Join the discussion on the following article:
Broadway Limited Imports HO scale BlueLine USRA Light Mikado
I have one of these. Just recieved it about a month ago. The decoder goes in the tender wich lifts right off the frame.
The sound is a little soft for such a fantastic engine. If the sound board could have a selection of maybe 2 or 3 shuffs to choose from.
I have several BLI’s and have always been pleased with the results. Very smooth running engines.
Picked one up last week. Very impressed with the locomotives look and sounds. Would suggest getting the dc controller unless you already have dcc.
I purchased one of these recently and fitted an NCE decoder.
The loco runs very smoothly and pulls well. The only problem I have is the chuffing has never worked. All other sounds work well.
I have traced this to a fault in the wiring for the magnetic reed switch speed sensor. I have replace this sensor but the chuffs are not reliable, it chuffs randomly so I just turned the chuff volume down to zero and enjoy the other sounds.
A little disappointing, if all sounds worked it would be excellent value for money. Apparently others have had this problem with the Blue Line Mikados… a google search will reveal all…
Rob
I bought a pair in May of this year, the chuff went out on one of the units, I contacted BLI and they replaced the reed switch and both units are doing a fine job.
First of All the NMRA plug in DCC socket is located in the tender which has a removable shell for easy installion. And Yeah Ive heard alot about these broken sensors for chuffing. But BLI offers a deal where you can send your faulty loco back in and they’ll replace it or fix the sensor for no cost at all.
-Jacob Hanson
I just purchased one this past week. I had it on order for almost two years. It cannot pull more than five cars up a 2% grade. How do I add weight to the engine so it has some pulling power? This one even has traction tires on one driver!