A late Christmas present arrived. It is a MRC F7 in B&O colors. I did’nt know they even built locos!!
Looking up their site, and sure enough, they do/did. The B&O is not listed. Anyways, I’d LOVE to have a “B” unit to match, and the page mentions that they are available, but I cannot find one listed.
I am curious to run this (needs hardwired for a chip) it is built like a TANK, I mean LOCOMOTIVE!!
anyone else have one of these??
I guess they quit making them and they’re closing them out. Last time I looked they only had a few models left. Most folks here bashed them pretty bad when I asked about them a couple years ago. They looked pretty good for the $$$. Let me know how it runs. I could use a couple low cost F unit drives for some old shells I have. Pics would be cool too if you have some.
I think they did some N scale for a while, but I think it was relabeled Rivarrossi’s.
They did a couple versions of an HO C420. While people continue to bash them, the last one (built by Lima) was actually pretty good and ran well. The F was built in China 1999 ( I think one of the earliest China built HO), came with a decoder installed, windows, metal grabs and grilles installed, and in the case of PRR, trainphone installed ( the first factory trainphone I am aware of). Again, while people bash them, they look good and operate quite well.
I will try to get some pics tonight for you all. The inside looks like a block of steel milled out[^] shaped like an F7. I’m telling you that sucker is heavy and should pull like mad. There is no plug for a decoder, but the board is laid out really nice, and labelled too. If you were ever scared to put a decoder into an engine, THIS is the one to start with!
I am out of decoders right now, or I’d have a test run report too.
I saw on the MRC site they had a few at 19$!!! In my opinion the MOTOR is worth that even if you use it to repower an old BB. Train
If you see a “B” unit please let me know!!
Below is a photo of my 2 F7 A units by MRC. The B unit is a Stewart dummy F3 I painted to match, and I still need to get decals for it. I am pleased with how well these locos operate. Evidently, these models did not sell well, and it is a mystery to me why that is the case.
They are crude in terms of detail.
They ride about a foot too high on the trucks.
The paint is too thick.
The nose contour is wrong.
The headlight housings are the wrong size.
The windows are the wrong shape.
The fans are in the wrong space.
The truck sideframes are shallow.
The horns are too big.
Besides the above, they are fine.
David B
Wow… Did you count the rivits, too? [:D]
Quote:
1. They are crude in terms of detail.
2. They ride about a foot too high on the trucks.
3. The paint is too thick.
4. The nose contour is wrong.
5. The headlight housings are the wrong size.
6. The windows are the wrong shape.
7. The fans are in the wrong space.
8. The truck sideframes are shallow.
9. The horns are too big.
Besides the above, they are fine.
David B
Points 1 -9 only listed the good details about the MRC locomotives.
Are these the units that were sold as train sets???
CZ
Later, I thought about my post to David B, and it occured to me that it could be taken differently than my intent. I meant to kid David about his outstanding knowledge, but later I thought it may have sounded sarcastic. Sooooooooo …sorry about that.
Actually the only thing that concerns me with these F7’s is excessive coupling distance, and that is fixable. (another “round tuit” for me.) They run fine, and the paint on mine looks quite good.
Happy Model Railroading!
I got the tounge in cheek the first time round…no need to backtrack.
David B
I bought one of those (HO scale) when they first came out c.1998 because we were just getting ready to install DCC on our club layout and no one had anything that was DCC equipped.
The F7 I received was a Walthers Trainline engine. The MRC decoder was dead on arrival.
MRC’s special offer at the time was you could get the locomotive with decoder installed (solder-in installation) and 4 extra decoders for a really cheap price.
Three of the extra decoders were also dead on arrival.
So I wound up with a cheap Walthers Trainline F7 and one good decoder out of five.
Later on, when I began purchasing Digitrax and Lenz decoders and learned how poorly the MRC decoder performed, I converted the F7 back to DC operation and later gave it away because it was too crudely built when compared to even an Athearn BB loco.
Several years later another club member began purchasing MRC decoders and must have wasted his money on 10 of them before finding one that lasted more than a few seconds before going up in smoke. I kept telling him he was wasting his money, but he kept on buying them “because they’re cheap!”
That’s why I have never trusted any MRC decoder since.
I though maybe MRC had improved over the years, so I recently purchased a Sounder. Big mistake. Dead on arrival.
Previously, all the these dead decoders were just being thrown into the trash, but this time I sent it back to MRC for repair or replacement. Haven’t heard from them yet.
I think the only reason MRC continues to stay in the decoder business is because 90 percent of the people who buy them throw the dead ones into the trash instead of sending them back for repair or replacement.
If everyone who bought defective decoders from MRC sent them back MRC would be so swamped that perhaps the management would finally realize they have a serious quality control probem with their manufacturer in China.
cacole-MRC warranty doesn’t mean a lot when you have to include $10 or $15 to get the decoder repaired. Better off to send the fried decoder and $12 to NCE and get one of theirs instead under the trade in policy.
MRC builds some very nice looking model car kits as well. I’ve built a few of them and was very happy with them.