im new to this hobby.
i had in my possession a few bachmnan n scale locos.
they were old and just dont run smooth i cleaned contacts but not much better.
i want to know the best trouble free N scale loco, weather it be diesel or mogul.
please tell me if it should have a flywheel, made of metal, have special gears or whatever.
just tell me what to look for. what are the differences in a loco quality??
i dont wanna spend over 80 bucks thanks.
80 bucks should get you an Atlas. Start there.
Steve,
Along with Atlas, I would highly recommend Stewart locomotives. I have a VO-660 and an FT A-B. The Buehler and Cannon drives are strong and quiet. The FT is my best crawler at low speed.
M.B. Klein has some great deals. Also check eBay.
Tom
I would recommend a Blue Box Athrean for your first locomotive. (Under $50.00) They have some really great features as good as the pricey locomotives and their downside isn’t that significant. Athearns are very strong locomotives, easy to work on, and run great. The downside is that they aren’t the best detailed locomotives in the world but a couple of Detail parts from Details West or Detail Associates will bring them on an even keel with one of the more pricey locomotives. Their headlights could use a revamp too, but that comes with time and how much customizing your willing to do…chuck
My first two were a Kato F7 and an F3. Though I’ve not run them much except a bit on a temporary layout, I’m quite impressed so far. The F7 was around $60…the F3 around $90, but that was actually a train set, not just a locomotive. I’m DC also, but both are supposed to be very DCC friendly, should that day come.
I really like the Kato E8’s. They run very smoothly and are very reliable. I have four of them that I have had for about 3 years now. Not a single problem with any of them. It also looks like they sell for right around $80.00 new.
Mr. Screech is N scale, so unfortunately a few of the suggestions here won’t work. You won’t go wrong with an Atlas or a Kato, though.
This would be for N Scale - right? (as other replies have been for HO)
In N-scale, you can’t go wrong with Atlas or Kato. You’ll find that Atlas has a bigger selection, and Kato units will usually command a higher street price.
Don’t count out Intermountain - especially for F-units. I’ve heard good things about them.
Lifelike is good if it’s a recent release (past five years) and you run in DC. I have a couple that run as smoothly as Atlas units.
Standard on all good N-scale locos are:
All wheel drive and pickup.
Dual Flywheels.
DCC ready.
MT/Accumate body mounted couplers.
Slow speed motors.
[#oops]…Missed that.
Tom
My earlier statement was probably inaccurate. I should have said he is working in N scale. He, himself, is most likely not N scale. If he is, we will have trouble seeing his trains…
screech, I was a little puzzled as to why you were getting HO Scale recommendations when you had clearly identified your question as pertaining to N Scale; then I reread drilines quote of your original post and saw that you apparently went back and changed the title to the post as well as the second line of your narrative. I will, therefore, pick up this thread with an N Scale response.
Your post addresses the issue of reliability of N Scale locomotives; I have several Kato and Atlas locomotives, a handful of Bachmann dash eights and a couple of Gas Electrics; I have an old Con-Cor DL and a handful Life-Like PAs and PBs.
I would, as would most others, give my highest marks to Kato and Atlas although I have never really had any operational troubles with any of the others. My Bachmann dash eights are a little on the noisy side and my Life-Like units suffer from the fact that the B-units are unpowered - at the time of original purchase Kato was just a little beyond my budget and I purchased an extra A-unit to chop it down to power a B-unit but I’ve never quite got around to doing that.
You do not specify just exactly where your motive power interests lie. Are you interested in covered wagons (EMD Fs or Alco FAs) or does your interest lean more towards road switchers (GP7/9s or GP20s or GP40-2s or Alco RS11s or C420s). That interest is going to be determinate as to your choice of what you will purchase.
As you’re getting plenty of N scale diesels to pick from, let me suggest a few steam choices.
All I run is N scale steam, so I know of a few that would serve you well at your price point.
Lets start with Trainworld (http://www.trainworld.com/2007_n_scale.htm). An excellent source of loco’s at decent prices. The people answering the phone don’t have a clue what a train is, so have your part # handy, but the prices are good and if there’s a problem, they stand behind their product. The MDC Roundhouse 2-6-0 & 2-8-0 are both excellent runners, as are lots of other loco’s they stock.
If you look around you can also find new Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0’s & 4-8-2’s. Make sure it’s the Spectrum 2-8-0, not the standard line loco. There is a world of difference!
The old time looking Atlas 2-6-0 is a great loco, but it’s on the higher side of your budget.
Model Power has a Mikado and a Pacific that are nice, but they lack traction tires and so their pulling power is limited out of the box. The Pacific had a traction tire upgrade that made it a fine runner, but they sold out of them. If you can still locate the upgrade kit, a Pacific would make a great loco. The 4-4-0 is good, but also needs a tire to pull better. The up shot is, the same tire kit that fits the Pacific fits the American. The down shot is that, well, you read about the availability problem already.
Bachmann is upgrading their standard line loco’s with new mechanism’s that are a big improvement over the old loco’s. The 4-8-4 Northern and the 2-6-2 / -0-6-0 are some of those new toolings that would fit your budget. They are decent loco’s. You can tell the new toolings by the blackened drivers and the jewel cases they come in vs the old cardboard box junk.
There are other great steam loco’s in N too, but most of
I’m an N scaler too, and most of my steam locos are Spectrum. You could probably buy or win a 2-8-0 Consolidation off of eBay for around $50.00 + S&H, or a 4-8-2 Lt. Mt. for around $60.00 + S&H. The Spectrum A&B F-7 sets aren’t too bad either as long as you keep the wheels clean, and usually cost about $35.00 to $40.00 a set + S&H.
Good luck to you.
Tracklayer
thanks for the replies, yes i noticed i did not specify i was going with n scale.
i got 2 replies so quick before i could edit it. sorry for the inconvienence. well, i see bachman is out (other than the spectrum line) since trainword and model power is whithin 10 miles from me i should check them out. and yes trainworld is a very nice store, 5 years ago they really didnt have answers for me. how come model power is not mentioned yet???
Model Power… I don’t think anyone thinks too much of the diesels. The steam has real potential, but is inconsistent quality wise. The word is that good ones are very nice. I have one of the others, I am woking on fixing that. It looks great. Runs, not so much!
Stick with recent release Atlas for your first N scale locomotive. They are very high quality, and something like a GP 9 would be appropriate for about 50 years worth of prototype railroading.
If you don’t know specifically what you’re looking at, I would advise against buying your first engine off of Ebay. It’s okay for a more experienced consumer, but there’s a lot of crap out there masquerading as quality.
If you order from a reputable dealer, you should have no problem returning/exchanging it if you don’t like what you get… not so easy with ebay.
Also, take some time to look up other N scale model railroad forums… there’s a bunch out there. You’ll find a deeper pool of information about the scale than you will here.
Don’t worry about those HO guys… sometimes they forget there are other scales…
Lee
In agreement with KATO & Atlas as first choices from what I have read and from the few I own. I have almost entirely steam including a variety of most brands, both vintage & new. I definitely second what Paul said about MDC Roundhouse 2-6-0 & 2-8-0 locos. They are excellent! I also have & like the Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0, not so much their 4-8-2 (at least not the one I have). The Atlas 2-6-0 is a nice looking tiny little loco that runs well for it’s size. My Model Power 4-4-0, etc… all run very nicely and I have nothing but praise for them. Perhaps I was lucky so will defer to anyone who got a lemon.
My two bits worth from a DC dinosaur who has been gradually upgrading his loco roster in recent years with an eye on a possible DCC future. [C):-)] Rob
Lets not forget Life Like…I have a Life Like SW 8 that runs great…Very slow running and good pulling power…I got it new from Ebay for 30.00…Cox 47
The best diesel that I own in your price range is the Atlas Trainmaster. It pulls more than any other single locomotive and is quiet and reliable. The Kato SD70MAC is a close second and the Atlas GP38 is third. Intermountain f units are a bit pricier, but worth a look.
Ther are no steamers in your price range that I would consider personally. the closest in price would be the Kato 2-8-2. As stated by others, it really nice.
Bob
Look two posts up from where you wrote this and you’ll see that I mentioned them.