I want to include a 2-8-0 Consolidation or even a 2-6-0 Mogul on my layout for a little tourist railroad. A visit to my local hobby shop didn’t clear matters up much for me, nor did an online search. I’m feeling confused and just a little discouraged. Has anyone tried the N-scale steam locos by Model Die Casting (aka Roundhouse)? Are they okay? I saw a 2-6-0 run and it seemed all right, but they had no 2-8-0 to show me. Are there particular runs of these locos that I should watch out for, or any problems? The Athearns seemed to me to run kinda jerky. Was it just because the engines had been sitting on their shelf a long time? I never got to see a Bachmann Spectrum run, or an Atlas. Does anyone here have a favorite steam engine of this size, or should I just wait another 5 years for something better to come out?
You can’t go wrong with the Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0. Just watch the valve gear; it’s a bit delicate. Of course, I ripped mine apart to add a decoder and turn it into a Pennsylvania Railroad H10sa.
There’ll be an article about it in the next edition of the NTrak steam locomotive book.
There are some inaccuracies in the valve gear, and the tender is stock Bachmann (while close to a PRR LInes East short-haul tender, it has the wrong slope sheet, rivet pattern, and trucks).
All said and done, it’s only an approximation to a PRR H-class consolidation, although it most resembles an H10sa. But hey, in N scale, we can’t just buy everything off the shelf like they can in HO!
My Spectrum 2-8-0 had much of its boiler weight removed to hold the DCC decoder and to fit the Pennsy boiler. Yet, it can pull any load I give it with ease. I routinely pull 15-20 loaded hoppers (plaster loads!) with it.
Okie dokie, you’ve convinced me. I love Consolidations, and they were being sold for a bargain price at Brooklyn Locomotive Works so it was a real temptation. Didn’t want to buy it just because I was all over-excited about it. [;)] There seems to be quite a variety of engines out there, and very little in the way of reviews or opinions about any of them.
Congratulations on getting your engine in a published article. Did you write it?
The guys from NTrak Newsletter approached me about writing an article on it. I did.
Also, while my head’s so big ([swg]) I’ll point you to this month’s The Keystone Modeler (published by the PRR Technical & Historical Society). 5 of my locos are in it:
I have two of the MDC 2-8-0’s, one MDC 2-6-0, four Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0’s and two 4-8-2’s, and three Kato 2-8-2’s, along with an assortment of other N steam. I also had one of the original run Model Power 4-4-0’s, with is very similar to their 2-6-0.
The MDC loco’s are awesome, and you can get them for a song at trainworld ( http://www.trainworld.com/2007_n_scale.htm ). I like mine very much, and they aren’t too bad to cram a decoder in if you need to.
The Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 and the 4-8-2 are also excellent runners, but try before you buy. Bachmanns “quality control dept.” tends to nod off sometimes I think. They are a piece of cake to put a decoder in.
The Kato’s are some of the finest runners out there, but you really need to do the traction tire upgrade to get the most from them. I’m not sure if the new ones come with it or not, but you had to add it to the old ones.
The Model Power loco’s can be a bit tricky. Some run good out of the box, then later need some tweaking to keep running well. Others are great right from the start. The first run loco’s should be avoided by someone not familiar with tinkering. The wires transmitting power from the tender to the loco snap off after a short time.
For my money, for a starter loco, I’d go with an MDC/Athearn, the Bmann Spec. (try it out first), or, if you can get a Kato with the TT installed (or have someone experienced show you how), those would be the ones to look for. If it came down to dollars, it MDC/Athearn all the way. Thats a lot of bang for the buck!
If you can’t get the MDC versions, the Athearn ones use the same motor/drivetrain. Athearn updated the couplers & paint schemes on them. It’s possible the 2-8-0’s were sitting for a year or 2. Athearn did 2 releases of them. The first was in a “color” scheme that matches the MDC/Athearn Overton or Overland passenger cars. The second was in a black scheme used in freight service. It’s possible the older units need some cleaning & relubing. It’s also possible the dealer’s units need some break in time.
BTW the Athearn/MDC 2-6-0 is due in July. In hope Athearn dosen’t delay them. THe Challengers may have been 6 months late from origonal release date. It appears Athearn used the time to be sure most locos would run fine OOTB.
Another tiny steamer to consider is Atlas little Mogul. It makes a good replacement for Bachmann’s 4-4-0 American. The locos mentioned so far is all you need for a 19th century pike. THe MP & Bachmann Spectrum steamers get you into the 20th century.
If you want a logging type, get a Atlas Shay. Use it to pull 2-3 Atlas Caboose cars, or makeup some cut down flat/stock car “tourist” cars.
I forgot to mention, a few of the early MDC 2-8-0’s were available with a balloon stack as opposed to the capped stack they come with now. I;ve seen one of the early Virginia & Truckee ones with this balloon stack.
As for the Atlas 2-6-0, the chassis is made by Micro Ace who makes a quality part. They do require a bit of extra break in time over the usual, but they smooth out nice.
