im looking to buy my first i don’t need all the bells and whistles. but im look for a deiseil engine or steam that works with digitrax about the time when steam was being phased out and deisel in
ohhhhh ya one other thing do these rail nippers realy work or am i better off sawing the track thanks alot !
ray
ps anyone around omaha ne area
Rail nippers are much better than sawing. Cleaner and straighter cut.
As far as the locos go, I can’t personally recommend any models, but as far as brands go, get a Kato, P2K, or Atlas if they make the model you want. If you can, I’d go ahead and buy the one with all the bells and whistles though. literally. It would seem that you could be semi-new to this, and may not have heard a sound unit operate. Locomotives with QSI sound chips are amazing, especially when you’re using Digitrax (DCC in general) You can honk the horn, clank the couplers, ring the bell, squeal the brakes, turn the air pumps off and on, and a whole lot more with DCC. The detail and quality of these locos is amazing too.
Have fun,
Greg
Almost all dcc products conform to NMRA standards which means that any DCC equipped locomotive, whether it has a factory installed decoder or one that is installed by the customer should operate on your Digitrax system. There are several companies that sell moderately priced DCC equipped locos. Bachmann Spectrum is a good choice. For a little more, you can get an Atlas which will be a notch ahead quality wise. Just make sure you understand the difference between DCC ready and DCC equipped. DCC ready means there is a plug ready to accept a decoder that can be purchased separately, not necessarily from the same manufacture. DCC equipped means the decoder is already built in to the loco. If the loco is neither, you can still install a DCC decoder but you will have to find a space inside the shell and solder the wires yourself.
I would agree with Trainwreck100. If you are just starting, try to get a sound equipped loco. I don’t know what your budget is, but you can get a sound equipped loco for around $150 if you look around (I did). It sounds great and looks good. A good non-sound equipped, DCC ready loco will run in the $80-100 range anyway. Shop till you drop! Get the most for your $ that you will be happy with.
What are you looking for, diesels or steam? There were both in abundance at the time you specify. Otherwise, sound or not, the advice of Kato, Atlas, P2K, and BLI are good choices. The latter two make steamers, both excellent.
thank you excited to hear more
thanks again
Check trainworld.com for best prices. The brands mentioned are all good options. Personally, I’d go for a BLI K-4, but they can be more pricey and are a PRR locomotive only. But it’s an absolutely sweet running beautifully done engine.
I’d advise against buying the cheap Bachmann ones - the locos are actually very good but the decoders are terrible - they have neither BEMF or silent drive, so they’re noisy and don’t run well at low speeds. Better to buy the non-decoder ones and add decoders - the difference in price here equates to a TCS T1, which is a far better decoder than the Bachmann one!
I have an Atlas diesel that came DCC ready, and it works great. I also have another Atlas that is DCC ready, that one actually has speaker mounts when I am ready to get sound. I have run trains on a buddy’s layout, and he is sound equipped, and I can tell ya, when you experience running with sound, you don’t want to run any other way.
So to answer your question, if you want to run DCC out of the box, then you need to buy one equiped with a decoder, sound (bells and whistles) is an option. If you want to install your own decoder, then get one that is DCC ready. But (there’s always a but), if you have any intention of running sound, whichever way you go, make sure there are provisions to mount speakers, otherwise you’ll have to break out the dremel (depending on manufacturer of course) to make room for the speakers.
Glenn
Well if I were you I would go with Atlas master DCC equiped locomotives. On ebay you can find the locomotives for about 70, 80 dollars instead of going out and using 150 dollars to purchace a new one.
James
actually had someone at the hobby shop ask me if i would like to hear the sound . wow u guyes were right AWSOME ! next question do they have different sound for different diesels, what about steam ohh ya the three i head were all broadway limited (e7a) (sd40) and a (2-8-2 mikado)
My Bachmann Shay was DCC ready when I bought it. I installed a Soundtraxx LC decoder and am very pleased. I went from HO to On30. I did an HO Spectrum Shay as well. Ask SpaceMouse how he likes his. It used to be mine.
I use a dremel to cut my rail.then a little filing and gold. Do you own an engine now. If so save some money and install your own decoder. If I can do anyone can. If not you are in the right place. name your price range and these guys can help you.