I had a Lionel set in the late 50’s, my mom (of course) gave it away in the mid-60’s. I now have a nine year old daughter and we got the Bachmann set with the DCC and two locomotives. It uses EZ Track. So far we are happy. I am getting more track and we are building the table that was in the bonus booklet in the Dec. issue of MR.
We are looking to play and build some scenery–we are not, due to cost, time and interests, going to get into real modeling. What is the feeling about Bachmann products? Again we are looking to keep costs down and their line seems good enough.
For the cost they are great but to a point. My first steam engines where Bachmann and I still run then when the mood hits me.
On the engines they have low pulling power but for fun 10 to 15 cars they are fine.
It all so depends on what kind of Bachmann you bought. There Silver Series rolling stock is great after you replaces there couplers with Kadee 148’s. That is all so if you get over 15 cars.
If you don’t want to get knee deep in this hobby again Bachmann is a pretty good deal. I still run a Bachmann EZ DCC system but with a much bigger power supply at the house.
Main thing is don’t worry about what other’s think of them. If you are having fun then they are great.
I like the appearance of my two decapods and two 2-8-0’s, but they do not creep well nor pull well. They need higher torque motors or larger ratio reduction gears. I am still looking for better motors that will fit. The interface cable pair is ugly and should be replaced with one cable or a captive connector pair such as is used on the LL P2K switchers.
Kinda ironic to me that Bachmann is using the Tsunami decoders, whereas the better LL’s and BW Limited’s are still QSI (or Blueline).
Flash: the PCM series is going back to QSI after disappointing results with Loksound.
Comparing today’s Bachmann with yesterday’s Bachmann is not apples to apples. Not even close; more like apples and horse apples. Before they got bought out Life-Like had really improved their products also.
Given their relatively inexpensive price, Bachmann Spectrum steam is a very good value. I have several and have been happy with all of them. Like any other product, it’s possible to hit a ‘clinker’ now and then but overall it’s good.
You mean Bashman. Maybe Botchman? In all due credit Bachmann has come a long way in the past few years.
Bachmann stands by their products and is excellent to work with should a problem occur.
Bachmann makes a great model of the CB&Q Ne-12 caboose. With some new trucks and frame mounted couplers and correct paint it is a great model. I have three that I’ve rebuilt into models of BN and one MRL versions.
The freight cars and diesels are a cheap brand that fills a need as far as young children’s toys go. The sets with EZ Track are a great way to introduce a younger generation into trains without breaking the bank.
Their line is quite extensive in several scales and the quality has really improved. So don’t give a short side to Bachmann. Check them out.
I am interested your flash note about PCM going back to QSI. Is this information official?? PCM has never used QSI, only the models offered under the BLI portion of the company.
I would hope PCM has decided to use QSI instead of Loksound or their own in house sound.
PLease update us it you know details on the PCM future sounds.
Bachmann, insofar as HO is concerned, was primarily a toy train company that - in my opinion - was “better” than Tyco but not as good as Athearn in the low priced field. Today’s Bachmann has a line of Spectrum locos that are really an excellent buy for the money, and even their Bachmann Plus line wasn’t all that bad. In short, I believe Bachmann is riding two horses, one the entry level toy trains, and the other a mid price range enthusiast’s trains.
The Bachmann set you have is a good place to start. Their DCC installed deisels run very good for the cost.
I have 15 of their DCC diesels and have only had problems with one. Bachamnn sent a replacement within 2 weeks.
You say you and your daughter will be playing with them. Sounds like a great way to get a young girl interested in the hobby.
As far as scenery, Bachmann also has an inexpensive line of structures they call “Plasticville”. They are toy structures but are easy to put together and build around. They would be great on a small, first time layout.
Bachmann’s Silver Series rolling stock is also very good for the money. They feature metal wheels, and EZ couplers and are inexpensive. I have bougt 20-30 cars for under $9.00 at the shows.
Atlas Trainman series rolling stock is another good bargin. They also feature EZ couplers, metal wheels and sell for around $10.00.
I got a couple of the Bachmann SD45’s with DCC Onboard and they have nice detail and run fine. They have basic decoders and therefore have limited programing options, but for the price they are a good deal.
More than likely the Bachmann use of Tsunami decoders stems from the Soundtraxx (maker of Tsunami) deal with Kader (owner of Bachmann) to manufacture the Soundtraxx-owned Blackstone line of HOn3 locomotives and cars.
Bachmann & LifeLike seem to share the TrainSet market. You can find their product in HobbyLobby & other non-MR stores. They have been around making trains for a long time. With the Spectrum lines, they have improved greatly. Even the Standard lines are very much improved. Old product may fall into the junque category now.
In N scale they now have 2 great steamer models, the redone N&W J & the Heavy Mountain. Good motors, heavy diecast boiler shell, improved pickup in the tenders. With a little break-in, they seem to pull a decent number of cars.
In 2008 Bachmann may finish converting their entire line from the old Crapido to the new Knuckle coupler. You do have to check that the coupler height matches that of MTL to get it to properly mate. At least they are moving in the right direction. The new Christmas Car appears to display an ability to have better paint & decoration than in the past. Some Bachmann paint was applied so heavily it obsured the fine detail that may be on the model. Still, you won’t confuse a Bachmann model from a MTL or Atlas boxcar.
In all fairness to Bachmann, their version of the pancake drive was sturdier than Tycos. They had heavier gearing and a stronger and more durable motor, even if the drivetrain did sound like a cricket on crack.
Now that the slot car motor era is but a distant and unpleasant memory, Bachmann has really come into their own. Their retooling of their standard line was long overdue, but is providing smooth running and nicely detailed locos to hobbyists on a budget. Their Spectrum steamers are excellent, and I’ve had no problems with those I’ve purchased. I’m not sure if the Spectrum diesels are up to par yet, because I know they were problematic in the past. At least the company is readily accessible through their forum or toll-free number if there is trouble.
Hopefully their standard line will help to reel in new modelers who might have been disillusioned by the cheaper junk of 10-20 years ago.
As you have read here their biggest market is toy trains. For the price they work - for a while. They won’t win any endurance tests. We gave away ‘Harry Potter’ Trainsets as a promotion, but couldn’t keep our display running.
Bachmann (having secured a niche in the Xmas train market), has tried to enter the ‘modelers’ market with mixed success. Their 'Sectrum/ line of Steam engines have been praised and their latest Diesel entry is getting acceptance. People remembering the not-too-distant past are still gun shy.
I’ve had 4 Bachmann engines: Two were dogs (old design) and 2 were fair. All were cheep.
Their ’ smoke spattered all over the top of the engines (I diconnected), and the DAYLIGHT engines had grossly undersized tender wheels. Replacing the tender wheels raised the tender so it couldn’t be pulled by the cheap draw bar. Color me ‘gun shy’.
For $60 what did I expect? I now have brass pulling my ‘Daylights’.
Some people have praised their lifetime warrantee for $15.
WHO’s Lifetime? Theirs or yours? 2. IF it’s cheaper for them to replace than pay for repair, what does that say about the product? 3. Warranties cost money. They are needed to boost $ales.4. lastly, Good products don’t need lifetime warrantees to sell.
MOST people buying Bachmann are attracted by the price. Fair enough, but I wonder how many would pass up the chance to get a Stewart or Intermountain if they could get it for the same price?
I notice many of the praises add “for the money” as a disclaimer. I’m trying to be fair.
The older Bachmann standard line of diesels came in two variations. The early versions were dual drive with a metal underframe and a flat can type motor. They were heavy and ran reasonably well given the technology of the time (likely early to mid 1970s).
The second (later) versions of the Bachmann standard line diesels had plastic underframes, single drive, and pancake motors. The first phase of production had frame mounted couplers, while the final phase of production had truck mounted couplers. The pancake motored Bachmann locos were good for racing, but lousy for switching.
aloco, brought up the 2 different makes of the early Bachmann’s. As he said the first was a 8 wheel drive unit and can motor, these were heavy engines! I had 2 of them they were not around very long though. I think this is was Bachmann’s idea of getting into the HO loco market, it had the same design as the Athearn unit as principle, minus the flywheels.
When I was a Teen in the 70’s I use to run 2 of these back to back, they were great stump pullers, but don’t get the motors to hot, they would burn up easy. The MRC pack I had really made them run slow, the only drawback is they were made allot of noise.
When they went to the cheaper tiny pancake motor, Bachmann shot themselves in the foot, I had several of these, and all of them died an early death, the good part was that there cabs would drop onto the older diecast 8 wheel drive chassis.
The “Plus” and “Spectrum” lines put Bachman back on the map, and these are decent loco’s for a fair price. As far as selling a train set in one box, well I would hate to think about how many they sold over the years, its alway been a good market at Christmas time.