Hi everyone. I was browsing Ebay and noticed some HO scale IHC steam engines.
One that caught my interest was a 2-10-2 PRR steam engine.
Has anyone had any experience with these IHC engines?
Do they pull good?
It is DCC ready
It is listed at $179.95
The K4Kid
If it’s the Premier Gold series, they have an 8 pin plug. They’re not bad, but it’s a PRR loco in name only, it’s not accurate. List price is $200, so it’s not a super bargain at $180.
Found the listing - it is the Premier Gold, so adding a decoder is pretty easy. TCS has one listed in their install photos section, but it’s a simple 8 pin plug.
–Randy
They are decent engines. Being stock they pull about as much as a Bachmann Spectrum 2-8-0 which is 25-30 not perfectly free rolling cars on level track.
I picked on up for a project and added weight to it during the bash. There is room in the boiler to do so. I ran into an odd squeak while building where the front driver axle would squeak under load. I had to use a heavy grease insted of just oiling it to fix the problem and has run like a champ since. (took a while to figure that out) I had it on a 45 car train last weekend.
As for price I picked the one I got up for $100 at a show in 2013. That price could be luck plus patience.
Like other IHC engines its a good start for projects.
Nice K1. Guess I better get busy, only way I will be able to afford one is to build it myself like that, forget the brass ones.
–Randy
Be aware IHC is no longer in business and parts are getting hard to find. So you could end up with a 180 dollar paper weight if something fails.
Nothing wrong with buying NOS or used but it should be priced accordingly.
Not totally true: http://www.ihc-hobby.com/
Their customer service section mentions they can still do non-warranty repair for IHC products. Also the SF version of the 2-10-2 is still available - that’s where I got the $200 MSRP from. Shuld be able to beat $180 elsewhere, unless I absolutely positively needed that specific loco, I think I’d pass. It does have free shipping though.
–Randy
So it does and I stand corrected. I thought that was just a group selling off the bones of IHC.
IMHO you could get a lot nicer engine for $180. Train World, Micro Mark and others sell Bachmann DCC/sound equipped steam engines for less than that.
Mostly it is but they do seem to carry other stuff as well - remember IHC is what came outof AHM, and neither company really made much stuff, they were importers and/or had items made by Rivarossi and others, mostly in Eastern Europe. It sounds like this Texas company has some repair parts, and still maintains some stock of some items. Some of the web page seems to be just the old IHC page - I see phone numbers listed as 215 area code,w hich is Philadelphia.
–Randy
I got the same impression, especially this part: “We boast the finest R&D staff ever assembled and take our leadership role very seriously.” [(-D]
Thanks for the opinions. I think I will pass on it.
I’ll just have some patience and keep looking around.
This policy has usually worked out to where I find a good deal elsewhere later on.