What Manufacturer makes the best diesel locomotive for under 100 $ in HO scale ? ATHEARN , BACHMANN , ATLAS and so on ? Thanks in advance
It all depends on what level of detail you want. I have had no problem with Bachmann’s diesels so far, and they are smooth runners, but not as smooth as Atlas. Atlas is the all around best for diesels, and Arthern is best for detail, but the drive is sometimes noisy.
As far as the drive train is concerned, Atlas locos are the best. I’m not sure if the Atlas Trainman GP38 is still under $100, but it has the same mechanism as the more expensive Atlas Classic and Master series locos.
Some of the new Bachmann locos have a decent drive train too, but I don’t know how good the decoder equipped locos will run if you want to use DCC. I know the Digitrax DCC system doesn’t like some Bachmann decoders.
Athearn is hit and miss. I have four RTR GP35s that run okay. I also have a bunch of RTR RS-3s, and some run good while others run poorly.
Atlas wins hands down! Smooth stuff! Athearn RTR is hit or miss, but when you get a good one, they’re great. Easy to kibash too! You can get Life Like/ Wathers Proto 2000 locos on ebay for cheap too. I got a Walthers(Walthers are newer runs) BN GP20 DCC/Sound for $120.
The BEST locos for under $100 are the ones that have an MSRP higher than $100 that you find on sale for less than that.
General evaluation of manufacturers, though, Atlas, Proto 1K/2K (although good luck finding a 2K for under a C note, even at deep discount), Bachmann’s Spectrum line (only), and IHC’s Command XXV line (now out of production) are good quality for the money. Athearn and Walthers Trainline can be squirrelly, but are usually pretty good. Other less expensive brands: buy at your own risk.
The only QUALITY locomotive your going to get for under a 100 bucks is an Atlas Trainman loco with Athearn RTR a close second. Stay away from Bachmann, PERIOD. If you are willing to search around Ebay then you can find Atlas Classic and Proto 2000 loco’s for what your willing to pay. That’s what I would do.
Like many of the others, I feel that Atlas is the best choice, followed by Walthers Proto (formerly Proto), and then lagging behind is Athearn and Athearn RTR (somewhat noisy and finicky on occasion). The rest shall remain nameless.
Rich
While I’ve come to enjoy Atlas’ offerings, I do love Athearn, Stewart & Proto locomotives. For sheer simplicity, you can’t beat Athearn BlueBox loco’s. Yes they are noisy & yes they don’t have all the “details” the latest offerings have but they will last.
I’m still finding new ones at shows, prices are reasonable & in my humble opinion, are a better locomotive to get started out with in this hobby.
Gordon
Probably not the type of reply you’re expecting…but I’ve had great results on ebay in winning 8 Proto 2000 HO locomotives “new-in-the-box” ranging from $45-$90. I also won an Atlas SCL U-33C for $60. I agree that hands down, Atlas quality is excellent.
Some of the older run P2K units have minor issues (cracked axles, electrical p/u, oversized windshield wipers) but these are easy to fix. I like the detailing on them, including the etched walkways and operational doors, like the units below.
One of my favority loco’s is an Atlas trainman genset. The MSRP is 119.00 but actual price will be under 100 bucks.
Atlas
Here’s food for thought.
Don’t forget those older Atlas/Rocco or Atlas/Kato locomotives there are still good locomotives.
Either the Athearn RTR or the Atlas TrainMan are nice locomotives.
But!
By shopping on line you can find Atlas Classic for around $100.00
Be wise and check the better on line shops before deciding.
If it’s cash on the barrel head, yes you can get a lot of Atlas or KATO for under $100. You DO NOT have to pay MSRP. Find a good discount supplier or fleabay and get those nice loco’s for under $100. It’s all about what you CAN get them for. No need to settle for Athearn RTR, Atlas Trainman or even Atlas Classic (which are nice loco’s to be sure).
Every loco I own, with the exception of my PCM steam locos with sound, were under $100 - including the Stewart Baldwin switchers which are about the best running plastic locos I have ever seen, mainly thanks to the Canon can motor. Nearly all of them have MSRPs greater than $100, however none of them are current production so I got them mostly via eBay but others from train shows. Not all were used, either. Some were still sealed in the original box, yet cost me only $40-$50. Careful shopping is the key. Don’t go crazy because it’s something you “really want”, keep your head and eBay can be a HUGE bargain marketplace. ANd check feedback before bidding so you don’t get stuck paying a known deadbeat.
–Randy
Look at the Walthers GP9M in their catalog:
There are a whole bunch of road names on sale now for $36.98. They are DC, and only have a headlight (no rear headlight,) but they look fine. I just got one a couple of weeks ago. It runs well. It was a piece of cake to add a simple decoder, and I’m thinking there’s room in the shell to put in sound.
Like Randy, I paid well under $100 for the vast majority of my HO loco’s, which are listed on page 7 of the “show your diesel roster” topic in this same forum section. I paid between $55 and $90 discount for most of my HO loco’s which include Stewart F’s, Genesis, KATO’s, Proto 2000 and Athearn RTR loco’s.
Now the caviat is that much of the HO loco’s offered in the last 2 years from Gensis, Walthers Proto 2000, Atlas and KATO have such a high MSRP now that the discount prices is pushing will above $100. My newest Atlas GP40-2 without sound were about $99 each, my newest Genesis FP7A was $119 at discount. However my nice Athearn tunnel motors with a lot of prototypical specific details, (plow and light packages) etc for about $75 and now the newst $85 each.
You can save a lot of $$ by buying “DCC Ready” versions and installing your own decoders, too.
I’m going to buck the people who say, “Stay away from Bachmann”. Their basic line, yes, but I have 4 Spectrum locos (a GE E-33, a K-2 Pacific, and 2 GE 44 Tonners), and they all run very well, and are reasonably well detailed. I would, however, stay away from Bachmann’s non-Spectrum products.
Agree’d. You can get very decent decoders in the $15-20 price range like the TCS T1 etc, especially if you buy them in groups of 4 or 10 you get a discount. That way you have some control over the decoder you get, and it may save you some money. If DCC ready you only have to pop off the shell and plug it into to the provided socket.
When it comes to Bachman, it totally depends. And I have to be honest, I have not kept up on the newer Bachman plastic diesels - or the published reviews. I know Bachmann diesels of the 1990’s and early 2000’s were lacking in many ways. The past 6 or 7 years may have seen improvements but I would definitely read the reviews and get feedback before buying, especially if you are used to the quality of Atlas, KATO, Proto 2000 and yes, even Athearn. The Bachman Spectrum line is generally better in the diesel line but I saw the “improvements” they made to the Spectrum F40PH, which was upgraded 4 or 5 years ago and still think Walthers Trainline F40PH is better as far as fidelity goes.
Remember, the Spectrum “steam” line was run by a different group in Bachmann and are, as a rule, very nice loco’s, and have gotten very good product reviews. I have read that some of the Spectrum diesels like the GE44 tonner have also been revised and are signifcantly better than the older 1990’s model.
Jim,The newer Bachmann diesels seems to be smooth runners but,lacks details like no grab irons-kinda like the Atlas TrainMan.Of course prototype accuracy is out the window with Bachmann as you know and for the same dollar amount it would be best to move up the ladder to Athearn RTR,TrainMan or Walthers P1K or Trainline…
If you count used, you sometimes you can get very, very, lucky on ebay.
I’ve gotten 2 dcc/sound equipped locos for under 100 bucks. I got a BLI SP NW2 for $75, and a P2K U28B for $95. I’ve also picked up several P2Ks for about $15 each.
As for new, trainman locos are pretty good.