Bachmann Spectrum

Help!

I'm new to HO (just changing scales from #1/G) and still trying to pick up on the good, bad and ugly in this scale. I've been offered a Bachmann Spectrum diesel for about £20. It's a Conrail unit and sounds like a GE Dash 8-40C (this was over the phone and the guy wasn't sure of the loco type number).

Is this worth buying? Assuming it's in good condition is this a fair price?

He also has some rolling stock on offer, so any advice on manufacturers or products to avoid in general would be appreciated too.

Please don't flame me if this subject has been covered before. I did do a Forum search for Bachmann Spectrum and it found 0.

 

From my own experience, Yes it is. I think its very close to today's ATLAS witch many consider to be top of the line. I have run Athearn's and Bachman's " Spectrum " and Atlas for years. I can not afford to buy many atlas and more and more I'm finding that the new Bachman's " Spectrum " are just great! I'd say that my loco motive fleet is ½ Athearn and "Spectrum " . I have like 3 Atlas and 12 Athearn's and 9 "Spectrums ". The Spectrum steam is also close to bras in quality. I have the 3 truck shay and the new 2-6-0 NKP. Baldwin steam "Spectrum's". There detail is really something else! They run very well to! I love them. The diesels your talking about run real nice and quite. The new Bachman line of cars with there metal wheels and waited cars that are reedy to run are quite nice to! Many of the NEW spectrum come with a DCC plug in them. Should you wish to add DCC chips, you just plug them in. But even if the one your looking at is the older " Spectrum " its great in quality and detail. I bought an undecorated -8 at a train show for $20 and a Norfolk Southern on Ebay for $35 and I'm very happy with them! Here is a Norfolk Southern CW that I painted and decaled by " Spectrum " :

 

On the surface, it sounds like a fair price Mick, for the diesel. On the other rolling stock, you have to use your own judgement. Look at photos and if each one has metal wheels. You can always change or repair couplers, then go by the price you are willing to pay for the item.

 

Thanks for all the advice above.

I went to see the guy (he was buying some of my largescale stuff) and it turned out the loco had the wide nose (like Phantom's above (nice one by the way)), not the standard cab I thought he'd said. I like those units but it does not really fit in with my plans just now. Also, though it ran nicely at low speed, when it was run fast it 'screeled' and more or less stopped. He hadn't used it much, so I think it may have been a dry bearing and just needed a service, but ....?? He'd got it secondhand so I think it was an older unit. We had the top off to investigate the noise and there was no obvious space for a decoder. So all in all I passed on that.

He had a fair bit of stock and buildings, but most were in less than perfect condition (couplers on most cars seemed to be in a state) and none really fit my needs except for 12 apparently near new IHC short ore hoppers (I'm planning a steel works). These are in Milwaukee Road lettering and with different running numbers. I also took some assorted boxcars - 2 Athearn, 2 Roundhouse 1 Mantua and 2 unknown (to me). All these (boxes and hoppers) have plastic wheels, so I will perhaps rewheel them in line with some of the suggestions given in here a few weeks ago. At about £3 a unit it seemed a reasonable deal.

He also had 2 44-tonners. One still in the shrinkwrap. I don't much like them as engines but they would probably be likely power in a small works, so I was tempted after the comment by Friscobob. BUT, they were DRGW - not quite close enough to Pennsylvania/NY to be plausible I think!

Now I need to think about baseboard and track ...

 

Just a quick note. Some of the Spectrum units I have bought, brand new from the box have made some sort of annoying noise. But in all case for me any way, the noise has gone away after a run in or break in period.

 

You guys have had better luck than me with the Spectrum line. I had two GP30 Spectrums a few years back and I returned them. They howled and chattered. Then I had a B23-7 that died right out of the box. But I will say there 2-8-0 steamers are superb!! Best advice, don't buy Spectrums blind. See if they run first. But for 20 you can't go wrong.

[ 05 October 2001: Message edited by: ajy6b ]</p>

 

I have one of Spectrum's "Doodlebug" inter-urban cars (in Great Northern trim), and it's one of the most reliable engines I have. Excellent details, superb low (and high) speed control. However, it does emit a sporadic, low-pitched buzz that ruins a bit of its realism.

 

My C40-8W I picked up for $20 at a train show, sounds like a coffee grinder (actually makes more noise than my computer which is a feet in itself) but it is one of the most powerfull units I own. Its also been decently reliable.

(note my computer has 4 high speed fans and a 7200RPM hard-drive, it sounds like a jet engine at takeoff)

 

It sounds like Bachmann has improved their quality control over the past five or six years. When I had a hobby store in Central Oregon seven or eight years ago, I had a couple Spectrum diesels (a GP30 and a F40PH) which I couldn't sell because they sounded so terrible. The F40 wouldn't even run! I finally sent them back to the factory to be repaired (along with another pair belonging to a friend). When they came back, at least they ran well enough, and sounded good enough, to sell! I'm still a little skeptical of Spectrum, but at least I think enough of them to sell them again.

 

I did a survey of Spectrum in another forum and the response was incedible.
All in all it was 50/50 either for or against Spectrum.

My 2 year old 44 tonner runs well at slow speeds but I smell the grease beginning to burn. It needs an overhaul, although it hasn't been run much at all since it was new.

The survey also said that it depended on which country or factory the models are made in.
A lot of people swear by them and I have no beef with my one Spectrum engine.

I just picked up a Proto 2000 GP9 and that's a nice engine!

One last thing, a model rr shop guy told me Bachman has stopped making the 44 tonner.
Anyone know about this?

Good luck with your engines!
And thanks to the UK for helping out over in the Middle East!
You guys are America's best friend.

Johnny Trains
NYC

 

Bachmann is advertising three new paint schemes for the GE 44-tonner: US Dept. of Transportation (US Army), Red with yellow stripes, and Yellow with Red stripes. All these should be available now, or fairly soon. I don't remember seeing these engines at the International Model and Hobby Show; however, there were a lot of trains there to see!

Pat

[ 08 October 2001: Message edited by: AKrrnut ]</p>

 

I got a few Bachmann Spectrum's! I got 3 GP-30's, and 3 44 ton center cabs, and a baby train master, and one of the CW40-8's. And of them all one of the GP-30's I have runs the best! Very quiet and smooth running and so on. It out runs my Proto 2000 SD-7/9's and my GP-7/9's, and my GP-30 P2K and my BL-2! I can't get over the little thing! I never had any trouble with it besides the plastic hand railing! It pulls like if it were a articulated steamer from Rivarossi and i'm just amazed with it. And its like 10 years or so old and I got it for $19.99 from Trailworld in New York..... I can't complain on him they put the mold and all in him when he was built! Any one get any Spectrum like this one you know you'll have one then! It never get hot nor spits or sputters on dirty rail! I use it to pull my track cleaner around being it just is a good loco. I was hoping to get more like him from Trainworld by Spectrum and all the others I bought are loud and noisy, and run good but nothing like that one GP-30 I bought.

Its a amazing I got $25 given to me when I was born by a grandfather on my dads side and it never got spent. It was put in side a Bible and thats where it was for years so yes guys its old money but my mom was cleaning one time and found it after we forgot all about it and it was for me so I took it and bought that GP-30 with it being the grandfather that gave it to my mom when I was born and thats the GP-30 that i'm talking about that runs so good! Weird huh??? I love weird! It runs and runs well so. i'm a satisfied person.. I guess it was ment to be special to me being it was from a grandfather that is no longer around and all so..... But that little loco is the first GP-30 I ever got and runs like a million and is one of my favorite diesels! I love the GP-30 body style! With the hugh dynamic brake blister over the roof and on its sides at the top of the long hood I just like the way that looks... It kinda makes the loco itself look mean I guess or something..... But it runs with the other GP-30's i have its just I can't put him on the rear to keep up the slack or he makes slack......... pushes the train off the rail with a slower loco on the point so being it runs good I have to put him on the point with the leading power...

 

hey John,
It was the Bible that helped with that purchase!
John

 

We had a pretty discussion about locomotives at the beginning of the year. I'd suggest looking over our thread in the issue. It has a lot of good information on it.

http://www.trainboard.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=8&t=000230

My experience with Bachman Spectrums was less than stellar. In fact, it stunk so much I may never buy a Bachman locomotive again, in spite of all the good experiences people have had with them. I bought three of them at once, and all three of them were sick from the box, and the more I ran them the worse hey were. From the howling noises they were making there appeared to be way too much "play" in the gears and motor. They just kept making more and more noise and running slower and slower. Needless to say I sent them all back.

My suggestion would be to only buy one that you've test-run, and that runs well and quiet. Don't hope that "breaking it in" will solve any deficiencies you think it might have. From my experience it'll only get worse.

I've since been sold on Athearn units. I do a bit of work on them to refine them, but all of mine are good pullers and fairly quiet. What do I do? Shim the worm grears and polish them, glue one end of the drive shaft, add lead (weight) to improve traction, and lubricate it properly. I even polished the armature on one, now it is my best runner. My FA unit ran perfect right out of the box with no work at all.

Bachman may make some good locomotives, but they're probably hit or miss, depending on who actually made that particular unit and all. Good luck to you, and I really hope you don't have to go through what I went through.

Mark

 

I went to the thread Mark mentions above. To get a clearer idea of what was being said overall I pulled all the ratings that were given and did some maths (add and divide, nothing clever) to get an average rating. For those interested this is what I found (out of 10, best at top):
Athearn Genesis -- 8.7
Proto 2000 -- 8.6
Atlas -- 8.6
Kato -- 7.9
Walthers -- 7.3
Stewart -- 7.0
Walthers Trainline -- 6.8
Athearn -- 6.8
Concor -- 4.6
Bachmann -- 2.9

This is a crude 'all-in' analysis, and the numbers could (maybe should) be worked different ways, but it is only meant to be a rough guide. I didn't include a couple of makes where only one or people scored them.

Made me wonder if 'the board' could do an occasional survey of user satisfaction like JD Power do for cars.

[ 14 October 2001: Message edited by: Mike Sheridan ]</p>

 

For some reason Bachmann's steam engines are really good. I have not had a problem with the Spectrum mountain, shay, or consolidation. So while I would not recommend their diesels, I would recommend their steam.
Eric

 

Ref the 44 tonner, Bachmann have announced they are going to be re-issuing it with a new chassis, I think that is the reason that the existing version is being phased out slowly.

HTH

 

Martyn,
Do you know if they are going to offer the same proto types on the 44 tonners? Reason I ask is I have the B&O #20, I want to also get the Western Maryland #76 maybe even the #75. I don't know which... I know I want one or the other... And the crazy thing is that Bachmann Spectrun is the only manufactuer to offer a correct 44 ton Center Cab Switcher by G.E.

 

<blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Mike Sheridan:

Made me wonder if 'the board' could do an occasional survey of user satisfaction like JD Power do for cars.
<hr></blockquote>

<font color="336633">I think that would be a great idea, as a mod of this forum I will have a think about how to go about doing this.</font>