Okay…now that we have a zillion manufacturers producing HO scale F-7 models what do you guys think is the best one for durability and smooth operation?
I want to add a couple ABBA sets to my Western Maryland collection but can’t decide which one is the way to go. I’d prefer undecs so paint quality isn’t a concern to me.
I have seen the Athearn Genesis and they’re excellent looking and seem to run well compared to their stock line. I have seen the Stewarts but haven’t seen them operate. I have not seen the Walthers/P2K, Intermountain or BLI units at all. I would say the Bachmanns are not in the running.
DC or DCC? Sound or no sound? These choices may push the choice one way or another.
I recently replaced an ancient (like 50 years old) Athearn F7 chassis with a new Genesis chassis, retaining the original shell mostly for nostalgic reasons. The new chassis runs very well, and it’s very quiet. The old one, by the way, still ran as well as it did 50 years ago, but it still sounded like someone dropped a handful of metal pellets into a blender, so I replaced it so that I could hear the sound decoder making diesel noises instead.
For durability, hands down it’s the Athearn Blue Box line. Anything that can survive what my nephew put them through and still be running definitely passes the durability test. For smooth operation my vote goes to Proto 2000.
Stewart Hobbies, IMHO, make the best drive out there…bar none. Old Stewarts use a Kato drive (best EVER in an HO locomotive) and newer ones use a German Can motor with their own drive (just as fine).
The ultimate for me is an Athearn Genesis shell (Highliner shell) on a Stewart Chassis. They are compatable because Highliner made their shells to be compatable with Stewart Chassis.
I’ve picked up several Stewart F unit ABBA sets (1 F3, 2 F7s, 3 FTs) over the last few years, and “for the money”, they are simply great! The F3 and F7 consists are all units powered with the Kato drive, and the FTs with the Stewart drive (I had to buy the power chassis separately for the FT B units). Anyway, with 4 units powered, they can pull whatever you have to throw at it.
These are all ATSF units, and I added American Limited diaphrams (spell?), and the KD couplers made especially for them. Of course you could add more details too them (or get another shell), but for me - these are just great!
I have the P2K/Walthers Empire Builder units in DC no sound, and they are the best running units I have. They even beat my Kato SD90s and I never thought I would say that.
Oh and the detail is stunning, albeit if you are in the market for an ABBA set up it’s not cheap - but so what.
I’ve seen all of them except for the blueline, but I own none of them. (haven’t found any BN F-units for sale; athearn, stewart, and intermounain are the only ones who make them in BN)
For detail, I’d say the P2K one is the best, and stewarts are at the bottom. Running quality is either Proto or Stewart. As for sound, I think the QSI ones sound better then the MRC ones. Haven’t heard the blueline’s.
I have to say my Walthers P2K are my favorites with the level of detail (along with DCC and sound). I really like my Athearn Genesis but I need to add some detail to them to bring them up to par with the Walthers. I have one set of Stewart and the detail is the least of all my F units. All run fine and have had all but the Walthers for several years with no problems.
Since I’m still running a few 20-year-old Athearn F7s, I can’t really comment on the new ones [:)] Seriously though, those old F7s are tough as nails. One of mine took a trip down the steepest grade on the layout…and survived. Granted, it lost some of the cab windows and the motor was knocked out of place when it hit the floor…but that was the extent of the damage. Put it back together, it still runs fine. I can’t say the same for the wooden floor in my train room. There’s a dent in it!
“DURABILITY”: Kato drives are the winners on Chicago’s grueling MS&I LAYOUT - as used by (and later copied by STEWART & IM)…
PROTOTYPICAL ACCURACY: (late) Proto 2000 (early) Genesis, (kit) Highliner. Much knitpicking has been said about EMD’curved noses, but since they were individually formed, it hasn’t been established if there was one ‘correct’ one.
(ATSF) PAINT JOB: InterMoumtain, Genesis.
LIGHTING: Genesis
CHEAPEST: ATHEARN’s 50 year old F7s A & B (still running). Origially sold for $10 apiece, but neither prototypically accurate, smooth strarting or stopping, + headlight in cab. Athearn BB engines also all ran faster for the beginner market…
I totally agree. I’m only familiar with the newer Stewart Canon and Buehler drives but they are absolutely smooth - especially at low speed. Proto 2000s are nearly as good as the Stewarts.
David, this is actually new news to me. I had always heard/thought that Highliner shells were only compatible on Athearn chassis? So I just checked Hobbylinc.com. Sure enough their webpage says Athearn or Stewart drives. That’s EXCELLENT news! Now I can build an accurate NYC FT and F3 unit. [:D][tup]
Durability - the old Athearn Blue Box. Smooth operation - the original run of the Stewarts that have the Kato drive. The newer ones almost as as good. I run them in mixed sets and cannot really tell the difference unless I am trying.
Athearn Genesis are probably the best looking as they use the Highliner shells. The drives are fine too. The problem with the Genesis are the electronics. So If you decide to go Genesis get the plain DC versions and upgrade to DCC and/or sound yourself with other companies electronics. A second problem with the Genesis is Kadee couplers. It requires some of the special ones (#38 in front #36 in back??).
Stewarts are tops for running. They have a new line called something like the executive line that have improved the details of the shells.
The new P2K units look excellent and run ok. I would put the new P2Ks second for looks behind the Genesis and 2nd behind Stewart for running. Just remember with their 14:1 gear ratio their top speed is about 70 smph. Since I purchased my set for passenger service (Empire Builder) they are way too slow.
Intermountain are probably the best researched, so they will look “right” for the road name they are painted in. They run OK. My issue with the Intermountain is the thin plastic in the nose. One can see the factory headlamp glowing THROUGH the nose. This is easy enough
Hmmm, wonder where that came from. Highliners from the beginning were designed to be multi-framed to have as broad a market as available. Of course there were not nearly as many options for frames way back then as there are now…
I have an HO Stewart NYC F7 ( Lightning Striper). I bought it new back in the 90s. Excellent running unit and my regret is that I didn’t purchase another one.
If I may expand this topic to other “F” types, we have FTs, F3s and F7s from Stewart, Intermountain (only a B unit), PCM, P2K, and Athearn Genesis (all Santa Fe, Warbonnet or freight scheme). They all run very well (DCC; factory-installed sound decoders on PCMs and P2Ks; Digitrax decoders - no sound - on the others). As to “looks”, for the PCMs, the Warbonnet red is too dark; the Intermountains “ride” too high. However, the main reason why the Athearn Genesis units top everything is the headlights, especially when they are off. Then, all the others (mostly lit by LEDs) show dark holes. Only the Genesis units look like “the real thing” in the off-state. They have shiny reflectors for single-bulb lights, or details for 2-bulb-lights (like a red and a white bulb). I know, it is a pain in the neck that the Athearn (or replacement) 1.5 V bulbs often have a very short life time. Still, I think the headlights are the single feature that makes the Genesis F units stand out above everything else.
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