Let's see, I have kato mikado's, LL Berks, LL mallets, Bachman Connie, Bachman Mountain, and the MP eightwheeler. Hands down the kato mike is the best. No doubt in my mind. As I was fidling with the MP 4-4-0 trying to add weight to the tender, I am thinking why the heck didn't kato make this one! As far and the LL 2-8-8-2, I cannot recomend this loco. I have sent it back twice for repairs and this weekend will have to send it back again. Perhaps I got a lemon, but the more I run it the more likely something will break.
New stuff: Kato mike A pleasure to watch run. So smooth it is like watching a hot knife through butter. Roundhouse 2-8-0 Really nice engine. I am thoroughly impressed with this. Very close to the Kato in quality,Mine is anyway. Bachmann connie- First run when qulaity was loose. I had the advantage of reading about them online before purchasing. My LHS let me run a whole shipments worth so I could pick the best runner straight out of the box. I have a variety of older steam: Trix 060 never ran right Trix 2-10-0 Was my best runner back in the day, what a beauty even if the boiler was wrong. Trix 4-6-2 CLunk! it runs, but who really wants to see this thing running? Maybe I never gave it a chance and could still break it in. Atlas 0-8-0 got it used recently, noit runnin', but could be fixable. How come I heard so many bad things about the LL berk and yet you guys seem to think it's a good engine?
While my layout is set in the mid to late 60', I find myself intrigued by steam engines. I have the Atlas Shay, and I love it . It runs well, and looks good pulling 15 scratchbuilt log cars. Mne was an undec, so I believe it is from the second batch. I've had no problems with it. I've just bought a Kato Mike off that auction site. Very much looking forward to it after hearing all the reviews about it. While it's probably not an NP prototype, that's what it will become. I must admit, I'm excited about getting it. I wouldn't mind getting a Bachmann Consolidation, but I'm still leary of the QQ issues. I have to order everything on-line, because the nearest full service train store is 350 miles away in Oregon I would hate to have to keep sending it back and forth. For what it costs, this shouldn't be an issue we should have to deal with in my opinion.
NP/GNBill - As long as you get a connie from the past year or so, you shouldn't see any problems. The only thing I have seen wrong in the last group we have sold was one had the tender drawbar installed wrong and it was from a trainset version we just got in. It was as simple as unscrewing the truck and reinstalling it. (The pick up wires on the drawbar were outside the truck pickups instead of inside and wouldn't let the truck swing independent of the drawbar.) I have seen no mechanical issues in a year or so in the ones from our shop. My roster: #1: Bachmann Spec 2-8-0 Connie - Best puller, smoothest runner, no fear of derailment, hands down my #1. Maxed out at around 40 cars on the test loop, (ran out of track to add more). #2: LL 2-8-4 Bershire - Smoothest running loco and excellent detail, we wil see how it pulls, just got it this week. #3 Riva/Concor 2-8-8-2 - I just recieved this one. New old stock from the early run (20-30 years old). It took a little work to freshen it up but now it is a smooth and excellent puller. #4 Bachmann 2-6-6-2 - I have two, the first had a bad gear, Bachmann replaced it with one from the second run no questions asked when they were available. Both now run silky smooth, no jerks or studders. Pulling power light, could really use traction tires. Will pull 20 hoppers, no more. #5 MP 4-6-2 Pacific - Smooth, a little noisy, could use better detail, pulls great with traction tires. #6 MP 2-8-2 Mikado - Same as above but doesn't deal with anything below 11" radius well. #7 Bachmann Spec 4-8-2 Mountain - Great detail, smooth runner, lacking pulling power but from reading this I know what to do to cure that. The rest: Bachmann 2-8-2 - decent, noisy could use tender pickup Bachmann 4-8-4 - smooth runner (newest release), geared much too high, needs tender pickup. Atlas/Riva 4-6-2 Pacific - Very dependable runner especially considering it's age. Concor/riva 2-8-2 Hvy Mikado - average runner, detail all wrong for the road name it was sold as. Fortunate it is right for C&O which it will be repainted to shortly. Bachmann 0-6-0/2-6-2 - I have a few of these. Second generation probably the best all around although the tender pick up needs some fiddling. Most recent generation don't pull quite as well but still pretty smooth runner with some break in time. Wish list of available or soon to be - Kato Mike, LL 2-8-8-2 (waiting for release with tires), Bachmann spec 2-10-0, CC 2-10-2, Shay Ultimate wish list - C&O 2-6-6-6, B&O 2-8-8-4 EM1 (runners not brass shelf queens)
Spectrum 2-8-0 Probably the best detailed steam locomotive in the roster and a very good puller. I was lucky with the first I bought, so bought a second, but tried two before picking one. I'm thinking of getting a third for a project I have in mind. These are the largest locomotives in my 'fleet'. - MP 4-4-0 Very good detail and the improved versions seem to be capable of running slow and steady. 2 or 3 of the 50' coaches are about the limit of pulling power on my layout which is essentially flat. - MDC 2-6-0 fair detail, excellent runner. A true workhorse and double heading them is pure fun to watch. I think that these are my favorite freight power. - MDC 2-8-0 fair detail, excellent runner. This is a nice basic looking locomotive. It was only a rumour when I got back into N-Scale and was the first steam locomotive I bought. Athearn has re-released them with a few improvements and a friend of mine is quite pleased with his as well. - Atlas 2-6-0 Porter. good detail- runs a little too fast. Very small but pulling ability will surprise you. Put a hunk of weight inside the tender to improve pick-up and maybe slow her down a mite. Major cute appeal - I got the unlettered "Stock" paint job version and it is just too pretty for a freight locomotive. - As you can see, I have a small roster of the smallest steam locomotives - this suites my era quite well. I wish I could list the Spectrum 4-6-0 here, but maybe someday.....
I only have three steam engines. Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 Consolidation Roundhouse 2-8-0 Consolidation Roundhouse 2-6-0 Mogul All three are excellent as far as I am concerned.
Thanks for the input Skip. I'm still leaning towards putting one one my x-mas and birthday lists for next month. I hope my wife understands the need for more locomotives
Bill: Some dealers will test run the loco's for you. Try Chuck at Feather River Trains. He'll test run the loco. Feather River Trains Have fun... Stay cool and run steam....
Here's my list, in no particular order. I've got one of each. Con Cor/Rivarossi 2-8-8-0 (one of the later runs with a solid motor) - This runs very nicely and is a great puller. I haven't run mine all that much - is it true that the wheels lock up after a while? Kato 2-8-2 (American version; first run) - great little steamer made even better with the traction tire. This is my best steam loco. Kato JNR 2-8-2 - like Pete, I Americanized this with an Atlas light pacific shell. Runs fairly well but not in the same class with the Kato American Mike. Still, the price was right. Pulls very well. Hallmark/Samhongsa 2-8-2 - picked this one up about 15 years ago in a burst of delirium, but a lot of the brass at the time cost less than much of the better plastic steam today. Runs very smoothly especially at low speed (about as well as the Kato American Mike) but will only pull about 9 to 10 MT box cars. Speed range appears to be fairly realistic. Leading truck is sensitive to derailments on my Shinohara turnouts. Of course, it looks fantastic. This guy lives in his box most of the time, but I do enjoy running it. Bachmann 4-8-4 (newer run) - as mentioned it needs tender pickup and mine waddles down the track like an angry duck. Drive mechanism locks up if I put it in reverse. Leading truck derails frequently. Bachmann 4-8-2 light mountain - great looks and very smooth runner. Will crawl as well as the Kato Mike. As mentioned by others, it won't pull well so its relegated to freights with less than 10 cars. Con Cor/Rivarossi 4-6-2- heavy pacific - I also repowered mine with a Sagami can motor many years ago; with the new motor it is an excellent runner with smooth slow startup. Will pull 7 Rivarossi heavyweight cars without a problem, even up grades. Atlas/Rivarossi 4-6-2 light pacific - with the original motor it was an average runner at best and threw sparks everywhere ala Lionel. Last year I put in a Mashima motor I got from the motorman and now it runs very smoothly. It will only pull 3 Rivarossi heavyweights though - add a fourth car and the wheels start to slip on slight grades. Con Cor 4-6-4 Hudson - this is a very smooth and nice running loco but the stiff wires between the tender and the engine can cause derailments unless they're adjusted just right. Minitrix 2-10-0. I've got two of these. One is a stock version about 20 years old with only about 10 minutes of running time on it. It is a nice puller and runs well at medium to high speed. One of these days I'll put the shell from an Atlas light pacific on it to take care of the appearance problems. On the other 2-10-0 I shortened the front of the frame and the boiler to take care of the appearance problems and repowered with a Faulhauber motor with a 4:1 reduction gearhead and added a Kato Mike tender for improved pickup. It now runs as well as my Kato Mike. Slow speed is the best of any of my locos, reaching about 30 scale mph at 6 volts. The drive trains on these 2-10-0's are really rugged. Kato JNR 2-8-0 - as mentioned this is a very nice running small loco. I turned mine into an 0-8-0 and put a shortened Rivarossi 0-8-0 shell on it. It makes a very nice steam switcher and pulls 15 Atlas ore cars without any problem. The small diameter drivers are well suited for a switcher. And there is a flywheel in the little beast! One of these days I'd like to get a Tomix 2-8-0 and see how they compare. Bachmann 0-4-0 - I sold mine at a swap meet several years back. The short wheelbase caused stalling over almost all turnouts and it ran a bit fast as I recall. Minitrix 0-6-0 - Also sold this at the same swap meet I sold the Bachmann at. It pulled well enough but the poor pickup and slow speed operation killed my interest in it as a switcher. Locos I'd like to acquire (well dream of getting anyway): Bachmann 2-6-6-2 so I can have another articulated even if it doesn't pull all that well. Rivarossi (not Life Like) 2-8-4 - just to have some fun with an older steamer and add to my Riva collection. Rivarossi 2-8-2 - ditto above Life Like 2-8-8-2 - dream on I'm told. Con Cor 4-8-4 or 2-10-2 so I can have another large steamer. - this is another dream, at least for the present. Another Kato Mike.
I have two RR 2-8-8-0s, one a very old issue, one a fairly recent issue. Both of them locked up. The older one even busted its zirmac chassis when it locked up the last time. I kept meaning to ship them off to C-C to trade for the 'PRR GS-4' or whatever they were going to give me for forty-three bananas, but never got a round tuit, so I still have them. The RRs were wildly inconsistent, piece-to-piece. I rarely run mine any more. Some of them will run nicely at slow or medium speeds, some of them seem only to have three speeds: very fast, still-too-fast and not-at-all. The best RRs that I have are the berkshires, but even they are inconsistent. I have two that creep nicely, and one that runs well at track speed but has no slow speed control.
Thanks for the info Broke. Can I conclude from your post that you've been able to "unlock"the drive on these beasties, but that they then lock up again? Is it a problem with the drivers getting out of quarter? Thanks.
I have to say, the B-Man Connie is the best puller I've ever seen. It can pull what two LL Berks pull, and in some cases what two Atlas Diesels pull! I have a sweet spot for the LL Berks though. Although wrong for C&O, they creep, and have great pickup (when clean).
Yes, snoozie, I have been able to unlock them, only to have them lock again; one broke its zirmac frame when it locked up. The one that did not break its frame knocked the drivers out of quarter, alignment, place, gauge, broken the loc-tite; everything. They are pretty much useless piles of parts. Had I remembered, I would have shipped them off to C-C to trade, as C-C did not care about the condition, only that the parts were all there, which they were. The old RRs pulled well and did not run bad for RRs, when they ran. The LLs run much better but will not pull nearly what the RRs will pull.
So, it sounds like we need to crossbreed the Riva's with the LL's and hope for durable locos that pull well. I thought it was too much to hope that Walthers will equip the Life Like malletts with traction tires, but I'm glad Erik posted - I'll wait for the TT version. Perhaps Walthers will also eventually provide a TT option for the Berk as well. [ November 10, 2005, 10:37 PM: Message edited by: Big Snooze ]
Has any body noticed or considered this? I haven't measured yet but it looks like the drivers from a Kato Mikado are close if not dead on the same diam. as the LL Berkshire. I am going to pick up a Mikado TT driver set tomorrow to see just how close. My thinking is press Mikado driver off the axles, remove the LL drivers from their axle, replace with the Kato Drivers. This all hinges on driver size. It would be even nicer if the drive gear matched but I doubt we could be that lucky. If the measurements add up, I will probably do the front driver on the Berkshire. I can already see an issue with it wanting to lift the nose under a heavy load, traction tires on the rear would only make it worse. Worse comes to worse and things don't measure up after I get the driver, then it is just an excuse to buy the Kato Mikado to go with it.
The driver size on the USRA mikado (heavy or light) was sixty-three inches. The Kato drivers are so close that the difference is not worth noting. The driver size on the prototype Van Sweringen was sixty-nine or seventy inches (I forget which). I do not have the models in front of me, but I seem to recall that the drivers on the LL were larger than those on the Kato. The prototype USRA light 4-8-2 had sixty-nine inch drivers. While I never did take a pair of calipers to them, the drivers did appear to be about sixty-three inches on the B-personn model. I had assumed that B-mann had done this to allow the model to negotiate sharper curves, but when I asked the Bach-Man on their website about it, all that I received for a reply was something to the effect of how he thought that it looked nice. I tried to indicate that it was not a complaint, still, I received no further response. If I am off on the B-mann driver size, it may be the same size as the LLs . If that is the case, perahps you could get B-mann to cannibalise one of their returns (I understand that such is the only way to get parts for the 4-8-2) and send the driver pair with the traction tyres. The newer issues of the berkshire from the Walthers are supposed to have traction tyres and all wheel live tender. Too bad that they will not be available with the good prices that you can often get on LL equipment
Yes, you guys are right. The outside flange diameter is the same but the tread diameter is not. The Kato drivers have slightly taller flanges that made them look the same size as the Berk. I hadn't thought about the mountiain. I will have to measure mine tomorrow. I have been wanting to order some tender trucks from Bachmann anyhow, if the drivers measure up, that might be a reason to go ahead and place the order. I have also been working on converting an old bachmann 6 axle N&W tender to something usefull. I have managed to make a very good working version of the kato and bachmann spec style pickups. The truck will free roll under it's own weight while still making contact. The hardest part was finding a plastic tube the right inside dia. to join two live wheel/axle halfs. When the hard drive swap is complete and I can activate my railimages account, I will post some pictures. Total cost of parts, a piece of k&S shim stock, some old bachman wheel sets and the handle from a small foam swab.
