others (like me) who realize they're standing hundreds, if not thousands of (scale) feet away from the loco(s), it sounds just about right....provided the quality of the sound decoder and the installation is high.

    The problem is that most modelers and manufacturers still do not grasp the fact that a properly-sized, air-tight enclosure on one side of the
    speaker is absolutely essential to quality sound. The loco's shell or fuel tank substituting as this enclosure won't be adequate in most instances, because there's usually not an air-tight separation between one side of the speaker and the other.
     
  16. JMaurer1

    JMaurer1 TrainBoard Member

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    Personally, sound doesn't impress me either. The only locomotives I have that have sound came that way (and I would have rather they didn't have sound). One loco with sound on a layout is fine, two is okay, but after that they just seem to be filling the area with noise...doesn't matter what the scale is either (I had HO locos with sound 30 years ago before I made the change to N scale and didn't like it then, although the sound is 'better' now). I DO like having the whistle and/or horn since running a model train like a real train needs these, but the rest of it I just don't need.

    The only thing that I need less than sound is smoke. If I see smoke on the layout, it usually means that a decoder just went to heaven.
     
  17. bremner

    bremner Staff Member

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    while I am not in the market for one, I do think that they have good equipment, however, at what point is the market for a Big Boy going to be saturated?
     
    JMaurer1, SP-Wolf and Doug Gosha like this.
  18. Champsummers

    Champsummers TrainBoard Member

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    I wonder how tight of radius curve it will take?
     
  19. JMaurer1

    JMaurer1 TrainBoard Member

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    Market saturation in T minus 10 minutes and counting...
     
  20. Noah Turner

    Noah Turner New Member

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    Finally someones making a big boy, ben waiting for so long!
     

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