I learned a valuable lesson from my early days with N scale to by quality. Now that I am all out HO (again) I have practiced what I preached and bought Quality. I will list my preferences below with a rating system 7-10 since all the engines I have bought are of high quality to my standards. model drivetrain / appearance / DCC freindly Kato 10 / 7 / 8 Atlas 9.5 / 9-10 / 9 P2K 8.5 / 9.5 / 9 Stewart 9 / 7.5 / 8 Again this is only my opinion! [ 23 February 2001: Message edited by: Dale ]
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by friscobob: I must take exception to the low ranking of Bachmann Spectrum. If you exclude the 44-tonners and 70-tonners, I may agree with you. I have two 44-tonners that are well-detailed, run slow, and pull about as many cars as the real ones did. For a Class 1, they're our of their league- for a short line, they're well-matched. The Spectrum GP30 is also decently detailed, but the drive sounds like a coffee grinder. The Plus and regular lines are a total waste of plastic.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> I agree, Friscobob, I have 2 CW40-8's from spectrum, and the oldest one I have Is as quiet as my kato unit!! The new one is louder, I think that they are just getting in a hurry, therefore they are'nt as good, but over all I like my Spectrums. My Ratings: Atlas=10 Kato=9 Atearn=6 Bacmann Spectrum=Older=9 Newer=7 P2k=10 Life-Like=1 Bachmann=1 Tyco= -3 Rivarassi=10 IHC=7 My Favorite all around is Athearn=for price & Spectrum=tons of models
Interesting that some of us have had O.K. experiences with Spectrum diesels. Maybe the basic design is O.K., but the quality control has gone to pieces? I purchased 3 of them together a few months ago. They all ran noisely right out of the box. Two GP's? and an SD? I can't remember exactly what models they were. The GP's both died within two days. Started howling terribly, and the louder they howled the slower they ran. I think the worm gears were missing some shims or something the way they acted. The larger SD unit started to get louder and louder and I ended up sending them all back within 3 weeks. They looked nice out of the box, but looks aren't worth much if they don't work. For myself, I'd rather stick with the Athearn units I can work on for an inexpensive diesel. The detail isn't quite as nice, but the run great with a little work. Not nearly as nice as a Kato or P2K, but the cost isn't as much either. Mark.
